History of Dakota Territory, volume III, Part 40

Author: Kingsbury, George Washington, 1837-; Smith, George Martin, 1847-1920
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : S.J. Clarke Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1146

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During the closing days politics cut much more of a figure than it had dur- ing the opening weeks. Particularly were all features of the Richards primary bill represented by factions who believed that improvements could be made to the proposed measure. Certain features were strenuously opposed and some changes were made in the original document. The House apportionment bill caused a sharp fight from several counties, the representatives of which did not believe they were receiving due consideration. Many amendments were moved, particularly by Mr. Berg, of Minnehaha County. However, the bill as reported by the commission prevailed in the end because it had the backing of the ma- jority of the members. For the time the rain of amendments fell heavily be-

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cause Messrs. Browne, Whiting and others proposed many changes after Mr. Berg had been defeated in his demands. The House refused to pass the primary bill, which was a copy of the law proposed by Mr. Richards, but the initiative petition was approved and thus the measure was placed before the state under that provision of the constitution. The new game code was finally killed in the Senate. The new board of control bill was passed with an emergency provision. There was also passed the new congressional apportionment bill which divided the state into three districts, but it carried the provision that until the state should be granted three congressmen they should be elected at large as at the present time.

A surprising fact at one time was the strength that was mustered in the House against the special appropriation for buildings at different state institu- tions, additional structures for various uses. It was claimed that in the House there was forty members in a combine and that if they had held together they would have stopped the passage of any special appropriation. In the Senate there was a wordy contest over the same particulars. Mr. Wyman took the position that while the state might have many institutions, more than it really needed, it would be like a man with a large family of children. He might have more than he wanted, but he had to support them just the same; so should the state support its offspring.

The Legislature killed the bill for the recall of state officers including judges ; repealed the anti-treating law; defeated the hatpin measure which was regarded much as a joke; passed the good roads bill, but submitted the measure on the initiative to be voted on by the people at the next general election ; ratified the income tax amendment; amended the commission laws pertaining to cities so that the majority of selections must follow a distinct advancement along the line of good government ; spent a lot of time and money over measures that did not amount to much; did not amend the state primary law to put an end to minority selections, a false step which meant the selection of United States senator in 1912 with 20 or 25 per cent vote of one party ; made no progress in the matter of raising the percentage required to invoke the initiative and referendum and this was a plain neglect of the best interests of the state; failed to act on the matter of publicity of referred laws whereby the newspapers thereafter would not publish the text of the laws; did not keep the platform pledge to do away with the publication of insurance statements; killed the resolution on the mat- tcr of Canadian reciprocity in which everybody was much interested; killed the bill of reducing the board of women inspectors of the state institutions to one member; did not reduce the number of members of the board of charities to three, and failed to reduce materially the number of paying offices in the state.

The Legislature enacted many measures among which were the following : Protection of antelopes; the daylight saloon law; to expedite the apprehension of horse thieves; storm insurance by county mutual companies; changing food and dairy to food and drug department; amending the law relating to the sale of adulterated foods; to refund tax to the Plankinton Telephone Company ; regulating pool halls; repairing state fair buildings; fixing terms of court in the Sixth District ; relating to the adulteration of linseed oil, per diem salary for legislators; annexing Todd County to Tripp County for judicial purposes; amending the irrigation law; relating to the transportation of school children; consolidation of state taxes to the credit of the general fund; uniformity of edu-

