The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1911-04-08
FIRE INSURANCE
PROBE is MUCH
NEEDED IN STATE
Investigation of Mercantile
Establishments to be
Broad, But Not Deep,
It Is Said
New York Decision on En-
ployer's Liability Puts
Dent in Prospect for Eff
fective Act.
Especial to Farmer.1


Hartford April S.--The announce
ment. this week that the Legislative
committee on interpretations hai
completed its work so far as COM
mittee hearings were concerned
brought relief TO many legislators
three months old. 1t inspired a hops
that the General Assembly would
ADJOURN in two months more. A
glance, today, at the work cut oul
for the judiciary committee for next
week discouraged this notion. The
committee is scheduled to hear abou'
10 bills, dealing with the courts, sal
aries of court officials, probate mat
ters, qualifications of voters, official
ballots, and caucuses.
One bill, in which the legal frater-
nifty are interested. provides for ses-
sions of the supreme court of errors
at Hartford only. How this change
is regarded by lawyers has not de-
veloped. At present the court meets
in four different cities year. An
other measure calls for circuitins
judges of the common pleas courts
Senator Spellacy of this city has d
bill before the committee providing
ed on ballots. Representative Thoms
Of Waterbury has a measure pro-
hibiting judges from contributing for
political purposes.
The railroads committee will hear
very important bills of the Connecti-
cut Railway and Lighting Co., con-
corning routes in Waterbury, Bridge
port, Fairfield, Stafford and Milford
and concerning the manufacture of
gas in Redding and Milford, and
electricity in Watertown. A similar
bill from the Connecticut Company
concerns routes in New Haven, Or
ange, Meriden, Norwich New Lon
don Sta an1ford and Graauwic6
The special legislative committee
investigating combines to fix prices
on necessities of life will go forward
with its probes, next week.
The committee on constitutional
amendments will have busy week.
people; proposed amendment to the
state constitution limiting the ses-
sions of the General Assembly; =;
amendment providing that final dis
agreements between the two branch
es shall be continued to a. joint as
creasing the veto power of the gov
ernor, each Of these bills will at
tract considerable attention.
The past week saw considered
more matters of real Importance to
the welfare of the citizens of the
state than any week Of the present
session. The Senate voted to probe
fire insurance rates. The advocates
of the probe claimed that the COM
panies were unfair in fixing rates,
that they did not seem to consider
the highly efficient fire departm ents
maintained by many cities for the
protection Of property. Under the
resolution the special committee was
given full power to conduct hearings.
compel attendance of witnesses and
production of necessary books and
papers.
The Senators opposed to the in
vestigation claimed that the fixing of
rates did not concern the state They
said Connecticut should be proud of
her insurance companies who paid
100 per cent on all losses. Also, the
opposition called attention to the al
legged failure of other states to regu-
late rates. The probe must yet be
by the House.
A resolution almost unanimously
passed the Senate for the appoint
ment Of a special legislative COM
mfttee to investigate the hours, terms
and conditions of labor of employees
in the manufacturing departments Of
establishments. This
probe stirred up big fuss in the
House. lasting two session days.
Against the protestations of the
chairman of the labor committee the
resolution was referred to that COM
mittee. The Senate concurred later,
Dut not until an amendment had been
jammed through striking out the
words manufacturing departments"
Under the original resolution, it
was claimed, the scope of the probe
would have been limited practically
to the hours of labor, wages ana
working conditions of underpafd and
overworked women and children in
department stores. The friends of
the resolution stated, after the
had been adopted thar
the investigation would be broad
but not deep.
What action would be taken on
the important labor bills introduced
at this session could not be forecast
ed by the oldest observers here, to-
day. This much is apparent-there
is no disposition to hurry matters.
Hopes OF workmen's compensation
act went glimmering, II is said at
the news from Albany holding un-
constitutional the New York com
pensation act.
Also, the public utilities bill is still
in the works.
Probably the most picturesque bus
mess of the past legislative week
were the afternoon hearings on the
woman suffrage bills. The time hon
ored arguments for the cause were
ably presented by prominent women
from within and without the state.
That the splendid showing in num-
bers and arguments ayailed the vo.
men anything is doubted by the hest
equipped observers