Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1911-04-26
MEASURE follower
EXPRESS CHARGES
introduced by w. E. Hurlbut of
WinnebagO County.
EXPECT TO SAVE ST, GOO A DAY
Passage of Bill Will Affect Every Pat
ron of Companies in the State
Penalty Involves Fine of
S1oo to $1,000.

sfoo to $1,000.
Madison.-The lowering Of express
rates within Wisconsin % per cent,
with an expected saving thereby of
$1,000 day to Wisconsin patrons, is
provided in a bill introduced by AS
semblyman w E. Hurlbut of Winnie
| bago county.
| Nearly all monopolies have in some
| form or other been dealt with by the
| legislature or railroad commission in
| the past, but the express companies
| so far have escaped such action al
though remedial litigation is pending
/ with the railroad commission. The
| bill seeks immediate relief from al
legged excessive charges, calling for
| the enforcement of the reduced rates
on August 1 next
! Based on the earnings of the com
! panies in Wisconsin business in the
/ past year. Assemblyman Hurlbut fig
ures saving to the people by his
| bill of over $1,000 a day, or a quar-
ter million dollars a year Every
! patron of the express companies in
| the state will be affected by the pas
sage of this bill. The penalty in
wolves a fine of from s100 to $1,000
for each offense.
After several weeks of investiga-
ton, the election committee of the
assembly is about ready to reintro-
duce it's substitute for the various
| corrupt practices bills offered early
in the session. and the measure prob
ably will go on the calendar for some
day next week
The bill as finally drafted repre-
sents not only the combined efforts
of the members of the elections com
mittee, but the suggestions of all of
the leading members of the house
and senate, SCI eral state officers and
the recommendations of students of
the subject all over the United
! States.
Il feel that this bill is the result
Of the most thorough investigation
! that has ever been given any subject
in the same amount of time by a leg
| islative committee" said Chairman
Thomas A. Roycraft I'VE found the
| committee most valuable in getting
at actual conditions as they have OBJ
tanned in the past, and our own ex-
| periences as well as those of other
| members and state officers served US
well in our work We have taken what
we deemed proper from both the Clark
| and Kay bills introduced in the as
sembly and many of the provisions of
both these measures will be found in
| tact in this substitute"
joint resolution emanating
! from the senate judiciary COM
mittee. for final adjournment of the
! legislature on May 5, has served its
! evident purpose-to awaken the mem
| bers to the necessity of moving faster
! More than half of the bills intro
duced remain in committees, and this
would not occasion any excitement If
| all were unimportant. The fact that
many of the minor measures usually
| saved for killing toward the close of
! session have come out, and usually to
| their death. has become painfully evil
dent The senate has now done little
work for two weeks, one of which was
| virtually a vacation with not more
than three members here at any one
| time. This the senate could afford to
do as long as the assembly insists
upon occupying the hours in debate
and upon reconsidering a large pro-
| portion of its action on bills, and re-
versing itself in half these cases. be-
sides continually referring measures
that the house is unwilling to pass on
until committees have had another
| crack at them. However. in the last
few days the assembly has shown a
disposition to quit persiflage and de-
vote itself to more serious business,
and affairs will move with more dis
patch in the coming week.
The most important measure COM
ing up this week is the workmen' s
compensation bill, which will be re-
ported out for passage together with
one of the four amendments offered
in the assembly. This amendment is
designed to preserve the law from
entire destruction in the courts in
case the clause abolishing the fellow
servant and assumption of risk doc
trines in cases of employers of more
than four persons is declared uncon-
stitutional This discrimination in
favor of employers of less than four
persons, which was inserted to placate
farmer opposition to the bill is be
lieved to be the only feature that
might be dangerous in the event of a
court contest, although opinions of
lawyers differ widely on this point.
The James woman suffrage bill,