El Imparcial. (San Juan, P.R.) 1918-197?, 1919-02-11
Continued from page Al

States and Territories of the United
States makes it very important that the
laws relating to commerce and industry
be as uniform as possible. This Legis-
lature by passing the uniform Ware
house Receipts Law at the last session
made good beginning for Porto Rico
in this matter.
The Negotiable instruments Law has
been pending for some time and / hope
will be passed at this session
Mos of the public lands of the Island
are still unsurveyed lands of the Island
therefore be leased or put into use. Our
surveying division is SO limited in per
sonnel and resources, that their pro-
gress in this work is necessarily exceed
ingly slow. 1t would be very wise from
business point of view to speed up
this work of surveying public lands SO
that they could be leased and produce
some revenue or else sold to working
men under the Homestead Law.
For similar reasons l suggest that it
would be wise to increase appropria-
tions for personnel and equipment OF
the 1nsular telegraph The business
and receipts of this branch of the
public service has increased about 33
per cent in the last two years. Although
it is not maintained primarily for profit,
it is practically self-supporting and
would speedily become source of profit
if afforded an opportunity to expand
its business with new lines and equip
Ment.
The disappointment which has attend
ed the expeditions of Porto Rican la
borers to the mainland and the stimuli
taneous rehabilitation of the officers
and soldiers of Camp Las Casas have
iil,;reased the difficulties connected with
labor and unemployment in the Is
land. The expeditions OF the laborers
were foredoomed to failure because of
the unsuitable season and the unfortun-
ate methods of recruiting and selection,
and the demobolization was necessary
consequence of the coming of peace,
victorious and glorious as it was 1t is
our duty to endeavor in every way
possible to avert the disadvantages and
svfferings that may fall upon the Ia
boreS due to these conditions and | re-
commended that a somewhat appro-
priation be made for the Free Employ
ment Agency now maintained in the
Bureau of Labor. I also join in the
recommendation of the Commissioner
of Agriculture and Labor that an arbi-
tration law be enacted creating an ar
bitration commission whose duty shall
be to aid in every possible way in Sc
curing a fair and just settlement,
through arbitration of all labor contro-
versies.
/ would call your attention to the
new leper law which failed of approval
last year for reasons stated. The whole
matter of new site for the leper colony
was included in the annual report of
the Commissioner of Health and pub
lished in the annual report of the Gov
ernor (1918), pages 164-16S. The es-
timated cost Of new site is placed at
s75,OW-. ' .
The various depar tnents have asked
for some deficiency appropriations
which become necessary because of ex-
penditures connected with the extraor-
dinary calamities that have come upon
the Island in the last few months.
/ hope that you will, find it possible
to meet all of these without difficulty.
One of these deficiency appropria-
tions special to call to your
special attention - that one wiche
has become necessary to maintain for
the rest of the fiscal year the penal
institutions because of extraordinary
expenses involved in taking care of a
large number of additional prisoners.
These prisoners were convicted by the
courts and turned over to the prison
authorities as the result of an earnest
campaign made against transmissible
social diseases. This deficiency will