The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-01-17
Democrats Bend Every Energy
to Fulfill Them.
First Thing Is to Kill Inher-
itance Tax.
THEN cur APPROPRIATIONS
The Bills for Maintenance In
situations Be in Early.
That Campaign Promise to Re-
duce Taxes.

duce Taxes.
Steps looking to the fulfillment of
another Democratic platform pledge
was taken this week in the action OF
! the judiciary committee OF potn
, houses, which advocates the repeal OF
the present Inheritance tax law. 1t
session is very old that the present
inheritance tax law will have peen
wiped off the statute books. soho
Democratic vote, backed by the votes
of many Republicans, is expected IN
the action to repeal the law.
Two years ago when the Democrats
took charge of the inheritance tax
law and trimmed it up according to
their own notion, these met the com
bined opposition of the administrator
forces both in the house ana Senate
and their efforts We're useless: But
the 1911 minority leaders were per-
sistent. They went into the recent
campaign more determined than ever
One of their most persistent cam
paign cries was the repeal or the law
They told of the tears of the widow,
the injustice to the orphans ana the
general heartlessness of the law IN a
manner that brought many votes Al
ready there was a widespread opposi-
ton to the law and the Democrats
only needed to rekindle the fire OF
discomfort.
With majority in both houses, the
heritance tax law out of business early
in the session. They propose to list
the bill for early discussion and will
| invite the opposition to fight back II
| they dare But in the legislative halls
| it appears that the job of retiring the
! inheritance tax law from active oper-
! alton will be one of the comparative
| ly easy tasks of the session.
| Walker, of Grant county, has a bill
seeking an amendment to the present
unity aid to schools law. His measure
proposes that in counties of less than
10 900 inhabitants which now have two
high schools that they be placed un-
der the supervision of the county
superintendent and local or district
boards of the districts in which such
schools are located. Where there is
but one high school in counties I'M
der the provisions of the act, Walker
would provide that they be under the
Jurisdiction of the county clerk and
members of the board of county COM
missioners.
Ragle, Of Montgomery county, wants
district court sessions held in his home
county. He would not only have the
present sessions of the court in indie
pendence, but he would provide for
the holding of. district court in Cof-
feyville twice each year.
The bill which Ragle offers provides
terms of the district court shall be
held twice each year in each town in
such county which has a population in
excess of 1000. Montgomery county
will probably be the only community
affected, so Ragle would prescribe that
the clerk of the district court main
tain an Office in both Independence
and Coffeyvil1e and that the sheriff
and all court officers be compelled to
attend each court session.
Representative o. S. Gibson, of Cow |
ley county, has bill which provides
that reactionary city officials in cities
of the second-claSS may be recalled on |
petitions signed by 25 per cent of the |
vo .ers, providing the official is then de- |
feated in a special session. But Glib |
son provides that specific charges must |
be contained in the recall petitions, |
that at least one signer must take
oath to the truth of these charges and |
that of the names attached to the re- |
call petitions, 40 per cent of the same |
must be signatures of persons who sup !
ported the derelict official in the pre- |
ViouS election.
There is a strong probability that the
appropriation bills for the state CHART
may go into the legislative hopper early
this session. Already the ways and means
committees of the two houses are clearing
the decks for the fight which is sure t.
come when the big bills come before them
for consideration.
Backed by the fact that the Democrats
have issued to the Kansas voters a
solemn pledge that they will reduce state
taxes there is more than the usual
amount of interest and anxiety over: tie
fate of the appropriations for the various
institutions. There is that serious ques-
ton to whether not the legislature
can really reduce the appropriations to
the educational institutions without i'm
pairing the usefulness of those schools.
Some of the members candidly admit
that they believe the only relief from thI
tax situation is in the solution of the
problem of more revenue for the state
So with that situation staring them in
the face. the Democrats are looking for
the measures which will bring money into
way to cut down the expenses of state
maintenance. Senator Bale P. Wag-
gener believes he has solved the ques-
ton with his income tax law, which has
is the plan to bring income from toe
sand taken from Kansas streams the
plan to loan portions of the state school
fund and a half dozen other theories
which must be worked out before the
close of the session.
Henry NJ Laing of Russell county has
offered a bill amending the present state
embalming law. 1t permits persons who
/ I'VE been in the undertaking business
two years, or who have enbalmed ten
dertaking on the provision that these per-
sons must take the examination not later
than January IS, 1915.
Herr of Harper has a bill in the house
making 1t a felony for any person to re-
move from the county. destroy sell
any personal property against which
there is mortgage
Tim mi AN IS DEAD.