The Topeka state journal., 1909-02-16
READY TO QUIT.
House Votes to Adjourn on
March 3.
Majority Overwhelming for
Early Adjournment.
HELD BY MIR. DOLLEY.
Speaker Rules 1t Was Not Con-
stitutiOnal Majority.
Another Vote Will Be Taken
This Afternoon.
HELD BY MIR. DOLLEY.

morning when the Pyle concurrent
resolution to adjourn at noon March 3
came up for consideration. The mem
bers. like children tired of school, want
ed to quit and go home. The resolution
carried by vote of so to "a, but the
speaker ruled that constitutional ma
jority (63 votes) was necessary for the
passage of this resolution, and declared
it lost There was a protest over this
ruling and Morrison of Neosho ap-
pealed from the decision of the chair.
The house was about to vote the
speaker down on a second roll call, but
finally decided to defer further action
In this matter until o'clock this after
noon in order that the members pro-
testing might have time to look up the
law and the rules.
The vote to adopt the Pyle resolution
to adjourn March stood as follows:
Yeas-Berke of Jewell. Bonnet, Boyd,
Carpenter, Case, Clark, Cole, Crarey.
Crawford, Cron, Davis of Bourbon,
Davis of Kiowa, Deacon, Dennis Ely,
FEEDER, Francisco, Gray, Guilbert, Hop
kinS of Jackson. Hutchinson Jackson,
Kennett. Kelly, Beraus, Kuoni. Lander,
Laubach, Lehman, Lennen, Loofbour-
row, Maxwell. Mccormick Mcmillan.
McNair, Meek, Merrill. Morgan Of
borne, Penwell. Ravenscroft, Reeder.
Rhodes of Anderson. Rhodes of Mar
shall, Rich, Ryan, Schaumberg, Shoe
maker, Sekavec, Stone of Sherman.
Stout, Westcott
Nays = Buckman, Clay. Cranston,
Findley, Crumley. Cunningham, Eadie,
Edwards, F'ehr, Fisher. Flagg, Foley,
Harmon, Harbaugh. Haskin, Hopkins of
Ffnney, Jewett of Lane. Kyle. Matson,
Mercer, Miller Mitchell Moore, Morton
of Clay. Newlin, Parker, Schlitching,
Stannard. Stockton. Veatch, Watson.
Westgate.
There were 81 members absent from
this roll call.
Most of the Democrats voted for the
resolution, but it is worthy of note that
Foley of Rice, minority leader, in ex-
planning his vote against the resolution
declared that he was in favor of put
ting in fifty working days in legislative
session and then going home, but that
this resolution to adjourn March in
clUded Sundays as working days, there
fore he voted against it.
Ryan of Brown is union man and in
explaining his vote for the resolution
declared that the members had already
put in enough overtime over the regu-
lation eight hours per day to wipe out
the Sundays they had been paid for
Mercer of Chase. Veatch of Washing
ton, Mitchell of Douglas and Watson of
Allen, in voting against the resolution
declared that it was the duty or the
members to stay here until the laws
promised the people were enacted If 1t
took all summer.
There is no doubt but the vote of
the people last fall against the
adoption of the constitutional amend
ment raising the pay OF the legisla-
ture from So to SIS per day had a whole
lot to do with the temper of the house
this morning. The members regard
and Justly, too, that the pay IS TOO
small and the fifty-day session too
short to transact all the business of
this great state properly.
Kansas has doubled in wealth and
population in the past few years and
the cost of living has doubled. 1t is
a hardship upon the legislators to
work for nothing after fifty days
when they receive such small pay for
the regular session. Board and lodg-
ing costs twice as much now as it did
when the law setting legislative pay
at So per day was passed
No Special Session.
Gov. Stubbs is opposed to calling a
special session at this time There IS
no need of it. The burden of un-
redeemed promises will fall on the
event that the legislature adjourns
with its serious labors left unper-
formed.
Members expecting a special session
will be disappointed. according to
reliable information from the COVER
nor's office. 1t is squarely up to the
legislature TO either redeem its party
promises or go home and let them
drift about until the winds of Novem-
her 1911 gather them up like dead
leaves and heap them over the
political graves of these men who
played with time while they pointed
to long hours spent in sessions and
committees
After disposing of the adjourn
ment resolution until this afternoon.
the house placed on third reading for
final passage the two good roads bills
read Monday in connection with the
county engineer good roads bill which
was passed yesterday The first of
these bills is the measure taxing auto
mobiles So and SO, according to cost
of machines, a car costing up to
500 to be taxed $5, and a car cost
ing over that sum, $40. This tax will
raise about $36, 600 per year from the
1000 autos in the state and the money
from this tax is to be applied to the
payment of the salary of the state en-
gineer and the fees of county en-
gineers as far as it will go.
The good roads bill providing for
a state engineer of highways will be
| considered next, after the auto tax bill
and the dirt roads bill will come next.
This makes four good roads bills in
all. and all of them are administration
bills.
The anti-Iobby and utilities bill will
| be considered next after the good
roads bills are disposed Of
There will be a big fight on the
state engineer bill
J. l. Finely. the new. representative
from Cheyenne county, has introduced
an anti-diseriminatIon measure in the
house. 1t provides that no water, light
heating or telephone company can give
a lower rate to one consumer than ii
does to another. The bill is intended
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