Morris tribune., 1911-01-13


talk For one thing Lieutenant Gov
ernor Gordon has been extremely lib
eral with the Democratic members in
making committee assignments and for
another there is a generous sprinkling
of Democrats who would not act with
the old Republican leaders in any
event They find the progressive con-
tingent favored by the lieutenant gov
ernor more to their liking.
j. X +
AS l write l have not yet learned
what faction of the house the speaker
Is the more likely to favor. I am told,
however, that r. c. Dunn, who would
have preferred to be on the roads
committee, has, because of his greater
knowledge of the subject incident to
his holding the office of auditor for so
many years, been drafted for the
craftsmanship of the committee on
taxes and tax laws. L. c. Spooner,
they say, will be chairman of the COM
mittee on appropriations and w. A.
Mckenzie of Gaylord chairman of the
judiciary committee. 1t has not de-
veloped who will be chairman Of the
temperance committee; whoever he is
he will be county option man and
those in the confidence of the speaker
assure me that in the house, as in the
senate, a county option bill will be
reported for passage whatever its ulti-
mate fate may be.
!. X 4
Speaking of the committee on ap-
preparations the appointment of Mr..
Spooner to it's Craftsmanship, if indeed
he has been selected, will be an indi-
cation that in it log rolling will be
likely to find small favor. In this re-
spect Mr.. Spooner is quite uncompro-
missing. Moreover, conditions this year
under the new rule adopted will have
a tendency to Illustrate the jobs which
under the old omnibus method it was
comparatively easy to push through.
This year there will be no omnibus
bill. The regular appropriations will
be made under three heads. There
will be the educational appropriations,
the appropriations for state institu
tions and the appropriations for state
maintenance-that is, the fixed
charges incident to the government of
the state. Other appropriations for
special or local purposes must here
after be made on their own merits,
each such appropriation to take it's
chance as separate bill. In this way
it is hoped to head off unwarranted
raids on the state treasury.
!. !. X
The only other change of impor-
tance made this year in the rules
and it will govern proceedings both in
the house and senate-is designed to
prevent the pigeonholing of bills by
the committees They must report
them out either favorably or unfavor-
ably within twenty days unless fur
ther time is granted. This is an ex-
pertinent and in some quarters there
is considerable skepticism as to
| whether any improvement will result
X. i. i.
The first furry of the session was
occasioned by the attempt of the ad-
vanced progressives to Introduce q
more radical rule. They wanted to
place members of committees on rec
! ord as such. They sought to do it by
demanding that committees take roll
call on all bills as they are reported
out and that such roll call be record
ed in the journal of the house This
was favored on the ground that the
people had right to demand the full
est publicity as to the actions of their
representatives If bill was killed
in committee they had right to know
who was responsible for the slaughter.
The argument was made that opposi-
tion was often more effective in com
mittee than out of it and the people
ought to know where it came from.
The proceedings of committees ought,
it was claimed, to be as public as pro-
ceedings on the floor.
j. \ !.
The rules committee took the
, ground that desirable as it might be
, to put members on record while in
the discharge of their duties as mem
bers of committees the plan advocated
was impracticable on several grounds
First-If members knew that their
votes were to be recorded many would
find an excuse for being absent from
committee meetings and thus the prog
ress of legislation would be retarded.
Second-Generally each representa-
tive is member of several commit
! tees. These committees frequently
meet at the same time. He could not
be in two places at once. 1t would be
unfair to him that he should be record
{ ed as absent when a final vote on a
bill was taken and thus render him
liable to the charge of having lodged
vote, when, as a matter of fact, it
was a physical impossibility to be
present
Third-The present method of pro-
cedure is ample for the purpose of