Morris tribune., 1911-01-20
SOME CRITICISM
OF COMMITTEES
Speaker Dunn Did Not Satisfy
All Factions.
now READY FOR REAL WORK
Legislature Expects to Get Down to
Business Without Further
Preliminaries.


nent of his committees by the speaker
of the house ne legislature has finally
got down to real work. The character
of both the house and senate commit
tees makes it plain that from this
time on it will be pushed. Naturally
there is among those who opposed Mr..
Dunn's election more or less dlspoSl-
tion to criticize his committee assign
ments, principally on the ground that
the progressives have not been given
adequate representation. In respect to
the prOgressiVes who held out for Mr..
BurnQuist and thus, to a greater or
less extent. embarrassed the speaker
in the work it is customary for him
TO do before the house meets, this
criticism has no doubt some founda-
ton. In The case, however, of ac-
knowledge progressive Republicans
who alignrd themselves with Mr..
Dunn's supporters, and there were
many Of these, no such complaint can
be made hey have informally re-
ceived generous treatment at his
hands.
It is only fair to Mr.. Dunn to state
that he has SO grouped the strong
men of the house, without respect to
their affiliations, as to make a COM
pact and we'll officered working Or
ganiAation. Some complaint is made
that on the committee on taxes and
tax laws the 50 c&lled interests have
greater represcnt aCiOn than the mem
5ership o. the house would seem to
entitle them to, which, judging of the
past affiliations of some Of the COM
mittees members, is likely to prove
true in case radical measures are in
troduced as, Tor instance, for the
taxation of iron lands. One would
expect the c0nAllittee to be opposed
to the tonnaga AK. But there seems
little probability at this time that
such a measure will be pushed; and
there is nothing otherwise in the consti-
tuition of this important committee to
warrant the assumption that any fair
measure for rhn equalization of the
taxation II this state or for such re-
forms as are advanced by the tax COM
mission would not receive favorable
cOnsidera Dt,
t. !. 4
The te0DcraHce committee is the
only othor committee that has been
subject to serious criticism-this of
course from the advocates of tenn
perance reform This committee is
composed Of fifteen members. The
chairman and five of his associates
are said 70 favor county option. The
balance ar supposed to be liberal in
their view3 and opposed to county op-
ton. Tn speakers pledge in regard
to this committee was that it would
be fair one and make such re-
port as would insure county option
full and fair consideration. How this
is to be brought about remains to be
seen. The course the committee will
pursue, however, is anticipated to be
that the Djil Will be reported out &C
companied by d minority and majority
report, and thai subsequently it will
be considered by the committee of
the wholt where the matter can be
threshed out, IS it doubtless will be,
and later the members put on record
with regarU to i. However that may
be, there is nc reason to anticipate
that the speaker will not fulfill his
pledge to the letter so far as county
option is concerned It is anticipated.
nevertheless, that in regard to general
temperance legislation, the commit
tee will not hold specially advanced
views.
= + =:
The education committee headed by
Representative j<unze, formerly super
intendent Of schools at Red Wing and
one of the Acknowledged progressive
Republican, enrolled under Speaker
Dunn's banner, has been the first to
report bfl= referred to it. The most
important was fOr a constitutional
amendment to vide for educa-
tional qua iticatiOu. for county super
fntendents IF sch0C 5. 1t is proposed
that in th2 meantirle a county board
Of educatiuH be formed to appoint such
uperintenJents. This subject has been
discussion lor some years, both in the
legislature And out G. it, and sentiment
In favor OF the che ge appears to be
growing. he con;aittee recommend
ed the BIZ under consideration for
passage
!. i i.
Two bills have ta5sed the house,
and the first of IT, the senate also,
under suspension o: he rules This
measure provides for an appropriation
for the hospitals fJr criminal insane
and insane tubercu o. S patients at St.
Peter. These hospitals have recently
been constructed, it was explained,
but no appropriation was made for
their maintenace. TIE need of haste
in making the appropriation was that
man who had committed murder in
Dakota county and had been acquitted
on the ground Of insanity was sent,
as renuired hy law tn tho ST Eatar