Arizona republican., 1910-11-25
CONVENTIONS
 HALF HOLIDAY Bureau for Legislative Re-
 search Agreed Upon THE BONE 0F CONTENTION Was a Provision Which Re moves from Legislature the Old Time Privilege of Selecting Own Clerks - Militia Bill Adopted.
THE BONE OF CONTENTION

The only thing that threw the con stitutional convention out of perfect harmony with the Thanksgiving Day spirit was proposition 103, or rather a substitute for that proposition pro viding for a bureau of legislative research" consisting of the governor. the attorney general and the presl- dent of the senate. But the director of the bureau is to be a sort of Ad- mirable Crichton, who is to be known as the legislative secretary and ac- cording to the terms of the measure, is to be the whole thing. He is ex- pected to know all that it is worth knowing about making laws. he must be well up in history and is to be eX pected to assist in drafting laws or rather proposed laws.
 If this had been all the work that had been cut out for the legislative secretary, the proposition would prob ably have encountered little opposi- ton but it was further provided that he should have the appointment of all legislative clerks who are to be chosen under a merit system, by which. it was explained in the course of the discussion, meant civil serv- i've examination
 This extra burden for the legisla tive secretary is said to have been proposed by MT. Winsor -whG has a mania for work. and who was stated by some of the members. believed that he could easily perform that duty in addition to the regular busi- ness of determining what measures would look well ss laws.
 Mir Lynch was of the opinion that the Legislature would be amply able to employ it's own clerks. The se- lection of them under a merit system, he said would be a farce and he pre- dicted what would haP. en if there should be a majority of one party in the legislature while the bureau would be of a different party com pIexion The bureau would recognize no merit except such as might be found in the applicants of its own party.
 MT Cunniff, in support of the prop osition, offered an amendment which he said would meet the objections of the opponents; the legislature should prescribe the operation of the merit system. The opponents could not see how any act, of the legislature would deprive the legislative secre- tary of the absolute power conferred upon him by the constitution.
 NIT. Parsons who has been viewing with alarm the encroachment of Phoenix upon the rest of the terri tory, believed that a competitive ex- animation of applicants for clerks would mean that all of them would come from Phoenix and Maricopa county. Clerks from the outer cOun- ties would hardly come to the capital and take chances at getting s4 day jobs. If this and a few other meas ures for the aggrandizement of Phoe- nix were to go through, MT. Par sons would offer an amendment glN- ing to the new state the name of "the state of Maricopa.
 MT. Winsor said that the manner of choosing clerks in the days gone bv was a disgrace to every legisla- ture Members of the legislature, he believed. would be thankful to be re- lieved of the pulling and hauling to which they are biennially subjected in behalf of this or that applicant for clerkship.
 Clerks were geneTdilE iIlCoihpStSh' and there were generally too many of them. He had witnessed sessions of the legislature when there was not moret han one competent clerk for each house He believed that the putting of the intelligent selection of clerks into the hands of the legisla- tive secretary would save money for the state and would save the state from disgrace There would be no more of these riots which attend 1 scrambles for position at the opening of legislative sessions.
 MT. Webb replying. said that he too had witnessed some of these mad rushes for positions at the beginning of sessions and he recalled that he had seen among those foremost in the rush line, gentlemen of the con- 1 vention who were now advocating the | proposition.
 MT. Webb didn't mention anybodys name. but Mir Winsor was advocat- ] ing the proposition and that gentle man had held many positions in Ari- | zona legislatures MT. Webb believed i if would be an insult to the legisla- i ture to take from it the power to se- la,., it's own clerks He asked also l who was to determine the number or cIe,lxs that might be needed
 The objection of MT. Parsons to the examination system was met bv the statement that such ex-