The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-10-17
FEW LEGISLATORS
HAVE HAD ANY
EXPERIENCE
Only 81 in Both Houses Have
Been There Before
ALL WILLING TO WORK
Already Legislature Shows Dis
position to "Get Busy" on the
States Business.

Montpelier, Oct. 1.-THE legisla-
ture will meet in joint assembly this
afternoon to elect judges and other
state officials.
In the Senate this morning, a wo-
man suffrage bill was introduced and
also bill to regulate competition be-
tween local corporations There were
a number of bills considered in the
House, but none of great importance
Montpelier, Oct. 1.-THE legisla-
ture is showing a disposition TO get
down to work and is doing as well as
II can in view of the size of the body
and the inexperience of the mem
bers. OF the 273 members of the
House and Senate only 81 have ever
been in the legislature before and the
service of some of these was many
years ago.
The oldest member in point of ser
vice is Hon. j. X. Batchelder of Ben
nington county, who served his first
term in the legislature as the repre-
sentative from Arlington in 1874. He
afterwards served two terms in the
House and was the speaker of that
body in 1884.
Mr.. Adams of Marlboro is the legis-
lator of most service. This is his
seventh term in the House and he
has served one term in the Senate.
Mr.. Harrington, who represents Som
erset this year, has served three pre-
vious terms from Searsburg. This is
Mr.. Hapgoods fourth term in the
House.
Lieutenant Governor Howe Is the
first man to be chosen as the presid-
ing officer of both houses in AZ years,
and il is a strange coincidence that
the last previous man to serve both
as Speaker of the House and Lieuten-
ant Governor and President of the
Senate was also a citizen of Benning-
ton Hon. Abraham B. Gardner
Mr.. Gardner was speaker in 1863
and 1864 and in 1865 he was elected
lieutenant governor and served two
years. Mr.. Gardner was also the last
man to be reelected representative
lTOln DeIillilSlOu Until WI. ilOnC was
reelected in 1910.
Speaker Plumley. who is 81 is the
youngest speaker of the House since
]. l.. Martin. then of Londonderry,
was speaker in 1873. Mr.. Howe rs
the youngest man to be elected lieu
tenant governor since the Civil War.
Governor Fletcher's act in dong
away with the customary governors
ball and giving $4,000 to state institu-
tons for the care of orphan children
is being most warmly commended by
everybody around the statehouse and
has added to his prestige not a little.
Governor Fletcher is taking an ac-
tive interest in all measures looking
to the improvement OF conditions in
Vermont and is planning to send a
special message to the legislature
within a few days
The House passed its first bill yes
terday, or act to enable Lamoille
county to borrow money to complete
its county buildings, which were near
ly finished when the amount aprro-
priated became exhausted.
A fiat rate tax bill on intangibles
was introduced in the House yester-
day by Mr.. Cowings of Richford. II
fixes the rate on stocks. bonds and
mortgages at one per cent
The House yesterday seated DR..
Aldrich of st Johnsbury by unami-
nous vote. DR.. Aldrich is a Progress
sive and it was claimed that he was
not eligible because of being q pen
sion examiner. In seating him the
House appears to have created a new
precedent and to have overruled an
ole decision OF the supreme court.
The House, on motion Of Mr.. Hap
good of Peru, yesterday passed res
olution expressing sympathy for Col.
Roosevelt and adherence at the at
tempt to assassinate him. The res
olution was adopted unanimously
The Senate is well caught up Ia It's
work and has more bills before I
than usual so early in the session.
Among the Bennington county peo-
pie at the statehouse this week have
been Chas. A. Maurer and Harry
Chase of Bennington, ]. r. Judson OF
Arlington and J. W. Fowler OF Mon.
chester.
\ Both House and Senate we're photo
graphed in front Of the statehouse
yesterday.