The San Francisco call., 1909-02-28
LEGISLATURE MAY
ADJOURN MARCH 13
Senator Wolfe Suggests Date
Which Is Likely to Be De-
layed Another Week
Railroad Rate Bills Furnish
Most Cause for Discussion
by State SOlOns
ISeeo;al Dnnntch 70 The Cali

TSseciol Dnpoich 10 The Gall
CALI. HEADQUARTERS. CHAMBER
OF COMMERCE BUILDING. SACRA-
MENro. Feb. e7.-with the direct pri-
mary bill. the railroad rate. insurance,
good roads and local option measures
comprising the important unfinished
business before the thirty-eighth ses-
sion. adjournment on March Is is pos
sibie. but that March 90 will be the
last day Of the session is more prob
able.
senator woIfe's notice that he would
introduce a resolution calling Tor hnal
adjournment on March 1S stirred up
discussion, but it probably will accom-
plish its real purpose, adjournment on
March 20.
The. senate could easily finish its
work and be ready TO go home on
March IS The. assembly works slower,
both from habit and necessity. Some
OF the assembly leaders want TO fix the
date of adjournment for March p, and
the natural result viii be a compro-
mise on March 20.
MEASURES FOR CONSIDERATION
II the direct primary bill passes the
senste Monday. according to the pres
ent schedule, il can be through the
assembly on. the following Saturday
or at latest Tuesday of the succeeding
week. -.
The insurance. bill is in no particular
danger Of delay The banking bill.
which il is believed viii give California
the best banking laws in the United
States. is already through and the gov
ernor and his aids are not worrying
about. GiIletts s1S. .00e, 009 good roads
bond measure.
4 The railroad rate bills are the center
Of most OF the present legislative storm
ing, with the outcome between the
Stetson and the Wright bills clouded in
honest doubt.
{. No one pretends TO be able TO forecast
which OF the measures will find its way
10 the governors Office for his sigma
ture. Naturally enough, Gillett hopes
il viii be his bill. for which Senator
Stetson is making the fight.
The StetsOn or admin ist rg tion bill has
a lead IN the assembly, where it has
run the committee gamut, but it is by
no means in so fortunate a position in
the upper house.
QUEsTION-oF ABSOLUTE RATES
The members of the senate judiciary
committee are turning mental hand
springs in the bewildsring endeavor 10
arrive al a maj decision between the
absolute rate features Of the Stetson
bill and the miximum rate provisions of
the Wright bill.
The worst hurdle for the Stetson bin
IS the attitude Of the supreme court as
exhibited by the dicta of Chief Justice
Beatty in the Edison case. While the
court was not called upon TO decide the
'constitutionaIity Of maximum or abso-
lute rates. it declared very plainly that
the constitution Of 1879 did not confer
upon the Legislature the right TO fix ab-
solute rates.
The warmest champions of the Stet-
son bill admit that in light of the ex-
pressed opinions of Justice Beatty the
absolute rate feature OF the Stetson bill
would be more than. likely TO go down
before the supreme court But thev
also contenj that if the feature were
rejected by the supreme court the bill
would stiH contain all that there is in
the Wright bill. and they want the leg
islature to take a chance OF getting
much rather than the reasonable GER
tainty of getting much uIder the Wright
bill