The Oskaloosa herald., 1914-01-22
FOR BILL EXPERTS
SENATOR OWEN URGES cRsA
TON OF NATIONAL LEelsLA.
TIVE REFERENCE BUREAU.
WOULD KEEP OUT THE JOKER
Need OF Scrutiny Of Measures Before
Their Introduction Has Been Dem
enstrated Many Times-lt Would
BE Economical.
ax GEORGE CLINTON.

patches attention was called TO the
possibility that the Democratic ma
jority in congress would pass bill
to create 8 bureau OF bill experts"
the duty OF which would be to scru-
tinize bills before their introduction
to see that they would do what they
were intended to do, and would con
tain no so-called "jokers" The pub
lie probably understands pretty well
what a "ioker"'is. 1t Is something
slipped into bill and which purports
to do certain thing, but which In
reality will prevent that thing from be-
ing done.
Now Senator Robert L. Owen OF Ok.
Ishoms, Democrat, has come out in
public speech in favor OF what he
calls a national legislative reference
bureau to prepare bills for introduc-
ton, SO that they may be as nearly
perfect as possible from the stand
point OF clear expression" and so
worded that even the Supreme court
Of the United States could not misun-
derstand them" The senator saws
that much time unquestionably can be
saved, and many errors avoided by
the creation Of an expert bureau with
nothing TO do but to pass on the Eng
lish of bills.
The espousing Of the cause of this
legislation by the senator from Okla.
homa gives the authority Of definite
legislation intention to the report
which was published in this CORE
spondence not long ago that the Dem.
ocrats might take means to prevent
in the future the Introduction into con.
gress of bills containing jokers There
probably will be no open antagonism
to such measure unless II be based
ostensibly on the ground Of expense.
Sometimes when members OF con
gress want to nip prospective legisla.
ton and do not care to give their
real reasons, they plead economy of
service. A bureau of experts would
cost some money. but in the minds Of
the advocates Of such a bureau the
money saved would many times re-
place that spent for salaries for the
bureaus experts
Keen Watch for Jokers
Occasionally in congress- there have
been heated debates over the question
az to whether or not certain provi.
sion OF proposed legislation were
iokers Such debate occurred when
under the Taft administration bills
were introduced TO reinforce the laws
governing interstate commerce !,
will be remembered that under the
Roosevelt administration a bill was
passed to prevent the giving OF re-
bates by railroads to shippers bill
which contained many other =, pfovi.
sions for the governing OF commerce
between the states. This bill was
known as the Hepburn railroad rate
law. IT took the place OF the Esch.
Townsend bill which passed the house,
but which the senate did not sanction.
The measure which was introduced in
the Taft administration ostensfbly was
to strengthen the law which had been
passed under Roosevelt.
President Taft put the work OF pre-.
pairing this particular measure into
the hands of several officials OF the
government They did their work and
the bill went to congress as an admin.
istration measure. II no sooner had
reached the senate than number Of
Progressive-Republica said that
some of the provisions of the measure
we're worse than weak, for while pur.
porting to do one thing their effect
really would be TO do another 1t is
not in memory that these Progressive
Republican senators charged directly
that the provisions we're jokers, and
that the intention was to put some.
thing over" but they came pretty near
making this charge
Hepburn Law Changed.
without going into the merits OF
this interstate commerce legislation az
all, it can be said that the measure
az il was proposed was changed in a
good many particulars by the efforts
Of the opposing senators The bill is
now Law, and the men who did the
changing say that the new wording for
which they were responsible saved the
measures efficiency. This is given
simply as an illustration OF what might
be avoided according TO the view OF
the Democrats, IL a bureau OF experts
should be appointed TO go over bills
in advance OF their Introduction into
the house and senate
One OF the arguments which is be.
ing advanced in favor OF the bureau OF
experts is that II the wording OF a
bill is that it's intention Will be abso.
luteIy clear the courts will have much
less to do than is the case today. HUN.
dreds OF cases are taken into court
simply on the ground that the Ian.
guage Of the Law is ambiguous II
then becomes the province OF the court
to interpret the law and this il is
said means something that II inter
prets the letter OF the law paving lit.
tie heed TO les spirit What 1t is
intended TO do. II IL can be done. is
10 ger body OF experts together who
can cosiesce the spirit and the Letter
or lesislative measures 50 that both
can be made aciear ana that &SIIhor
shan contfudttt the eo(bo n So}In
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