The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1919-02-12

time KILLED
BY LEGISLATURE
Session is Three Weeks Old and
Practically Nothing Has
Been Done.
MAY BE IN SESSION MORE
THAN FORTY DAYS
Several Important Matters to
Be Considered-Gov. Cooper
Urges Adoption of Budget
System.
fBy Hareld Booker.)


adjourned early in the afternoon until
Tuesday while the house adjourned
last night to meet again Monday night
ats O'Clock.
The general assembly seems to be
making slower progress at this ses-
sion than at any previous session IN
many years. It has now been in seS-
sion over three weeks and practical
" no bills have been enacted into
law. The only bill of Statewide i'm
portance that has passed was the sal
of the session.
Very important legislation is pend
ing in both houses but very little
headway is being made on it.
1t was generally thought that the
senate would take up the tax commls-
sien bill this week and dispose OF it
one way or the other but the week
has passed with nothing done on IT,
The bill has been a special order Tor
the whole week and yesterday was
made a special order for next Tues
day afternoon at o'clock by Senator
McColl of Marlboro.
About the only thing the senate has
done. this week Of special notice was
the passage Of a bill raising the sal
aries of circuit judges to $4,000 a
year, the salaries of solicitors to- 81
400 and the salaries Of court steno-
graphers to S2,100. At the same time
it passed bill allowing members OF
the Supreme Court who reside in Co
luuabia $500 a year additional. Sen
ator McCon made a fight on the lat
ter measure saying that ii w"s mere
ly lodging the law which prohio!ts
the raising of salary Of an omclai
during his term of Office. Other sena-
tors insisted, however, that there was
great advantage to the lawyers II
having members Of the Supreme
Court reside in Columbia because they
would then be more accessible TO ali
of the lawyers Of the State.
The senate yesterday put its foot
down on the proposed coordination OF
the government Of the. State colleges.
Senator Christensen early in the ses-
sion introduced a concurrent resolu-
ton providing for commission to IN
vestigate the plan and to report back
at the next session. The senate yes
terday took up the resolution and al
ter. a. brief debate laid it on the table
Senator Sheppard Of Edsefeid made
a very strong speech against the res
olution and his views seemed to pre-
vail in the senate. The Edgefield SEN
ator, whose every word falls on at
fentive ears in the senate. declared
that the State would be wasting mon
ey in the apartment of such a COM
mission. If the commission should
report bac kthat the coordination OF
government scheme was not feasible
the States money would have been
wasted. If it should report back rec
ommendins the adoption Of the plan
the legislature would reject it and
nothing would have been accomplish
ed, said Senator Sheppard.
This was Senator Sheppard's first
week in the senate, he having been
sworn in on Wednesday and was IN
his seat during the memorial ser
vices to his son-in-law and predeccs-
sor, the late Senator B. f. Nicholson
The senate finally got rid Of the
resolution providing for a consti1u-
tional convention this week and it IS
now in the house. where it Will hove
rougher sailin gthan it had in the
senate.
The fate of the bill in the lower
house is problematical. The unanl-
nifty of the senate on the matter may
have its effect on the house. Ger
tain it is that the lawyers OF the low
er body will do all in their power to
get it by.
A bill has been introduced IN the
lower house by Representatives Davis
and Kinard of the Laurens delegation
to abolish free tuition in all State IN
stitutions for higher learning in this
State and to substitute loan fund.
This is an administration measure.
having been advocated by Gov. Coop
er from every stump in South Caro-
Ira 1t is expected that there will be
quite a lively fight on the measure,
however.
Quite a great deal of labor legisla-
ton is pending in both houses. The
house this week killed a 4S-hour
week biz for textile operatives. Sev-
eral OTTER bills attempting to regulate
the hours Of textile operatives are Or
the calendar yet, however. two OF
three having been introduced yestcr
day.
Senators Pearce and Rogers yester
day introduced a bill to limit their
hours of work to 81 week or ten
hours a day. Representative Long
also introduced q measure last night
regulating the hours of labor in the
industrial and manufacturing enter
prises for South Carolina.
The committee on commerce and
ma nufactures will hold hearing on
"Wednesday afternoon on resolution
by Representative Meares cxpressin.,
sympathy for the cotton mill strikers
and calling on manufacturers to c;ran@I
them an S-hour day.
The good roads committee OF the
house to which was referred the cooi
roads measures last night reported q
bill which is modelled after the bill
endorsed by the State highway cam
paign committee and introduced -
the house early last week. The bill