The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1923-01-04
WHAT SOME PEOPLE
WANT

WANT
Down at Twin Falls last weel
there was meeting Of people ant
| the legislators-elect, to compar,
views regarding legislation desired
at the coming session that Begin
next Monday. At that sitting there
were fifteen principal changes dis
| cussed that were reported by the
press, and it sounds so radically diff
ferent from what people were want
ing three or four years ago, ant
some of them so petty, it ought to
be worth reading.
OF course they began by assault
ing the tax question and agreeing
that lower taxes are desirable. In
that county they prided themselves
on never pausing for anything that
cost money and during the wal
Twin Falls heralded it turnout the
nation that it always raised its
quota of war money before break
fast and before the banks opened,
or words to that effect. Some peo-
pie in this recent meeting said they
thought the law ought to be changed
to make the penalty lighter on taxes
that became delinquent, and If
necessary charge higher rate of in
terest till the tax is paid. Some
body else wanted just the reverse of
that, and a third one suggested
making the penalty of per cent
for the first thirty days, and then
add 2 per cent every thirty or sixty
days till paid.
Some said it was expensive to
maintain irrigation districts and
wanted them dissolved. Another
speaker said it would disturb pub
lie credit and public service and that
the work done by such organization
had to be done in some way, and
the bonds already sold would have
to be redeemed and irrigation had to
go on or lose crops, and he advised
that until something better than ir-
rigation districts was devised and
tested out, it would be imprudent to
throw away what we have.
Another speaker conceded the
truth of that, but said he thought
they ought to take time by the fore
lock now and vote against the for
nation Of the super district of
financing the construction of the
American Falls storage reservoir as
that would cost money if it is built.
He talked as if he had entirely for
gotten how dry and hot it can get in
July and August and how easily
crops can be ruined for want of just
one more watering when the old
decree has been exhausted for the
year.
A lady who has been a member ,
If the legislature and should know |
of law and constitution,
said she thought there ought to be
| law to make it easier for farmers
% borrow money and the law ought
% give the farmers lower rate of
interest than men in other in
lustries.. She was in favor of add
ng a law to collect a statewide
chool tax to take more money from
he wealthy, thickly populated dis
riots and give 1t to the sparsely set
led regions of the state. She
bought we ought to build two
tuberculosis hospitals in Idaho and
egislate for lower freight rates. She
yanted heavier penalty for boot
egging and she wanted a law en-
cted to permit sterilizing Of feeble
minded and vicious people, and she +,
yanted an appropriation for main
aiming the maternity nurse and
department of the state
overnment.
A judge in the meeting followed
nd said that loaning money was ;
OF altogether a matter of legisla- {
on. Before loans could be made, $
lere had to be people who had +
loney and were willing to loan it at (
lie rate and on the terms named
y the law or the contract or the 7
fer of the person desiring to hire :
lie use Of money. 1t would be I'M i
if the law required t
fferent rates for different people. v
lass legislation favoring either the s
CHI or the poor always failed when @
1T to the test of courts or practice n
the law prohibited getting sat- s
factory rate of interest from a
rmers, those having money to Ii
an would simply loan it to some f.
'dy else, and refuse it to farmers, O
it would defeat the particular d
!rpose it was designed for "
AS to making heavier penalties Il
r bOotleggers, he said it was al s,
ady so severe that juries acquit il
denfants who are plainly guilty, IL
t they turn them loose absolutely n
Their than find them guilty when CT
ey know it means a term in the B
just for catering to IL
ems appetite. AS to sterlizing cl
IN and women, it had been con- IL
Tered in all it's multitudinous 1t
asses and there was merit in the m
"a, but the matter of where to til
aw the line in sorting up the ia
'rlize and the unterlize is a til
question. So long as we tn
;ognize the principle of equality lie
all, so long as physicians make II
stakes, and SO long as the steri- dc
ed stir up new troubles in society, ay
islators will pause before start ca
us out on this doubtful policy. of
The last session Of the legislature Sc
their political log-rolling enacted
measure providing for tubercu- Gil
Is hospital, and in order to fulfill DO
terms of the trades, and to get in
support of both extremes Of the be
to geographically, they had writ wi