The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1917-04-05
HIGHEST TAX RATE
SEEMS PROBABLE
DEMANDS ON THE LEGISLATURE
ARE UNUSUALLY LARGE
THIS YEAR
NATIONAL SITUATION FACTOR
MILLIONS ASKED FOR DEFENSE
PURPOSES AND BONUS TO
STATE TROOPS

st. Paul, April 2.-The highest
tax rate in the history of the state is
predicted by members of the house
appropriations committee because CT
extraordinary demands on the treas
ury, and Theodore Christensen, chair
man of the committee, is in guam
Diary how to avoid at least part OF
the infiiction. Accepting his statement
if certain extraordinary demands are
acceded to, and there seems little
chance of evading them, the rate fol-
state revenue purposes next year will
be close to the 7-mills mark. At pres
ent the figure is 81 mills and it is re-
garded as high. For month now the
house appropriations committee and
the senate finance committee have
been wrestling with the question of
needed moneys for the conduct of the
various state departments and the
general running expene of the state.
In itself this is no light task, but
when the members of the two commit
tees are greeted with demands of ST.
100000 for national defense, $1,SO0,OOO
to cover a deficit in state school aid,
100000 as a bonus to member of the
national guard who answered the call
to the Mexican border, and nearly ST.
100000 additional for state school
purposes and with each item carrying
a full quota of merit the whole resolves
itself into a problem that would worry
the most calloused. These extraordi-
nary calls, not to speak of heavy in
creases in cost for the conduct of all
state departments, is what the two
committees are up against and how to
meet them and at the same time not
increase the state tax rate is what
puzzles. This year the legislature, in
the matter of it's appropriations, is
working under a budget system,
claimed by it's trainers of two years
ago as a panacea for all appropriation
evils, but in a large measure its work.
ings have not proven so. The same
old problems still exist and they have
to be worked out in the same old way.
The house appropriations committee
expects to have its report ready with
in the next ten days.
Woman suffrage, or rather an act
designed to extend to the fair sex the
right to vote for presidential electors,
was defeated in the senate by a vote
of 81 to IS. The result, while close.
was enough to show the temper OF
the upper body on the suffrage ques-
ton and to settle the probable fate of
a companion bill giving to the women
of the state constitutional suffrage.
This last named bill, which is house
measure and has received the ap-
proval Of that body, now sleeps in
senate committee and is likely to con-
tinue there. Senate drys are among
those who 70 not want it disturbed.
They fear it will blight the progress
of the constitutional prohibition act to
be voted upon at the next general
election. Some day women may get
the ballot in Minnesota, but it is not
likely to happen this year.
Those who hoped for some changes
in the statewide primary law that
would permit a partial return to the
convention system are due for disap-
pointment. The house a week ago put
the lid on the Harrison and Odland
bills calling for a combination of pri-
mary and convention, and the senate
has now put to sleep the Rustad bill
calling for a similar arrangement. The
bill lost out in the latter body by a
small vote. Expecting such, an organ
ization has been perfected in st. Louis
county which has for its purpose re-
turn to partisanship and the election
of men to public office who are right.
This organization, which is backed by
cleading Republicans, will exact OF
those candidates whom it supports that
they be bona fide Republicans and
that they stand by Republican princi-
pies. In the senate the Democrats
voted solidly against the Rustad bill,
and, as a minority, were largely re-
sponsible for its defeat. They admit
that the present primary laws are
their own salvation. The officehold-
ers' combine also added it's mite.
With the permission of Governor
Burnquist, Senator A. S. Campbell of
Austin and Representative Washburn
of Minneapolis have introduced in
their respective bodies bills providing
for the registration of aliens in the
state. The idea is to provide the au-
thorities with needed information re-
garding persons in the state who are
not registered Americans.
Governor, Burnquist is understood to
be quite wrathy over the defeat in the
senate of the public domain bill as
drafted and fathered by the Senator
Carley Interim efficiency an economy
commission and is said to be prepar.
ing a strong message to the house
urging that body to rectify the senate
error. If the house agrees it will be
returned to the senate and that body
asked to make good. Among the op-
ponents of the measure was Senator
r. c. Dunn and it is reported that he