The Republican journal., 1922-08-03
WHY Not Limitation of
Legislation?"
(From The Outlook

This harassed old world needs "limita-
tion of legislat' on" as well as Limitation
of ornaments" Statutes, laws, and regu-
lations of all sorts make each year con-
fusion worse confounded. 1t has been
asserted that every person in the United
States, unwIttingly in ninety nine cases
out of a hundred, violates every day some
Federal, State, or local law or regulation
perhaps the honest Judge himself in going
from his home to the courtroom where
he hands down every day his judgments
of justice breaks some minor regulation,
for which offense a policeman, II he were
near by and had studied his book of regu-
lations carefully enough, could place the
eminent Judge under arrest.
A leading authority on American police
administration recently estimated that
the average policeman, to enforce the
city ordinances, State laws, and Con-
gressional enactments, committed In
whole or in part to his charge, must have
working knowledge of at least 10000
statutes. This fact was pointed out in a
recent speech in Washington by James
A. Emery before the American Cotton
Manufacturers Association.
Why not Congress some time which
would subtract five hundred useless or
foolish or annoying laws from the stat
ute books, instead of adding five hundred
laws to those same bulky volumes2 Such
a Congress might earn recognition as the
greatest the world had yet seen
In one of our State Legislatures few
wears ago an extreme illustration occur
red of the desire of member to have his
name attached to some piece OF legisla-
ton This particular member was sent
to the Legislature from more or less
rural district. He introduced bill pro-
viding that a bounty of five dollars be
paid by the State for the hide of every
loup. cervier (the Canada lynx or Wildcat
killed in the commonwealth. Most of the
memb bers did not Know what loup-
cervier was, and had to consult die
tionary, or some other member who had
beaten them to the dictionary, to find out
what this particular amin II (popularly
known in some places as Lucy Vee) was.
The legislator who desired to have his
name 60 down in history as the author OF
an addition to the laws of the State is
said to have traded his vote on PRACTICAL
ly every other piece of legislation which
came up at that session for votes on his
pet measure, which was passed. The
State pays as much as twenty or thirty
dollars some years for the animals killed
on which this bill offered bountyl
If there is one place above all others
where there is pride of authorship, 1T is
in the halls of Americas State and Nat
ional capitols; and. as in the field of
bellies lettres, there is plenty of plagiar-
ism. Similar bills also are frequently
introduced by half-dozen or more MEM
bers, each hoping his may be the one
which will stick and bear the mark of
fame.
The United States "easily holds first
place in the manufacture of statutory
law" declared Mr.. Emery in his speech.
"a single Congress" he added, "usually
receives some 10000 bills. Many of the
States consider not less than 1000. Dur
ing the year 1921 forty-two Legislatures
were in session. Judging from past
years, Congress and the States annually
enact an average of $4,000 statutes. The
State and National legislation of single
year recently required more than 10000
pages of official print"
Certainly, it is time for Congress on
Limitation of Legislation.