The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1913-04-15
Big TangIe Over
New Primary Law
Little Joke Stirs Legislators And Its
Now NOn-Partisan or
Nothing
COMPENSATION BILL is PASSED
House Carefully Tucks Away The
Knapp Public Utilities Measure
Would Probe Departments
BILL is PASSED

Wanted-One solution for griev-
Gus tangle.
This is the earnest and rather mad
demand now being made by the state
legislature and it all results from a
joke, a mild sweet tempered and origl-
nally innocent joke.
AS heretofore mentioned in the col
umns of this great family journal the
primary bill passed the senate and
house carrying with it provision
making the members of the legisla-
ture non-partisan.
Just A Little Senate Jokelet
This section got into the senate bill
as facetious expression Of good nature.
The serious minded house never
grinned but passed it. The house add
! ed amendments, however in which the
senate refused to concur and the bill
went to conference committee. This
committee agreed to the non-partisan
feature and spent most of it's time
wrangling over the date of the prim-
airy election which as the bill now
: stands is set for the third Tuesday in
June.
Once Killed in House
Thus did the committee report and
the senate accepted the report and re-
passed the bill.
Not SO the house. The report of
the committee was adopted but the
bill was lost on the vote for repassage.
4 That looked like the death knell of the
all amendment of the state wide prim-
airy.
III. HI. Dunn Gets Busy
HI. HI. Dunn of Albert Lea was far
from satisfied and so moved the vote
be reconsidered. Carried his point and
then unanimously had thhe bill made
special order for today.
This bill in addition to making
good many Republicans in the legisla-
ture non partisan also makes the en-
tire bunch of county officers in the
state non-partisan. If the bill finally
passes that part will stand.
Compensation Passes House
The compensation act passed last
week by the senate passed the house
Friday after several hours of debate
and with few amendments tackled on.
Hence it must go back to the senate
for approval. 1t is understood there
will be no serious fight against the
house amendments.
Knapp's public utilities bill fought
bitter and fierce fight to an ignomin-
ious death in the house Friday morn
ing. Mr.. Knapp the able young rep
resentative from Chisholm made a
hard pull to get the measure through
but failed.
Some Crashing of Teeth
In the midst of this pleasantly there
is some crashing of teeth and sobbing
of considerable sized sobs.
And it all over money.
Strange, amt it?
The subcommittee of the appro-
priation committees went out and took
the state departments in hand and told
them where to alight so far as money
is concerned. Some of the committees
it raised and some it slashed. It's the
slashed ones that are kicking.
Passing of the Fee System
Two Offices of the state remained on
the fee basis exclusively, the clerk of
the state supreme court and the secre-
tary to the governor. Each of these
offices had been paying about $4,000 a
year. The Industrious subcommittee
slowed them away on a salary of
$4,000 each. Also it grabbed down
$500 from the superintendent of banks
and gives him S4,500 In each case
the law goes into effect on January 1.
1915.
Julius A. Schmahl, secretary of
state, and Walter ]. Smith, state trea-
surer, are among the fortunate ones as
their salaries were raised. The fol-
lowing is the present schedule of sal
aries as the subcommittee recon-
mends them:
The New Salary List
Governor, $1,000; private secretary,
$4,000; executive clerk, $4,000; record.
ing clerk, executive messenger and
stenographer, $1,000 each.
Chief and associate justices of su-
preme court, $1,000; supreme court
commissioners, $1,000; clerk of the
court, $4,000; assistant clerk, $1,000;
(Continued on last page,