The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-02-27
Senate Votes Unanimously
to Join House of Correc-
tion and State Prison
REFORMATORY FOR
WOMEN AT WINDSOR
Action Would Wipe Out the
House of Correction
at Rutland

The first steps toward the eonsoIida-
tion of the Vermont house of correction
and the Vermont state prison were taken
to-day when the Senate, by a unanimous
vote, ordered TO third reading two SEN
ate bills, numbered 76 and ", the first
authorizing the construction of a re-
formatory for women at the state prison
at Windsor and the other authorizing
the disposal of the state property at
Rutland (the house of correctionl.
Without debate the Senate, too, killed
House bin No !, requiring women voters
to pay poll taxes.
After sharp tilt between Senators
Kingsley and Villas the Senate to-day
passed S. 75 University of Vermont
scholarship bilii as amended by the com
mittee to limit the application of the
scholarships TO the medical department,
the annual amount TO be $1,000 instead
of $4,000 as proposed in the original vi
las bill When this measure was up yes
terday afternoon there was a sharp de-
bate in which Senator Villas opposed the
committee amendment and Senator
Kingsley and Senator Daniels of Wind
ham county favored the amendment.
Senator Villas declared that the young
people Of Vermogt were knocking at the
door Of the university in larger numbers
than ever before. He urged the Senate
to heed their call for help. In addition
to the briefer but even more pointed
shafts Of debate discharged by the sen
ator from Rutland county, Senator La
fleur Of Addison addressed the Senate at
length and urged fair play for Middle
bury. his alma mater which he declared
would be put at a disadvantage by the
bin even as amended. He proposed an
amendment, after he had failed TO get
the bill put over, which would give Mid.
dlebury S4,S00' in scholarships, but that
amendment was lost and the committee
amendment adopted by vote of 20 to 7.
Senator Villas fought for his bill at every
step, making several speeches in addi-
tion to his great effort, his final attempt
being to make the 5000 appropriation
apply to the academic department as
wen as to the medical department, but
this, as we'll as all his other propositions,
was voted down.
When the bill appeared in the Senate
this morning, Senator Villas asked leave
10 offer an amendmeat which would in
clude the academic department of the
university with the medical department
in the appropriation This was the same
amendment which Senator Villas failed
to get through yesterday afternoon. He
said that his reason for bringing it for
ward again this morning was that some
of the senators were in the Senate this
morning who were absent yesterday aft
ernoon.
The question was not debatable, but
Senator Daniels interrogated Senator vi
las as to whether there were not some
senators absent this morning who were
there yesterday. Senator Villas admit
ted that that was probably so,
Senator Kingsley interrogated Senator
Villas as to whether this was not the
same amendment that the Senate had re-
iected yesterday. Senator Villas said that
il was.
"And how many times can an amend
ment be offered in the Senate?' asked
Senator Kingsley.
"If the senator from Rutland county
does not know the rules of the Senate,
he had better look them up, if he can
read, as l suppose he can, replied Sen
ator Villas.
q was asking the senator from Chit
tenden a question" insisted Senator
Kingsley.
81 do not feel that | am obliged to
furnish that information" was Senator
Villas reply.
Senator LaFleur interrupted and inter
rogated Senator Villas as to whether he
(Senator LaFleur) had not asked to have
this bill ordered to lie until the close of
the calendar to-day Senator Villas re-
piled that he didn't remember of hearing
such a request, and, anyhow, if it had
carried, the bill would have been placed
at the end of the calendar to-day, which
it was not, Senator LaFlelT insisted on
direct answer to his question and SEN
ator Villas refused to answer, labelling
the action of the senator from Addison
as "pettifogging," and wasting time.
Senator Kingsley remarked from his
chair that he thought the senator from
Chittenden was the one who was wasting
time. Senator Villas started to make a
remark about the senators from Rutland
and Addison, when the president called
the Senate to order and the vote on the
request of Senator Villas was taken. The
Senate refused, almost unanimously, to
allow the amendment to be offered, and
the bill was passed by a viva voce vote,
thus ending a bitter contest which has
held the attention of the Senate nearly
all of the time for the past "a hours.
Mr.. Tracy of johnson led a stiff fight
in the House this morning on H. 1913, re-
pealing the lFw providing for secret in
quests. MIR, Tracy defended the minor
ity report of the committee opposing the
bill. He declared that it would injure a
great many innocent men who would be
brought before a public hearing for some
crime of which they were suspected, but
of which they were innocent. Mr.. Aus
tin of Highgate and Mr., Writers of st.
Johnsbury defended the bill, and bitterly
opposed MIR, Tracy for his stand.
An important bill was introduced in
Continued on eighth page.l