The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1911-01-05
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MANY new FACES
IN LEC|SlA
Twelfth Session Convened at
Bismarck Tuesday.
REPUBLICANS IN The MAJORITY
Only Five Democratic Members OF the
Senate and Fourteen and q So
ciaIist In the House.


islative assembly Of the state of North
Dakota convened at the capitol at noon
today for the biennial session of sixty
days. The work of formal organiza-
ton, the election Of the speaker of the
house and of the officers and employees
of the two legislative bodies occupied
the first days session, which was with
out special incident. A glance about
the house and senate showed a great
number of new members and the alb
sence of many old time legislators
who have shared In the deliberations
Of the two bodies for many years. In
the senate among the missing are J.
b. Sharpe of La Moure county, chair.
man Of tho judiciary committee Of the
last senate and q member of the upper
house for many years. He was not a
candidate for reelection at the last
election and his seat is filled by w. c.
Mcdowell, q Democrat. Morton coun-
ty sends a new senator in the person
Of Charles Mcdonald. The Cass and
Grand Forks county delegations in the
upper house are unchanged. Trail
county sends new senator in G. L.
Elkins. Steele and Griggs, Richland,
Emmons, Bottineau, Eddy, Mcintosh.
Barnes and several other counties
have new men in the upper house. The
Old timers of the senate are few. There
b Judson La Moure of Pembina, who
has been member of the senate
since statehood, and the only one who
now holds that distinction. Simpson
Of Stark, Talcott of Cass, Pierce of
Ransom and Plain of Cavalier are
4 among the others of the older mem
bers.
a !. + +
II In the house there are many new
men entering for the first time upon
legislative work. Nearly two-thirds of
the membership is new. There is a
large number Of young men in both
houses and of the candidates for
speaker nearly all were men in the
thirties. Both houses are strongly Re.
publican. In the senate there are only
i've Democrats out Of forty-nine mem.
bers. In the house there are fourteen
Democrats and one Socialist out of q
hundred members. There are now
torty-nine legislative districts, the
greatest number in the history Of the
state. The constitutional limit is
fifty, so that this has nearly been
reached. Poth houses have also prac,
tically the constitutional maximum OF
membership, SO that a reapportion.
ment of the state cannot add any more
members, but can only redistribute
them according to population.
!. 4 i.
The presiding officer of the upper
house has changed with the incoming
of U. l.. Burdick, the new lieutenant
governor, who succeeds r. S. Lewis OF
Cass county, who voluntarily retired
from the political race last year. Bur.
dick is a young man, Minnesota "U'
graduate, who was speaker of the house
two years ago. He is the youngest
man who has ever sat in the chair OF
the lieutenant governor of the state
and presided over the senate He has
already announced that he IL not de-
sirous of naming the committees OF
the senate. preferring to leave that to
4 committee on committees Of the sen
ate. He has also announced his inten
ton to push the political measures I'D
vocated by the "insurgent" element OF
the Republican party of the state and
by the state platform, in which doubt
less he will be supported by the Re
publican membership of both houses
!. !. !.
Little will be done this first week OF
the session beyong the formal work OF
organization and the reading of the
message Of the governor, which is the
third inaugural message delivered tc
the legislature by Governor John
: Burke, Democrat who has three
times been elected governor in Re
publican state. The message of the
governor dealt as usual with the ad
ministrative record of the past two
years and with the general finances OF
q the state. Until the naming of the
committees in the two houses, which
will probably not be until next week
there will be nothing done in the way
of legislation. And as there is an in
augural ball Friday night, to be the
social feature Of the first weeks ses
sion, an adjournment will probably
be taken from Thursday over until
the following Monday This will give
the presiding officers of the two
houses time to prepare their lists OF
committees, upon the announcement
of which the real work of lawmaking
will begin.
\ 1. I.
! Early in the deliberations of the Re
publicans senatorial caucus will for
mally name Senator P. ]. McCumber
and A. j. Gronna as the candidates OF
the Republicans for election to the
United States senate. McCumber will
be elected for the full term of six
. years and Gronna for the four-year
term, to I'll the vacancy caused by
the death Of M. N. Johnson, which oc.
Cured in October OF 1909. In the in.
term between his death and the SEES.