The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-11-21
THE cusHMAN BILL
Senator from Bennington Explains
the Measure


the Measure
The Montpelier correspondent OF the
Burlington Free Press on Friday had
the following interview with Senator
II. T. Cushman in relation to the
trustee process bill which bears his
name:
Senator Cushman OF Bennington.
who introduced the Cushman trus-
tee process bill in the Senate had
this to say this afternoon about his
bill; THE Senate and House are not
as many think, divided on the ques-
ton OF law TO protect the wage
Garner from the loss of his entire wa
| ges through q trustee process, which
also will carry out the party promises
on this subject. But they disagree
as to which of two pending measures
would best accomplish this thing.
Twenty-Five of the 30 senators be-
lieye that the bill known as the
Cushman bill possesses more merit
and better serves the interests of the
wage Garner and more fully keeps
the party promises than does the
House bill known as the Webster
| bill. At the same time the House
| believes its bill comes nearer to the
wants Of the wage Garner and better
keeps the so-called party pledge
| Now let US see how each of the
TWO bills would work in operation.
The House bill provides that $40 OF
a worlumans' wages shall be exempt
that is II his wages are trusteed the
creditor must leave so with the debt.
or, the creditor taking all the bal
ance. So if this House bill became
a law every debt owed Of $40 and
under may be repudiated and the
state OF Vermont will protect the
debtor In SO doing. Furthermore.
a man is AT liberty to create all the
$40 debts he can and know he need
not pay dollar Of them II he does
not want to. II is not difficult to
see how this law would work. Mer-
chants are already writing TO mem
hers asking that II this bill becomes
law not TO have II take effect for
six months 10 come so as 10 give
| them an opportunity TO collect in
what they can OF their outstanding
accounts and thereafter sell only for
cash. The effect then Is 10 utterly
destroy the credit of the wage Garner
/ which is his only capital all he has
TO- do business with In case of dis
tress from panic In business or sick
ness in the family he must rely on
charity. either from his friends or
from the town Now this is a stu.
alton which neither party desires.
The laboring man needs and must
have credit and the dealer wants to
give him credit and they both want
law which will work to their mutu
al advantage and not a law 10 permit
and almost induce a man to be dis
honest
Now what does the Cushman bill
provide? II says: No man earning
less than 500 week shall be trusteet
but whatever he owes, whether one
dollar or more is subject to collection
by judgment. but only in sums OF ter
per cent OF his weekly wage Ninety
per cent must always be left with the
wage Garner.
The advocates OF the Webster bill
say there should always be $40 lef
with the wage Garner for HIS family
Suppose a man is earning sl2 = weei
and the employer. as many do, keep
back a weeks pay. At the end o
the second week the man has s2i du'
him, a trustee process Ia served. 81
Is left for the man and the other 81
taken. The man then has to live OF
this $40 for two weeks
Under the Cushman bill In tn
same case. only 10 per cent OF the 81
can be taken and s2l.60 Is left wit
the wage Garner who has the satii
faction that he ia paying his debt
and that he stu maintains his cree
Il.
"The Senate went into committe
OF the whole and fully compared an
debated these two bills side by sld
and by more than a twothirds vot
adopted the Cushman bill as best fc
the wage Garner and best calculate
to carry out the ideas OF the writer
OF the party platform. On the othC
hand we are told the House has ne
er given the Senate bill fair consl
Grafton. We do not understand IN,
the party pledges itself TO the enar
ment OF any particular bill and so
at liberty 10 take which ever hi
most completely covers the issu
There would seem 10 be, therefor
no reason why Il cannot pass n
Senate bill and thus make the co
dltlons perfect and completes IA