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cation ; preventing interference with electric apparatus; reimbursing owners of glandered horses; rotation of names on primary ballots; employes liability act ; concerning terms of court in the Ninth Circuit; providing for electric locomotive headlights; taxes delinquent July Ist, when the records are destroyed; relating to bills of exceptions ; making it unlawful to wear national guard uniform unless under orders; creating State Board of Finances; a good roads bill; relating to vacancies on district school boards; surety bonds for county treasurers; inter- preters to receive $5 per day; tuition for eighth grade graduates; publication for poor farm statements; Indian agents to acknowledge deeds; compulsory education of deaf and blind; relating to admission of pupils to deaf school; concerning transfer of land at Lake Kampeska; relating to parole of prisoners; preventing hypnotism of children; collection and payment of drainage assess- ments ; publication of expenses of drainage proceedings ; clerk to sign papers in advance of insurance commissioner ; notes as security on insurance policies ; tele- phone companies assessed by state board; same of telegraph companies; regu- lating veterinary practice; placing telephone companies under railroad commis- sion ; creating the Eleventh and Twelfth Judicial circuits; recognizing the insur- ance department ; relating to testimony of husband and wife; regulating lease of school lands; judges to send insane defendant to asylum; minors barred from pool halls; indeterminate sentences of convicts; loaning of county sinking funds ; serving summons in civil actions; relating to reports of county superintendents ; expenses of the Soldiers' Home investigation; Federal Court evidence made admissible in state courts ; providing terms of court in the Tenth Circuit ; expense fund for the railroad commission ; circuit courts to settle affairs of defunct com- panies ; survey of townships for taxation purposes; fees of savings and loan associations ; sale and conveyance of public properties of counties ; money for the conveyance of convicts to prison ; issuance of certificates to school teachers ; concerning salaries and expenses of judges of the Eleventh and Twelfth cir- cuits ; money for the drainage of school lands ; payment of expenses of Supreme Court judges ; payment of sewer tax in cities; enlarging the powers of bank examiners; relating to the organization of trust companies; a 2 mill tax levy for deficiencies ; Fall River Experiments Farm; relating to railroad crossings ; county administration farms; relating to shipments of cream and milk; publica- tion of notice in probate court; money for the deficiency in state house main- tenance fund; protection of big game; relating to election of directors of cor- porations ; service of process on foreign corporations ; election precincts; births to be reported within thirty days; regulation of insurance companies ; apportion- ment bill; taxation of fire insurance companies; transferring money into special militia fund; prohibiting the construction of parelleling railroad lines; relating to abstracts of title ; school electors in cities ; defining the word "closed" as used in connection with saloons; I mill tax levy for publicity by cities; relating to stock insurance companies; permitting boards of supervisors to open drainage ditches ; relating to church insurance; defining duties of food and drug commis- sion ; soldiers home civilian managing board; drainage of school lands; terms of court in the Eighth District; location of county seats; issuance of bonds in organized counties ; money for improvements at Eureka Experiment Farm; a science hall and heating plant at Springfield Normal; city councils empowered to construct levees, etc .; relating to county hospital; sale of glandered horses or

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animals, prohibited ; providing three congressional districts; railroad commission to fix express rates; standard dictionary and globe for each school; relating to trespass on state lands ; organization and control of banks; hospital of Redfield Institute; counties to furnish seed grain to needy farmers; girls' cottage at Plankinton Reformatory; dormitory and heating plant for Spearfish Normal; experiment farm at Vivian; money for the State Board of Health; distribution of forest reserve fund; uniform system of accounts and vouchers ; county treas- urer to select city and school tax; relating to the creation of corporations ; pro- bate judge not to try cases in which he is interested; money for the attorney general's office; creating County of Ziebach; sinking funds of school districts to be invested in warrants; establishing courthouse building fund; money for the well at the state university ; providing for fireproof prisons; suitable cabooses for freight trains; 10 per cent permissible under certain conditions; publication of lists of adulterated food; county auditors to make official election returns; water rights bill; relating to the care of insane; to prevent obstruction of streets ; appropriating small sums for numerous deficiencies; terms of court at other places than county seats ; disbarment proceedings; summoning jurors by mail; 'relating to issuance of tax deeds to counties; relating to judgments by Supreme Court ; publicity of legislative acts ; registration by names for farms and ranches ; incidental funds for Insane Hospital; manner of listing personal property ; appropriation for improvement of School for Deaf ; organization of co-operative corporations ; court expenses in disbarment proceedings; relating to independent school districts; fixing terms of court in the Seventh Circuit; same in the First Circuit : creating immigration department and code for commission governed cities ; repealing the herd law ; appropriating $20,000 a year for the capitol com- mission ; relating to the adulteration of cream and milk; the Richards primary initiative petition; money for the Cottonwood Experiment Farm; money for the administration building at Agricultural College; insurance companies to settle losses within sixty days or pay 10 per cent bonus; general appropriation bill; county aid to agricultural fairs; providing a San Francisco exposition commis- sion; relating to the payment of deposits in two names; renting value of ware- houses on railroad property ; regulation of hotels; registration of voters; relat- ing to construction of bridges.

