Year: 1872

J


The week now just ended proved no ex-
ception to some of the previous ones, but
little work was done, great deal was in
troduced and as a consequence now, we
are overcrowded with it. 1t is in the
/ Assembly that they are more especially
open to complaint on this score, and with
out a doubt evening sessions will soon be
in order. In this latter place, about the
middle Of the week, the members did
after fashion get warmed up to work,
but then came Washington's Birthday
and an adjournment over that day be-
came necessary, and really interfering
with three days work.


Washington's Birthday the majority Of
the memb bers spent in San Francisco, hav-
ing accepted an invitation to be present
at the ceremonies of laying the corner
stone of the new City Hall there, and
they do not seem to be over and above
! satisfied with this visit. They seem to
think that their reception there was not
what it should have been, taking into con-
| sidcration the exalted positions they oc-
cupy. Tickets were issued admitting
them to a certain locality on the grounds
called the Legislative Division" but
this particular locality they were not able
to fnd but were obliged to shift for them
selves. And it certainly looked like add
ing insult to injury when Judge j. w.
Dwinelle, the Orator of the Day, in the
course of his Grafton remarked that the
present was Legislature only fit to leg
isate for brutes." A majority have now
come to the conclusion that San Francis
co will not be honored with their pres
ence on any similar occasion, unless bet
ter provision is made for their well-being.


THE REDUCTION TO BE MADE.


hope this may be the last time | shall
! feel called upon to refer in my cores
pondence to the subject Of those bills pro-
posing reduction in fares and freight
Though no doubt matter of great i'm
portance to the State, in the Assembly
after little show of fight, the whole
question went under the table under the
special order of business last Tuesday,
the question was finally disposed of. The
! iiIst move was the introduction of sub
sttute bill by the Committee on Corpor-
ations and then another by Mr.. Days,
both reducing somewhat fares and freight.
Much discussion followed, and at late
hour in the afternoon an adjournment
was had till evening, and at exactly half
past eleven the whole question was effect
ually wound up. Days amendment,
upon which the full strength Of the re-
speCtive parties was evident, was lost by
a vote Of ayes 81, noes 40. 1t was then
attempted to cut up the Committee sub
stitue bill, and this was more successful.
| Section after section of it was stricken
out and finally little remained but the en-
acting clause, and then by vote of ayes
43 to noes 81 the whole was indefinitely
postponed. And so we have heard the
last of Ia matter, the investigation of which
has been of considerable expense to the
State and called for much labor on the
part Of the Committee and others, and
the whole proceedings may now be looked
upon in the light Of a farce. The rail
road people are satisfied they were per-
| fccty willing the Committee bill should
pass, but that the Assembly generously
should allow the law to stand as it was
n stroke of fortune they hardly expected.


THE PENAL CODE AND SUNDAY LAW.


The statement has been going the rounds
OF the State in many newspapers, that in
adopting the Penal Code the Legislature
re-enacted the most stringent of Sunday
laws that has ever been upon our statute
books. This is really mistake, as re-
marked by Mr. Pendegast in the Senate,
II few days since: SIN 1865 the Legis-
lature passed an Act to prevent noisy and
barbarous amusements on the Sabbath !;
that Act also prohibited theatrical amuse-
ments or performance on that day. In
1861, an additional Sunday law was pass
ed by the Legislature. In 1870, the Act
Of 1885 was amended simply so as to
omit the theatre clause. The Penal Code
contained the entire Act Of 1861, which
was already a law and does not re-enact
anything, and containing precisely the
provisions of the Act of 1870. There
may be some slight change in the verbi-
age but there is not the slightest change
in the substance"


THE RECEPTION BILL.