Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1913-04-16

great deal or the nn1Sh1ng VIII be
done before adjournment tomorrow.
Governor Clarke has appointed
Representative w. J. Dixon of Sac
City and Senator A. M. McColl of
| Woodward, as members of the Board
of Control to succeed Judge Robin
son and DR.. Bannister, both of whom
refuse re-appointment. d. C. Mott
of Marengo has been appointed a
member of the Board of Parole.
The passage by the senate of the
Clarkson workmen's compensation
act was by a surprisingly large vote
33 to 15. At the finish there was a
hard effort made to defeat it and over
a 90 kilograms were received by sena-
.ors from their constituents asking
the defeat of any legislation provid-
ing for workmen's ? compensation.
With such a large vote in its favor
the bill may get through the house,
although it will be hard fight there.
The Cowles bill to create state
insurance department passed the SEN
ate with little debate and a large
vote. This means it is going through
to the finish. 1t separates the insur-
ance business from the office of state
auditor and provides for the appoint
ment OF commissioner to look after
the insurance business of the state.
The appointment is to be by the gov
enOr. The same Office force as that
in the Office of state auditor is con-
tinued. Some years ago a bill of this
kind would have been passed but for
fear of the insurance companies as to
the kind of man who most likely
would have been appointed to the Of
fee. Now they appear to have got
ten over their fear and their repres-
entatives in the legislature are for the
insurance commissioner and depart
ment.
The house passed bill permitting
an increase of the salary of the secre-
tary of the department of agriculture
to be as high as $500 a year, though
not all at once. A few years ago mem
bers nearly had fits when it was sug-
gested the state ought to pay more
than $4,000 year for such a respon-
sible position. The passage of the
bill in the house was a part answer
to the violent attacks which have
been made on the department in re-
cent years.
The bill has now passed both hous-
es adding one more to the. number of
supreme judges. There was bill
which came near getting through TO
add three more judges to the supreme
bench. Then it was found that this
was forbidden in the constitution and
only one can be added at any one ses-
sion of the legislature. So one will be
added now and one each year after
wards. The court now has six mem
bers.
The Kane bill, passed by the house
was quietly but conclusively smoth-
cred in the senate committee on judi
ciary. This probably ends efforts for
legislation to curb the loan shark.
The senate fought all week over
and at last passed the Clarkson work
mems compensation act which is con-
sidered one of the most important
bills of the session.
Both houses passed the bill by the
house committee providing for an ex-
penditure of about $4,000, 900 for the
extension and Identification of the
state house grounds. Eighteen blocks
of ground around the state house are
to be purchased. The senate also has
passed the Robinson bill to appropri-
ate $25O,OOO for a new state Office
building. The house appropriations
committee voted to kill this bill, how
ever.
AS the tax question, which hits the
pocketbook, is one of the most inter-
esting in Iowa, the action of the leg
islature the past week in respect to
state revenue is worthy of considera-
ton.
The senate passed the house joint
resolution by Klay providing an
amendment to the constitution to
permit the legislature to designate
certain classes of property for state
taxation only. This means that they
give the state the right to tax rail-
roads, and other corporations for
state revenue and wipe out all state
levy against real and personal prop
erty and moneys and credits, thus
leaving each county to itself to fix its
own taxes for local revenue. 1t would
mean a enforcement entirely of state
and county and eliminate the states
concern about inequality of taxation
as between counties. 1t would
also obviate the necessity of expens-
i've executive machinery such as a
proposed tax commission. In this res