The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-01-13
FIRE UP R. R. "Y" SIX man j
Many Activities Planned for the That's What Senator
Next Few Months of johnson Wal
Series of Practical Talks Will "RidiculOus for lively
Begin January "a. Try Civil Cases
HOLD A THRIFT EXHIBITION PUNISH PRAIRIE
Topeka Financirs Asked to Fine and mprisOnme
Talk to the Members Be Malone Punish
Sport Events Are to Furnish Strange Young Men a
Varied Entertainment Bill. Have Deserted
That's What Senator Coleman
of johnson Wants.
"RidicuIOus for Twelve Men to
Try Civil Cases."
PUNISH PRAIRIE FIREBUGS
Fine and Imprisonment Would
Be Malone Punishment.
Strange Young Men and WOm-
en- Have Deserted Senate.

Among all the Jury" bills intro
duced at this and previous sessions the
little bill introduced by. Senator Cole
man of Johnson county stands out as
something new. He proposes a six
man jury for civil cases, involving
amounts up to $500.
This bill grew out of what appears
to me as lawyer to be a real need
said Senator Coleman. 1T is ridicu-
lous to have to draw a jury of twelve
men to try a little civil case. Six
men could reach a decision, perhaps
more easily and the decision would be
just as fair as it would be if reached
by twelve men,
it, Senator Coleman also favors the
three-fOurthS jury measure, for which
two or three bills have been intro
duced in the senate.
in hard-fought cases." he said,
there is always the chance that eff
forts, more or less successful, have
made to fix one juror; that there will
be one man on the jury who will
stand out against all the rest until the
end of time and force a hung jury.
With a three-fourths jury law it
would require three or more such men
to hang the jury and prevent a YER
dict. believe nine honest men can
reach a true verdict just as well as
twelve. 1 believe the verdict of the
nine would be just as nearly right as
H.
siX-man jury bill should pass and be
followed by three-fourths jury law,
it would be hard to divide a six-man
jury up that way, but that could be
ironed OUT
Last fall was a season of prairie
fires in western Kansas and legislators
came to Topeka loaded with bills pro-
viding punishment for people who
start such fires. One such bill, intro
duced by Senator Malone of Rawlins.
makes it punishable by fine or i'm
prisonment or both fine and imprison-
ment. The fine is to run from $50 to
$500 and the Jail sentence from fifteen
days to three months. 1t covers fires
started willfully and wantonly in
woods, timber, marsh or prairie
There was a noticeable absence of
strange young men and women around
the senate Friday Afternoon after the
employment committee brought in its
report. All the choice places were fill
ed in that report and the eighty or
ninety who waited unsuccessfully, for
the eighteen jobs filled, departed.
For the three days and nights the
senate committee on employees was in
session the hair of Senator Pomeroy
of Jackson stood on end continuously
Every time he came out of the COM
m1ttee room he was running his fin
gers thru his hair. Today is an off
day, there was no meeting Friday
night, and Pomeroy's hair has almost
| consented to part and stay in place.
No chairman will have so many trou-
bles crowded into three days and
nights as had the chairman OF the
committee on employees.
y The bill introduced by Senator Kim
ball of Labette providing for the pay
ment of costs by the life, accident or
health insurance company when it
contests a policy was incorrectly in
terpreted in Senate Notes." 1t was
stated that it provided for the pay
ment of costs when the beneficiary
won in the courts. That would be true
in any event without a new law. What
Senator Kimball wants to do is to
make it necessary for the company to
pay the costs whenever it contests the
payment of a policy