The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-02-05
Justice WheeIerIS Is NoW Chief Justice Of Court
Judge Case and Judge Cur tis Made Associate
 Justices. VOTE UNANIMOUS
 IN EACH INSTANCE Judge Joel H. Reed Was Selected For Office of
 State Referee.

Hartford, Feb. 5-The senate elected by ballot associate Jus tice George w. Wheeler as chief justice of the supreme court to assume the rank of Chief Justice Prentice when the latter retireS August &, 1920. Judge William S. Case and Howard J. Curtis of the Su- periOF court were elected as- sOciate justices of the supreme court by ballot, to take seats to be vacated by Justices Wheeler and ROraback. George E. Hin- man was elected a judge of the superior court to fill a vacancy in that bench when promotions become effective. Ballots were unanimous in each instance. Judge Joel H. Reed was elected a state referee. The governor has yet to make other appoint mentS to the superior court.
 The session of both branches of the General Assembly was short today as committees have had little opportun- ity for hearings and no new meas e1res are admitted. The House sat for fifteen minutes during which 1t reelected J. Sedgwick Tracy of Canaan and Ashael W, Mitchell of woodbury of Litchfeld county,
 Three favorable reports made were on bills amending the stratford court charter increasing salaries of certain officers in 1t: for an appropriation for maintaining the Bank street bridge at Seymour, and from the Committee on State Park for improvement of Whar- ton park at waIlingford.
 In the Senate tho judiciary commit tee favorably reported bills to per- init states attorneys to employ pri- Vate detectives to procure evidence. compensation of such officers to be fixed by a judge and to be paid by the state treasurer as are other costs in & case; and to increase salaries of probation officers in cities of over 50,000 population of s4 to $6 a day with expenses, and in small places from $S to s4 a day. The cities and boroughs committee reported favor ably charter amendment for Water bury abolishing the board of assessors and apportonment and creating a board of tax commissioners and ap- portionment.
 Hartford, Feb. 5-As uncertainty of opinion existed among senators who yesterday voted against ratification of the Federal prohibition amendment as to the parliamentary status of tho matter, the Connecticut senate today declined to reconsider It's action iu refusal to ratify. Under rules a mo. ton to reconsider had to be made today as the matter will be in the House tomorrow. As the latter body Is expected to vote to ratify in non. concurrence the joint resolution would again be returned to the Sen. ate. as would any other measure or which there was non-concurrence.
 The matter came up just as the sen. ate was about to adjourn. In a sense 1t was unexpected. Few House mem bers had remained in the senate chamber. It had appeared to oppon. ents of ratification who had giver considerable time since yesterday ir an effort to determine the parliamen. tary position in which the motion tc ratify had been left by its defeat that if the senate failed to vote not to re. consider the matter would fall be. tween the two branches and would go to the secretary of state as a meas. ure on which there had been disagree. ing action and as such could be trans mitted to the next general assembl,
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