The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1913-03-09
NUMEROUS FAILURES TO CARRY
OUT PLEDGES ARE LAID
TO DEMOCRATS.
NOT A PROUD RECORD
With Party in Complete Majority in
Both Houses and With a Democratic
Governor Platform Was in Many In.
stances gnored-Compensatio Law
Was Only One Out of Many.
(Staff Correspondence.)


Helena, March Snow that the
Thirteenth general assembly has ad-
journed the record is made up BY
that record the democratic party in
Montana must stand. That party
was in fun and undisputed control,
so far as party name went. 1t had a
clear majority in both the house and
senate, which majority had all the ad-
dittonal power and prestige to come
from the fact that a democrat sat in
the executive office,
The democratic promise of economy
was fIagrantly disregarded. The ap-
preparations exceeded those of any
other assembly in the history of the
state. More new offices were Gre
atod to be filled BY the faithful than
by any other Montana legislature
The direct expenses Of the session
were the greatest on record. So
much for one broken promise
Public Utilities.
Tho platform promised an effective
public utilities law. The. legislature
passed tho Byrnes public utilities
commission bill. 1t was openly de-
nounccd on the floor of the senate by
democratic senators as wholly unfit
to go on the statute books. When it
was on final passage in the house, and
when the house had reccded from Its
amendments intended to give life and
vitality to the measure when passed
Il democrats voted against it. nearly
half of tho number giving as a reason
that 1t was a mockcry of the demo-
cratic platform pledge In this particu-
lar. 1t is a mere hag, jawless and
toothless. That's another broken
pledge.
Compensation.
The platform pledge for a work
mems compensation and employers
liability act went wholly unredeemed
The failure in this matter was abso-
lutte and unconditional. That makes
three.
Water Appropriation.
Similarly the platform pledged the
enactment OF a law to regulate the APP
preparation of water for power pur-
p1ses. Not a line upon this subject
will go upon the statute books from
the Thirteenth assembly. Repudia-
lion Of platform promises was COM
roto and emphatic again. The fact
that the Amalgamated Copper COM
pany wanted neither n compensation
law nor a law to regulate its grab
bing of the water of the state was
sufficient. A fourth betrayal.
Blue Sky Law.
There was also the pledge for a law
to regulate the sale of stock by cor
pora tions-thc blue sky law. The
act passed is a mere pretense. 1t
Will not protect the public against the
schemes of fake company promotions.
1t was not intended to be effective.
And, to make sure that it would not
damage, even in a slight degree,
schemes already incubated, a section
at tho close provides that it does not
go into effect until next January.
Five.
Grain Classification.
Again, the platform pledged a grain
classification and warehouse and ele-
vator control law. A bill closely
following the lines of the Washington
law, which has been a fine success,
was introduced by Kirschwing OF
Cascade 1t never came out of COM
mittee. Instead, a bill, satisfactory
to the milling and elevator lobby, was
introduced in the senate by a COM
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