The following joint resolutions were passed: Concerning gross earnings and net income tax; copies of the revised laws of the state to be in state schools; Soldiers' Home investigation ; legislative hand books; legislative blanks; ratify- ing proposed Sixteenth Amendment to the Federal Constitution; placing North Carolina bonds in the general fund; requesting Congress to enlarge Fort Meade ; concerning Gettysburg veterans to be sent to the Fiftieth anniversary celebra- tion ; providing a railroad code; prohibiting unfair competition; appropriating $45,000 for Aberdeen Normal; providing an artesian well at the State Fair; appropriating $18,000 for printing reports; appropriation for maintenance of State Fair; providing a heating plant for the Gary Blind School, also a dormitory for the same; appropriating $1,200 for organizing new counties; money for the capitol building deficiency; heating plant for Madison Normal; appropriation for improvements at the Insane Hospital; creating the office of executive ac- countant; relating to tax deeds; amending laws relating to municipal courts ; forest fire fighting fund; money for maintenance of tuberculosis sanitarium;

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the island bill; manner of determining the population for basis of county officers' salaries ; publication of statements of boards of education ; members of county mutual insurance companies may amend articles of incorporation ; printing of the session laws; registration of voters at party primaries ; buildings at Insane Hospital to be fireproof ; cost of treatment at tuberculosis hospital.

In the spring of 1911 the attorney-general held that the new game law was not a law at all, regardless of the fact that it received the signatures of the officers of both legislative houses and was approved by the governor. As a matter of fact, the bill had been hurried through and had not been duly con- sidered near the end of the session. No doubt many of the members had slight knowledge of its provisions. This was one of the faults of the method of rush- ing bills near the close of the session. Officers of both houses signed bills auto- matically and clerks very often did work required of the members themselves. It was during the rush hours that unsuitable measures were invariably crowded forward and passed. Another so-called law was to increase the salary of Superintendent Meade of the Insane Asylum from $2,500 to $3,500. The House passed the bill at $3,000 and the Senate increased the amount to $3,500. A con- ference committee fixed the figure selected by the Senate, but the law filed in the office of secretary of state placed the salary at $3,000 instead of $3,500. Also the bill provided for a deficiency in transporting prisoners to the peniten- tiary and the amount necessary was fixed for the vouchers. At the same time $3,000 was asked to meet such bills in the future. The one actually introduced however asked for only $2,000 additional and was $1,000 short of the deficiency. Also in providing for the salaries and expenses of the judges of the newly created Eleventh and Twelfth circuits up to the first of July, the total appropria- tion did not equal the itemized statements and thus the judges were left short of what they expected and had a right to receive. In another case there was a difference in the emergency clause on the bill between the two houses. The conference committee reported it should be placed on the bill. Both houses accepted the report and both laws were filed in the office of the secretary, but did not show any such appendage. These were a few of the troubles attending the rush always incident to the close of each legislative session. In one instance, a bill was sent to the governor for his signature and yet it had not passed the Senate. In 1911 it was shown that the state had two laws identical upon the same subject in regard to the plea of insanity for defense in criminal actions, providing that in case a defendant should be acquitted on the plea of insanity, his condition should authorize the court to commit him to the hospital for the insane until he became sane.

There were no striking events when the Legislature assembled in January, 1913. P. J. Tscharner of Perkins County, was elected speaker, and Senator Hoese of McCook County, president pro tem of the Senate. Present were all the candidates for the United States Senate. The message of Governor Byrne was read and appreciated. It was observed at this time by the newspapers that Governor Vessey had spent most of the past year away from the capital attend- ing to his own private business.

In January, 1913, the Legislature determined to investigate the printing de- partment of the state. The legislative investigating committee was instructed to visit the penitentiary at Sioux Falls. C. A. Christopherson acted as counsel for

