Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1913-02-05
KEEPING AT WORK
Sterilization Bill and INTERCHANGEABLE
Mileage Bill Dead. Speaker Piumley
Appointed Tax Commissioner.
Other Mattera

The legislative solons are getting
down to business now and turning out
some of the important business of the
session but there is much ahead to be
done and no date for final adjournment
has been set.
Probably the two most important
bills disposed of last week was the
sterilization bill. so called, and the in
terchangeable mileage bill. The ster-
lllzatlon bill was to provide for the
sterilization of imbeciles, feeble mind
ed, insane persons and other defec-
tives. 1t passed both branches of the
legislature and went to the governor
for his signature but he vetoed the
bill and his veto was sustained The
veto does not however hinge upon the
main point of whether this operation
upon the types of persons named is
wise Or not but is rather confined to
defe cts in the bill which were pointed
out to the governor in an exhaustive
opinion by Attorney General Brown
and the report of Mr.. Brown was
made part of the governors veto
message. In part the Attorney-Gen-
erals opinion follows:
referring to section of this act.
you will notice that the act applies
only to those of the unfortunate class
es named. who are unfortunate enough
to be actually confined 'in the hos
pitfalls for the insane. state prison, re-
formatories and charitable and penal
institutions in the state Those
equally unfortunate except in the mat
ter OF actual confinement including the
criminals whose sentences have been
completed, and all having greater op-
portunity to perpetuate the evil which
this bill seeks to guard against, are
lmmunes from the operation of this
act.
In my judgment this is an unfair,
unjust, unwarranted and inexcusable
discrimination which ought not to be-
and cannot be tolerated under the
supreme law, the constitution of this
state"
The interchangeable mileage bill
which provided that one mileage
should be good on any railroad in the
state instead of each road having their
own mileage was killed in the house
after considerable debate some of
which was rather bitter Both sides
had good men but the bill could not
survive the onslaught and the vote
stood ll9 to 65 in spite of the fact that
Interstate Commerce Commissioner
Prouty favors such mileage.
The house has passed the bill pro-
viding for state purchasing agent as
urged by the governor and the bill
providing for plurality election to
the general assembly after the third
ballot. A bill has been introduced in
the house appropriating $500, 900 for a
new office, building in connection with
the state house.
Although Speaker c. A. Plumley
hnny1 tod
IN place Of J. E. .- Cushman, he will
retain his place as speaker of the
house until the end of the session.
There is some speculation as to other
appointments. S. Hollister Jackson's |
resignation from the public service
commission leaves two vacancies to be !
hlled on this commission by Gov. |
Fletcher. Chairman Redmond's term
expires soon and it is thought he will |
not be reappointed.
On Saturday only 90 law makers |
were present in the house and only a |
small amount of business was turned |
out as result. Was your representa-. |
tive present?
The committee on final adjournment |
refuses to make any recommendation |
on date for final adjournment until |
the tax question has been settled in /
both branches of the legislature and
the matter cannot with any reasonable
expectation be settled before the very
last of next week. A session of two
or three weeks longer is anticipated
The governor has appointed as
committee to work with similar COM
mittees from other states, on the coal
question w. j. Aldrich of st. Johns. |
bury, A. d. Watson of White River
junction, j. F. Higgins of Barre.
q. u. Watson of st. Albans has been
appointed chairman of the Public Ser
wee commission in the place of John