Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1918-11-15
LETS HAVE A LEVEL SESSION.

LET'S HAVE A LEVEL SESSION.
After four years Idaho lie to once
more enjoy republican legislature,
and that should spell general benefit
to the state. The benefit should come
not in multiplicity of fool measures
enacted, but rather In the annnlment
OF some OF the erratic and freak laws
that now burden the statutes. 1t IL an
interesting fact that when he average
citizen has nothing else on his mind
he can break any one of 500 or more
laws designed, created and existing
for the benign purpose Of keeping
him In the straight and narrow path.
When he hasn't anything else to do
he can breathe and bust regulation.
When he begins to figure that every2
thing is moving along all right he
bumps into a thou shalt not" that
was fathered by some bucolic bone
head who had necessary political line
up to put it over during glorious
session of trade-off bills and general
incompentency.
A representative from this county
once said that the assembly was COM
posed Of "ahout twenty level-headed
men and q hundred damned fools, =
ana at that time the public uttered an
amen. Another referred to the gath
ering as composed Of "short-haired
women and long-haired men," as in
dicative OF the type or citizenry not
particularly capable of looking after
the destinies of themselves. much less
that Of the people at large.
There would appear to be no occa-
sion for such contempt as that. In
this day, and after we have gone thru
q cleansing process that should pretty
definitely put every individual on his
own feet as q sane and substantial
factor, there would seem to be little
necessity for non-essential enact
ments by the assembly.
We have all the regulations requir-
ed. We are regulated to death. Out
upon this inconsequential legislative
physici The state and its communi-
ties are well provided for and are POI
Iced to a finish, and that should be
enough. We need no plethora OF re-
striction. as all institutions are well
guarded.
The senator or representative who
goes into the session next January
win earn the plaudits of his people
by exercising desire to repeal rather
than to enact. He will not go down
TO fame as builder OF monumental
nothings based on experiment. but
would go down to contempt. The
members should go into the session
with well-defined purpose to correct
the evils OF existing measures. TO
weed out the non-essentials, to wipe
out obscure acts. to amend made
quate bills. to throttle the bunk Of
bright new dreams, and to use intelli-
gence. business and good reason In
modifying, simplifying or correcting.
Much Of Idaho's legislative history
Is political intrigue and schoolboy op-
Grafton. Here and there stands ont a
rational character whose sixty days at
the state house are not shrouded in
doubt. Efficiency in legislating Is not
80 much in the bulk, but the quality,
Of the work done.
Far better would 1t be to go into
the session with well-defined plan
to eliminate the quite inconsequential
public utilities commission than to
pass a bill providing a swivel chair
for a public guardian against preda-
tory corporations.
Equal sanity would attach TO re-
pealing the game law and providing a
measure based ON horse sense. and
preserving TO the people a natural re-
source. Revise the state military law.
The legislator who is profound on
highway development that is APPROX
ed by the people at large is far
greater servant to the state than the
fellow who figures the commissioners