The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1909-04-16
ADJOURNMENT 4
IS IN SIGHT.
House Believes May IS Should
Be Final Da.e.
SENATE HAS NOT AGREED.
Fig crist Of 'eeshiatfOHr SIN Must Be
Considered - Ruling Of Speaker
Campbell Creates Strife In House..
j Bill to Pension Firemen Defeated.
Liquor Legislation Comes to Fore.

Liquor Legislation Comes to Fore.
Lansing, Mich, April 13.-All legis
lative minds are set on the date fol
final adjournment, but the two houses
have not yet agreed on the date
Every member of the legislature is
doubtless sincere in his desire to com
plete the work in hand and depart for
home at the earliest possible day
Some Of the members appear to be
willing to fix the date and, when that
date arrives, quit work regardless OF
the number of important measures
that may be left in the air. Others
as strenuously oppose such program,
although just as DESTROYS of getting
back to their homes and their private
business.
The house, after considerable de-
bate in which all phases of the prop
| osition were considered, adopted a
concurrent resolution fixing May as
1.-THE, day for ceasing work by the two
fhouses and May Is as time for final
| adjournment. An attempt to induce
the house to reconsider the vote by
which this resolution was passed
failed, but the senate proposes 10 be
less precipitate in it's action on this
important matter and has sent the
resolution to committee, where it will
doubtless remain until sucn time as
pending legislation is further advanced
and a clearer view of the end can be
had.
Situation Complicated.
The situation is somewhat compli-
Gated by the attitude of a majority of
the house relative to the right of a
majority of the body to at all times
absolutely have control of pending
bills. A battle royal was fought over
this question last Thursday, the re-,
suit being victory for Speaker
Campbell, whose ruling had been
challenged. 1t appears that a motion
was made to take certain bill away
from committee which had not seen
fit to report the measure out. This
motion was defeated Subsequently,
1t was renewed, whereupon Speaker
Campbell ruled it out of order for the
reason that having once been acted
upon by the house, and the judgment
OF the house haying once been, ,eesY-
pressed on the question, no further ac-
ton in the matter could BE takeX
This ruling Of the speaker led to
controversy which consumed an entire
afternoons session of the house, one
Of uyhtn
presentation by Representative Bryant
II Lenawee Of an opinion in which At
torney General Bird held that the
ruling to the spirit at least of the
new constitution, which provides that
each house, except as otherwise pro-
vided in this constitution, shall choose
Its own officers and determine the
rules of its proceedings, but shall not
adopt any rule that will prevent a ma
iority of the members elect from dis
charging committee from the further
consideration of any measure" The
attorney general declared that this
provision Of the constitution is in
force and operative all the time and
that the house is not vested with
authority or power to adopt a rule
that would in any manner prevent a
majority of that body to discharge a
committee from further consideration
Of any bill at any time such action
might be deemed wise. The failure
Of the house to adopt the resolution
In the first instance could not, in the
opinion of the attorney general. oper-
ate to prevent the adoption of such
A resolution at future date. Attor-
ney General Bird quoted from the Of
dcial address to the people explaining
The provisions of the new constitution
before it was voted upon by them in
support of his assertion that the pro-
vision in question was designed to
prevent just such a situation as the
speakers ruling makes possible Not
the attorney generals
opinion, majority of the house voted
10 sustain the decision of the chair.
Unhappy Situation.
All of this precipitated most I'M
happy condition of affairs. Those who
are dissatisfied with the ruling of the
chair announce that it is their purpose
% filibuster until the rule is amended
so that majority can at any time
take a bill away from a committee
and bring 1t out on the floor for con-
sideration and action. True to this |
promise. second engagement was
fought over the question Friday after
noon, but without any different result.
Feeling is running high, and is in
:ensiiied by the charge that the speak
FRS ruling Is the forerunner of a plan
b defeat the telaph one and telegram
I'd valorem taxattoh bfff by making it
impossible to take the measure away
rom the general taxation committee.
where 1t has reposed for several
weeks, majority Of the committee
being apparently opposed to the adj
valorem system and in favor of con.
.inuing the specific tax system of deak
ing with the class of property.
II is very evident that IL the legis.
lature is to adjourn May 6, or even a
fortnight later, some very energetic +,