The courier-index., 1921-02-18
LITTLE ROCK LETTER
lBv Clio Harner.l

1 ond reading. It has been true of all sessions and will be true of this,
 that hundreds of measures are per
 mitted to die on the calendar. 1 Many bills are introduced, read
 twice, and never referred to again. | Whether this is due to opposition from the people at home, to in-
 difference on the part of the au- ! thors, or to the idea that the rep
 resentatives' obligation has been full filled by the introduction of the bill, is not known. Many of the
 measures that die of inaition are
 reported, adversely by some com
 mittee and are never called up again as it is realized that it would
 be useless to waste further time
 upon them.
 There are many evidences of
 hasty legislation due to the sixty day session. Hundreds of bills, ''lo-
 cal bills affecting only--
 county" are read by title and pass
 ed with seldom dissenting vote up- on the statement of the represen- tative affected that ''the bill is all right and the people want it." Such bills seldom go before a committee and the author assumes full re- sponsibiity for them. Bills are ire quently rushed through both houses with little deliberation and there have been some amusing incidents growing out of this custom. In the Senate the other day one of the senators insisted upon calling up one of his own bills for amendment, hn Co II fk~A L.. ! already been passed and approved by the governor. In still another case an appropriation bill went through both houses and was signed by the governor. It was drawn as similar bills have been drawn since 1875, but the eagle eye of Uncle Joe Ferguson, the state treasurer, discovered that there was a defect in the bill and he refused to honor warrants drawn upon it, so it be- came necessary to introduce an amendatory bill providing that the claims should be paid out of the General Revenue fund, instead of "out of any fund not otherwise ap- propriated." The treasurer held that under the terms of the bill he could as we'll pay the warrants out of the tick eradication fund or the registered nurses fund as anything else. Attorney General Utley agreed with him and said that the bill had been drawn in accordance with custom and not with the law.
 The greater part of the next three weeks must be devoted to the passage of the general appropria- tion bills which will begin to make their appearance this week. The legislature has almost gotten rid of all the emergency appropriation bills which were made necessary by the recent decision of the Supreme Court.
 The special act of 1919 and of 1920 creating road improvement dis trlcts in the various counties are being repealed as rapidly as the law makers can advance their bills on the calendar and secure a roll call on their passage. The score being made by the abolitionists is mount ing to heights approximating the number of acts that were passed in previous sessions creating districts. So far only two districts have been organized by special act, one in Hot Springs county (and the act creat- ing it has already been once amend ed) and another in St. Francis county. As a matter of fact road building by special act is not popu- lar in this session. In this re- spect, as in many others, the leg islature is adhering strongly to the policies enunciated by Governor Me Rae.
 In fact, the opposition to Govern or McRae, which was never very strong in the House, has completely broken down. It went to pieces last week in final effort made against the administration bill to abolish the Board of Control, the opposition be- ing able to secure less than 10l votes. There is a more even divi- 1 sion in the Senate, but even there the administration hordes are in control. Governor McRae does not wield the big stick, does not main tain representatives on the floor of | either House, and his hand does not | appear openly save in a few i'm stances. Yet his strength in both | houses has been rapidly growing and it is now admitted that he can have | anything he wants, because" as one member said, The will not ask | for anything that is wrong"
 The administration pledges are rapidly being fulfilled. The Peni- tentiary Commission is already num- bered among the things that were and new Honorary Board is al- ready in charge of the affairs of the institution.
 The Arkansas Corporation Com will be consigned to the limbo of the obsolete as soon as the repeal can be enrolled and reach the hands which will be be- fore this item is put in type. This which has been running the gaumet of public opinion during the last two years, is to be sue ceeded by rival of the old railroad commission, with most of it's powers and prerogatives restored.
 The House has already passed the k,1t tsl, 4 ,.F D4 Al