Montana labor news., 1937-02-25
Mentality Of Legislators
DismaIIy Low
By LEVERNE HAMILTON

Legomanla. no, 1t isn't a new
drink. It's just a descriptive term
for the disease that since January
4th has afflicted the people of Hell
ena and those out-of- town visitors
who have been occasional or fire.
quent visitors at the State Capitol
where the mills of the gods grind
slowly and exceedingly small grists
of so-called legislation with which
the populace of the state is supposed
to be entertained, edited and con-
tented for the succeeding two years.
When Speaker Rolph, in a mo-
ment of impatience, remarked that
the House was acting like a bunch
of school kids" he was in the esti-
nation of most of the spectators
using a charitable-yes very char
itable-eXpression, and many of the
sessions of that body can be aptly
described by using Shakespeare's
famous quotation from Macbeth: "a
tale told by an idiot, full Of sound
and fury, signifying nothing"
Nature in the raw is seldom mild
but legislation in the present session
of the assembly is very raw logic
is rare commodity, and consistency
is conspicuous by its absence. For
example, one bill establishing a sep
arate department of labor which
would have cost the state approx
mately one thousand dollars per year
was defeated on the grounds of econ
omy, while another setting up a state
liquor board which will cost in the
neighborhood of $4,000 annually
was passed because the present
liquor board had too many duties.
Several similar examples of legis-
lative inconsistency might be easily
cited.
Any progressive measure which
manages to escape asphyxiation in
the House is promptly crowned"
with the Senatorial axe Immediately
upon making its appearance in that
august body while the House has
recently exhibited faint symptoms
of an inclination to retaliate by a
massacre of the innocents" which
will no doubt be brought to fruition
during the closing days of the ses-
sion, thus relieving both House and
Senate of considerable unnecessary
labor and mental effort during the
closing days.
Upon one point, however, both
House and Senate seem to be in per-
feet accord. They, or at least the
majority of each house seems to be
of the opinion (and without doubt
the Montana public will agree with
them that neither house of the as
sembly knows anything about con-
Quoting the business of the state and
they are therefore delegating as
much power as possible to the Gov
ernor. We can only express the hope
that the Governor may know a little
more about it.
There are, however, several good
men in each branch of the assembly,
but unfortunately several of these
men are new members and are seri-
ously handicapped by condescending
skepticism with which the older
members always look upon new
members-or new ideas.
No measure of a constructive ma
ture has yet been passed and only
one measure which offered any solu-
ton Of the vital problem now con-
fronting the state and nation, that
Of putting the unemployed back at
useful, productive work, has been
presented. This was the bill known
as the Production For Use Bill (H. B.
407) Only three members spoke in
favor of the bill and they were la
boring under a severe handicap of
the five minute limitation which
rendered complete explanation of
the merits of the measure impos-
sible. However the people of Mon
tana would do well to give some at
tention and thought to this measure
and to those three House members
who spoke for it for this question
is fated to be much discussed within
the next few months prior to its
enactment in some form. Burns, of
Flathead, Anderson of Choteau, and
DeDobbeleer, of Valley, were the
proponents of the measure and of
course came in for the opposition
always accorded to the proponents
of a new idea or an idea which is
years ahead of the comprehension
of the mass. To say, however, that
these three were the only members
who favored such a measure would
be unfair to other members of the
House who were not on the COM
mittee introducing the bill and