Manchester Democrat., 1921-03-30
lit WILL SOON BE
over IN DES MONIES
ADJOURNMENT RESOLUTION FOX
APRIL s. SOLONS ARE WORK.
ING HARD AND FAST
Highway Fight Staged Past Week,
and Blue Sky is Assured ..
Without Opposition
Des Moines. March %, 1921.

Des Moines, March %, 1921.
Adjournment of this General As
sembly on April sth seems to be the
program now The advance dope
given out in this correspondence last
week holds good. The House passed
the resolution to adjourn on that date
and the motion to reconsider the vote
has been withdrawn. However, there
Is still some guess regarding the time
for the special ssession for Code re-
vision. While the embattled farmers
Of the House prefer late in Novem.
ber for such special session, most of
the other members want it earlier.
and it Is said the governor is taking
advice looking to October as the time
for reconvening. It. is all up to the
governor as to calling special ses
sion, and the Code Revision Commis-
sion say they must have at least
three months to get the work in
shape for the legislators to handle.
Important matters have finally been
fort I'd to the fore during the past
week. Shunting these things off
from time to time while only small
matters and leglaizing acts were
taken up, had to end sometime, and
now days it is much pleasanter to be
an observer of legislation than it is
to be member Of the General AS
sembly and have to tackle the buzz
saw. Committee and other meetings
have been the order lately, even till
past midnight often, and the members
are dead tired of the grind.
Turned Down q Million
For instance, the corporation tax
bill by Senator Newberry. This bill,
considered in committees for weeks
amended and paved over all that
time, finally came out and on the
calendar. 1t was called up for ac-
ton in the Senate Monday last, and
everybody tore into it. Manufactur-
ers and corporation people were
against it. 1t hurt The banks came
near being tangled up in 1t, and their
friends did some neat acrobatic stunts
in landing on their feet. Even the
national banks came near being in
cluded in the provisions of the state
law, regardless OF Uncle Sans claim
to exclusive Jurisdiction. And then
the bill was killed on vote OF ~ to
2s. The bill called for a tax OF $40
per year on all corporations doing
business in this state. On amend
ment cooperative organizations were
exempted and then the banks and in
surance companies. Net incomes OF
corporations were to be taxed at the
rate of one dollar per thousand. Ihus
a million dollars, more or less, was
in sight for the state treasury-tlli
the Senators killed the bill. Senator
Newberry made a splendid fight for
his bill, and got a good showing at
that.
The next day the Senate grabbed
at three millions in the way OF
head tax for school purposes, passing
the bill of Senator Olson OF Boaae
county by a vote of 40 to .. Ihls
bill is one Of the most important
handled at this session, and yet less
has been said about it than about the
state flag bill. If it becomes law oy
passage in the House, it will levy
a tax of three dollars or every adult
person in the state for school pur-
poses, the tax to be due in July ana
collected by October. Employers Oh
labor are to collect the tax from
their employees and turn it in. The es-
sence of the measure is that 1t Will
reouire some thousands of persons
who enjoy free education OF tneir
children in this state to pay a little
something into the school fund. FOR
eipners who do not hold either cltl-
zenship or property will be Included
and others who vote but own no
property will have the privilege OF
contributing to education IN the puo-
lie schools. At the, same time, gen.
eral taxpayers will be relieved to the
extend the funds applied in this way
take up the burden Of school ex-
penses. There are over million
adults in Iowa, and it is estimated
the law will raise three million dol
1ars and more without hurting any
body.
State Highway Law Stands
All assaults against the state high
way law have come to naught' Sew
eral House bills calculated to alter
and amend the law have gone by the
board, with the result that authors OF
other House measues OF that Klnd
have given up the fight and told the
committees in chage to pocket the
bills and let them rest.
But in the Senate on wednesday
the 23rd, the fight went to finish on
the Mead bill, which provided for
abolishment of the state highway
commission and the substitution OF
state highway engineer with power
to direct the road work Of the state,
and to maintain headquarters in Des
Moines instead of Ames. 1t was
spectacular fight, and was staged in
spite of an advance report by the
highway committee Of the Senate,
the bill being voted on the calendar
by majority of one vote last week
Then the bill came up as a special
order Wednesday with both sides Or
ganized for the finish fight. Senator
Mead is from Butler county-a farmer
and banker. He presented his bill