The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1921-03-04

of the bill is very simple but the bin
itself is long one as it involves a
great deal of detail as to the method
of issuing licenses, etc. 1t is the
expectation that the amount Of mon
ey received from this tax will rapidly
increase as the number of ears in
crease in the state.
Great credit is due to Representa-
tive Sherman Child and to Senator
w. F. Brooks for the drafting of this
measure. 1t has required great
deal of investigation and study and
more hard work than any other single
feature in connection with the road
law
The bill for refundments to count
les is now practically ready. It''has
been prepared by Senate and House
subcommittee of the highway COM
mittees. The principles of this bill
as agreed upon a week ago by the
subcommittee are as follows, First.
that no cash payments can be made
during the next two years from the
state trunk highway fund to the
counties for refundments for money
which the counties have spent during
the past two years on the state trunk
highways as named in Amendment
No. /. The cost of maintenance and
the limitations of the fund during the
next two years will make cash pay
ments to counties impossible. Sec
ond, the state recognizes it's moral
obligation to refund to the count
les the money they have spent on the
state trunk highways in the past two
years. Third, counties will be auth
orized to issue their own bonds to
provide for refundment Of monies
spent or contracted to be spent up to
January l, 1921. The state will pay
the interest on these bonds and will
'etire the bonds from the state trunk
highway fund when the bonds fall
lue. About $14,000,000 in refund
nents will fall under this head.
Fourth, counties which authorized
bond issues prior to January 1, 1921,
but which did not actually sell the
bonds, will be given two options;
hey may 60 ahead and issue the
ponds they have authorized and spend
The. money in construction on the
8abcock roads but if they do so the
state will not pay the interest on the
bonds, the county will have to bear
hat expense itself, or, these counties
nay discontinue construction entirely
md leave the matter wholly to the
state. 1t is this predicament in which
st. Louis and Itasca counties find
themselves. These two counties have
authorized the issue of about S9,000,-
300 of bonds but the bonds have not
been actually issued. There really
exists moral obligation on the part
If the state to allow st. Louis county
and Itasca county to continue with
their plans on the same basis. 1t is
aeither reasonable nor right to set
st. Louis and Itasca counties in one
class and the other counties of the
state which have done road work in
the past two years in another class,
but the prejudice against these "rich
counties" is strong and there is also
panicky fear that the huge total
amount of all these refundments will
so mortgage the state trunk highway
fund that other and smaller counties
will not obtain construction work for
many years. This fear, of course,
is utterly groundless but it exists
just the same and is very practical
embarrassment to the plans upon
which st. Louis and Itasca counties
have been. working for the post two
years.
Corridor Gossip.
Members of the St. Louis county
delegation staged a family quarrel
one day last week over the Girls In
dustrial School at Duluth. Every
member of the delegation spoke but
DR.. Cullum's compromised bill for the
school finally passed on amendment.
The rest of the House rather enjoyed
the spectacle of such harmonious
crew at outs. However, there were
no casualties.
The writer enjoyed the privilege
of presiding over the House in COM
mittee of the whole for an hour or
more recently. The House was in
very decent frame of mind, nobody
raised a point of order and the depths
OF his ignorance on parliamentary law
was therefore never discovered.
The bill to prohibit trading in fut-
ures has probably inspired more vio-,
lent oratory in committee than any
other subject in this session. The
prospect of its ultimately becoming
law now seems quite remote.
The educational program including
the bill to revise state aid, has result
ed in innumerable hearings in several
long drawn-out committee discussions
and is still not ready to be reported
to the floor of either house.
Bills were passed by both House
and Senate and signed by the Gov
ernor this week which provide all the
funds necessary to complete the pay.
ment OF bonus to every Minnesota
soldier and it is expected that the
work of the Bonus Board will be fin