The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1911-04-22

| bill passed the house blu. struck 4
snag as soon as 1t reached the senate
Here 1t was defeated and a compro
mise measure was promised through
the instrnmentality of Senator's Clagu<
and Rockne. Although definitely prom,
ised the measure never made it's ap
pearance. Governor Eberhart induced
Senator Hanson to introduce q new
bill. This measure would have taken
fte senators from the over represented
section, giving one senator each "a
Ramsey, Hennepin and st. Louis coun,
ties and two to the Red River Valley
district. This was delayed one day on
q ruling by Lieutenant Governor Cor.
don, giving the opposition time to In
troduce and pass proposed constitu.
tfonal amendment limiting the number
OF senator's from each county to six.
This gave the senators their desired
opportunity and excuse for votina
against the Hanson bill and when Il
came up last week 1t was voted down
without record vote.
I. 4. +
Governor Eberhart has decided not
to call an extra session in the interest
of reapportionment. At the meeting
of the Northern Minnesota Develop.
ment association at Brainerd he had
said that unless sincere effort was
made on the part of the senate to pass
a reapportionment measure he might
call an extra session. He has decided
that no kind Of reapportionment bill
could pass the present senate and that
to call an extra session would be futile
and would merely involve extra en-.
pense to the state. The result is that
reapportionment is dead.
The Spooner waterways bill seems
to have struck snag. The bill has
been generally regarded as too drastic,
although there was general feeling
that some such legislation is desirable.
Last week the attorney generals of.
fee gave out an opinion to the effect
that the bill would be unconstitutional
II passed. This Is expected to mean
the final defeat Of the bill in the clos
ing hours of the session. The accom-
panying Spooner bill, calling for an
appropriation of $4,000 for an inves-
tigation Of the feasibility of canalizing
the state Of Minnesota, 10 regarded as
fantastic and II passed by the senate
would probably be vetoed by the gov,
ernor.
The eastman distance tariff bill, IN
der a new name, originating in the
house, is one Of the important meas
ures with which the senate will deal
in It's closing hours. When this letter
was written It was not expected the
bill would pass. During its original
discussion in the senate the attorney
general wrote an opinion, bolstered up
by similar opinions from former At
torney General Edward T. Young and
former Justice of the Supreme Court
Thomas d. O'Brien, that the enact
ment Of the bill would nullify the rate
cases which were then in litigation.
The defeat Of the state as registered in
the opinion of the week before by
Judge Sanb0rn aroused considerable
feeling over the matter, and this, with
the speakers personal influence, Sc
cured the passage of the bill in the
was that the state should not be moved
by pique or indignation over the out
come of the first round in the fight.
The state has spent great deal OF
money in prosecuting the rate cases
and they are yet to go before the SUI
preme court. 1t Is felt the state can
afford to wait until the case Is def
nitely decided by the highest tribunal
before changing its attitude relative
to rate regulation. Senator Moonan
offers a resolution appointing COM
mission to work without pay to inves-
tigate the workings and effects Of the
Iowa distance tariff law, upon which
the proposed Minnesota law is based,
to report to the legislature two years
from now.
~
Theodore Roosevelt appeared before
the legislature Friday night and ad.
vised that body as to its future course
of action. He announced that he was
a progressive and favored the initia-
tive and referendum, the recall, the
direct primary and the direct election
of United States senators. He quail
fed each statement so that both sides
on these questions believe the former
president was with them. In declaring
for the initiative and referendum he
insisted the percentages necessary to
invoke the use Of either initiative or
referendum should be so high that
they could not be invoked lightly or
frivolously. The radical element In
the house had insisted on a low per-
centage, while the more conservative
progressives had insisted on a high
percentage. A measure of the latter
class was passed. It is now in the
senate.
+ !. +
Relative to the recall the former
president intimated he believed In the
recall. but stated positively 1t should
not apply to the judiciary. The house
has passed two recall bills, one OF