The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1929-01-18

st. Paul, January II o" w Sou
pass q law?"
We'll, to give yol the real low down
on the process we shall have 10
quote Lieutenant Governor Nolan 10
Won again. Somebody" SAID MI.
Nolan when he was speaker OF the
house. draws UP a oil, a commiStee
examines 1t and recommends II, Inc
house talks about il and agrees 10 IT.
It then goes to the senate Snere the
Sullivan Bros. look 1t over ana
they say it is all right, the governor
gets a chance to sign II. Ana, as
the democratic candidate Tor the
presidency was won't TO say during
the campaign, there you are
We shall have TO stop right mere
and explain the Sullivan Bros. 10 you.
Time was when the senate was ru!eo
by a group of distinguished gentle
men who had been senator's from
time immemorial, and We suspect tney
still do some ruling. These states
men were sometimes lightly referred
to as "standpatters" "hardbolled OLD
sinners" and the like. But they Ger
tainly ruled the senate roost- When
laws were passed, they passed EN- ana
when Jobs were to be had they hand
ed EN- out.
Among these stalwarts we might
name Putnam of Faribauit, Rockne
of Goodhue, Carley of Wabasha, Orr
Of Ramsey and others including sui
Ivan. J. D. of Stearns and Sullivan,
George, of Washington. George Suln-
van has been q member Of the senate
for % years and J. D. Sullivan has
been there for 20 years. They SIT
down in the same corner Of the SEN
at and when they go into action 1t Is
always IN the forefront OF the hottest
battle. So far as we know they are
not of kin, unless 1t be that they are
both nneal descendants OF the great
god Mars, but they it is who are the
Sullivan Bros Of Lieutenant Gov
ernor Nolan.
Slow to Start
Great bodies move slowly. That's
the legislature, alright.
Perhaps YOU noticed that on the
opening day the legislature was IN
session 80 minutes and elected its
officers, on the second day it sat for
another 90 minutes and listened TO the
governor deliver his message, on the
third day it voted 100000 TO defray
its expenses and, exhausted from its
labors, adjourned over the weekend
What do you think Of that for a
weeks work?
Committees Begin Work.
With the assignment Of members to
committees on Tuesday of this week,
however, the legislative mill began to
grind, be it but slowly. Until the COM
mittees are named, nothing can be
done by the legislature, except to per-
feet its organizations. BY the begin
ming of next week, the third OF the
session, reports from committees VIII
begin TO flow into the senate and the
house and the real work of the session
VIII be under way. The greater part
of the actual work of the legislature
Is done in committee. The sessions
of the senate and house are neces-
sarily short each day until about the
middle of the session when committee
reports begin to pile up in long lists
on General Orders" and the Cal
endar."
Biggest Little Committee.
The rules committees of the senate
and house are the biggest little COM
mittees for their size in the world. The
rules committee IN each chamber con-
sists of nine members. They run the
legislature-buy its supplies, make its
rules, dictate its appointments and in
fluence its every action
The senate rules committee consists
of RoSenmeier of Morrison, chair
man, Mackenzie of Sibley, Putnam Of
Faribault, Orr of Ramsey, Rockne Of
Goodhue, Sullivan of Stearns, Child
OF Hennepin, Lerson of Pine and Car
ley of Wabasha-
The house rules committee is head
ed by Norton of Hennepin, chairman,
DAZZLE of Houston, Cullum OF st. Louis,
Green Of Marshall, Neuman OF Ira
verse, Paige Of Hennepin, Scallon Of
Crow Wing, Sweitzer Of Ramsey and
Swenson Of Nicollet.
They Cost us SAG, 900, 900.
The largest and most powerful COM
mittees Of the legislature from the
stand point Of their influence on the
state are the finance committee of
the senate and the apo, OPERATIONS
committee OF the house. They are
the money committees. They PISS
upon all legislation wcrn involves
any expenditure Of money and they
provide the funds by which the state
government IN all its ramifications is
carried on The appropriations voted
by these committees at each Of the
last three bienniums have totalled
$40 DOC, 900 and viii exceed that figure
for the coming biennium
The senate finance committee num-
bers 81 members. Its chairman is A
j. Rockne of Goodhue who has been
a members of the legislature for 26
years, was once speaker Of the house
and has been chairman of this i'm
portant committee for Is years.
The largest committee in the house
Is the appropriations committee with
80 members. It is the most eagerly
sought after committee IN the entire
list Of As house committees. For the
seven vacancies on this committee
this year there were more than 60
applications. Until he was elected
governor, Theodore Christensen was
chairman of this committee during
four sessions Since that time R. w
Hitchcock Of st. Louis has headed
the committee
Other Important Committees.
Some folks dearly love trouble,
which accounts, perhaps, for the rush
to the committee ON taxes. Senator
G. h Sullivan heads this very i'm
pcrtant committee in the upper tCdy
while Otto Neuman has for several
sessions been its chairman in the
house. Such veteran legislators as
Charles Adams Of Duluth and Oscar
Swenson of NicoIlet head the public
highways committees in the senate
and house respectively. Civil admins
tration, which wrestles with the prob
lens Of the big Three, is a large
committee and one Of growing import
ance Claude Mackenzie is the SEN
ate chairman and o. K Dahle the
househead Education, elections, game
and fish are major committees at all
times, REPRESENTATION and university
and state schools at this particular