The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1914-04-02
TELLS ABOUT THE CAPITOL En-
TENSION.

concerning the capitol extension bill.
If the statements and limitations are
true and we'll founded, the Republic
can surely substantiates the charge
that the bill was surreptitiously pass
ed. Here is the article:
The Des Moines Register and Lead
er challenges the cedar Rapids Re-
publican to come out in the open and
charge that the capitol extension bill
was surreptitiously pushed through
the legislature. The Cedar Rapids
paper does not seem inclined to
make the direct accusation. 1t is
not possible to know what is the in
tention of men except as they act
and speak, and nobody having con-
fessed to putting the bill through the
legislature stealthily, there is no way
to prove the charge except by cir
cumstances. Taking these, we be-
lieve, a charge of stealth can be es-
tablished and this paper has no doubt
that the bill was pushed through the
legislature with intention to forestau
informatio discussion and intelll-
gent voting. What are the facts?
The bill was never introduced in
either legislative body as practically
all bills are introduced.
1t was only printed in the house
journal and never in the senate in
any form.
1t was taken up in the house on
April s, was discussed only few
minutes when the previous question
was ordered. The bill passed and
n
Whitney of Woodbury. jumped to his
feet and moved that the vote by
which the bill had just passed be re-
considered and that the motion lie
upon the table. Both motions were
Immediately voted upon and adopted.
This was near noon.
On converting that afternoon the
bill was placed upon the senate rec
ords as a message from the house,
only the title being read.
Just before adjournment Senator
Mates called up the bill and asked
immediate consideration. The rules
prohibit a bill being acted upon in
both houses the same day. Senator
Doran of Boone objected. The rule
was suspended without roll call, a
number of the senator's being out and
few paying attention to what was go
ing on. The bill was then read for
information and put upon it's pass
age. 1t received the requisite num-
Der of votes and was declared adopt
ed. A motion to reconsider and lay
the motion on the table, not debat-
able, was adopted and thus in six
hours. with less than twenty minutes
debate in the house and none in the
senate, a bill levying taxes aggregat-
ing over 100000 and providing
for debt of equal amount, was put
through the legislature.
The most convincing incident con-
nected with the affair is the we'll
known fact that newspaper men at
the state house assured members that
no roll call Of the vote on this bill
would be published and none was
published, although it was custom
to give the vote on important mea-
sures.
Anybody at all familiar with legis-
lation knows that bills coming from
appropriations committees receive
practically no attention. This bill
was introduced in the house as COM
ing from the house committee on APP
preparations and members naturally
supposed it was one of the many
which always come from that COM
mittee, which seldom are debated or
even listened to in either body.
A prominent senator was called
into the senate chamber to vote when
the bill was up. He told the writer
that he was assured it was an appro-
priation bill and he went in and an
swered to the roll call as the vote
was light The next day he found he
had Internationally voted for the
capitol extension bill. People may
think that the senator should have
known what was in the. bill, but with
six hundred different bills pending,
members must depend upon commit
tees.
Will the defenders of the bill an
swer these questions:
Why was the bill kept ell winter
under cover of one committee, in fact
a friendly subcommittee, most OF
the time, and never introduced as
other bills were and printed and plac-
ed in the bill files?
Why was it not fully debated and
why did a friend of the bill in the
house move the previous question
and cut off debate?
Why the unusual motion to recon-
slider and lie on the table, something
practically never done except where
bills have been defeated?
Why was the bill pushed through
the senate on the same day it passed
the house contrary to the joint rules,
when the senate had a long calendar
inviting it's attention?
Can anybody name another case
in the entire history Of legislation
in Iowa where any important meas
ure was put through both houses
and so tied up that it could be defeat
ed only by executive veto all in the
space of six hours, or four and one
half hours of legislative session?
Why did the Des Moines newspa-
pers and all the correspondents omit
the publication of the roll call on
this bill?
But most important of all, why
was not the question of raising 49,
100000 and mourning that amount