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the committee. About this time one of the senators was openly accused of soliciting a bribe, and a committee was appointed to investigate this and other cases. This committee reported a number of irregularities in the management of the state offices, and recommended generally that the investigation be con- tinued by a special commission. This session appropriated $60,000 for the State Fair at Huron. A liquor or saloon bill was introduced and considered at this session. It provided that there should be one saloon to every 600 population, and that the maximum saloon license should be $1,100. The printing investiga- tion aroused great interest as the work advanced and the faults were disclosed. It was at this session that the Legislature made a forty-day limitation for the introduction of resolutions, measures and bills. On February 11th Governor Byrne signed the law creating the tax commission. It had the emergency clause attached and therefore became a law immediately upon being signed by the governor. The work of this commission was looked forward to by the whole state with the greatest interest. The railways had made a determined fight against the tax commission bill and measure, but had failed to prevent its pas- sage. The reactionaries generally assisted in the fight against the bill. Governor Byrne said, "No man in this state who wants to pay his taxes is opposing this bill." In February, R. O. Richards appeared before the Ways and Means Com- mittee to oppose the tax commission measure. Many of the wealthy corpora- tions of the state attacked the bill. Generally all concerns that had escaped their just taxation fought the measure. Late in February Governor Byrne said, "The influences which are opposing this bill have today sent emissaries to Pierre to lobby as they did six years ago in an effort to avoid being taxed, and to discredit my administration, because I was nominated directly on the issue of tax commis- sion to remedy the present inequalities in the tax system."

At this session there was a fierce fight of the saloon element over the bill to allow only one saloon to every thousand city or town population. On February 17th a petition with 800 signatures was filed with the Legislature asking for the initiation of a law providing that if saloons were once voted in a community they should remain there until they were voted out. This meant the reversal of the existing law which required that saloons should be given the consent of the voters once a year in order that they might remain in business. In the end the saloon bill failed to pass. This Legislature ratified the proposed amendment to the Federal Constitution for direct election of United States senators. The Panama-Pacific Exposition bill was killed. The printing investigating committee showed great waste of money, carelessness of officials and rapacity of state printers. The bank guaranty law was defeated. Among the subjects investi- gated was that of double salaries. The committee reported that the adjutant general had been slack in his duties and that the secretary of state had been careless. This Legislature protested to Congress against the abuses co-incident with the system of employing special agents in homestead cases, whereupon Con- gress, in April, ordered a special investigation and appointed an agent for the work.

For progressive and constructive legislation it was admitted at the close of the session that the General Assembly of 1913 broke all records. Nearly all of the recommendations of Governor Byrne were enacted into law. Two of his recommendations were evaded, namely, the bank guaranty law and the public

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utilities law. In March, W. M. Johnson was appointed by the governor at a sal- ary of $2,000 per year to be deputy printing commissioner, with the governor as an ex-officio member of the commission. Before this date the state had no official whose duty it was to take charge of the printing department and be responsible for the expenditures. The tax commission bill was fought des- perately by all large moneyed interests of the state, particularly by the big mining companies from the Black Hills. The powers of the railroad commissioners were enlarged so that they could fix the physical valuation of telephone com- panies. A corrupt practice act which was very drastic was discussed. Many constitutional amendments were prepared for submission to the voters, among which were suffrage for women, a state board of control, constitutional conven- tion, consolidation of the boards of the state institutions, consolidation of the board of health and the board of medical examiners, consolidation of the four live stock boards, the new one to be known as the Live Stock Sanitary Board, the warehouse receipt bill, and the bulk sales bill. Thus the proceedings of the assembly of 1913 were very important, were revolutionary in fact. The penitentiary was investigated and found not irregular; printing was investigated and found very irregular ; the double salary charges were investigated and found to exist; the commissioner of school and public lands was found seriously at fault; all of this investigation resulted in the passage of a bill to appropriate $12,000 for a state commission to further investigate all departments of the state government. The bribery charge against a senator was bared at this time. In the insurance investigation nothing seriously wrong was disclosed.

At the legislative session of 1913 a committee consisting of Allen Bagne, Walter M. Cheever and R. F. Lyons was appointed to investigate the condition of the various state institutions and offices and make report to the next Legisla- ture. This report showed that the following state offices were investigated. Sec- retary of state, commissioner of school and public lands, attorney general, super- intendent of public instruction, state treasurer, board of railway commissioners, board of health, board of charities and corrections, school of mines, soldiers' home, tuberculosis sanitarium and Spearfish Normal School. Owing to lack of time only those institutions against which complaint had been made were investi- gated by the committee. Of the office of the attorney general the report had this to say, "The pay of $1,000 per year for the attorney general is a disgrace to the state and the salary should be increased to $5,000 per year." Fault was found with the automobile incident in the office of the superintendent of public instruction. They reported that the railway commission was cramped for lack of funds. In regard to the Spearfish Normal the report showed that the state treasurer held unjustly several hundred dollars belonging to the athletic fund of the school and would not return it. The complaint at the soldiers' home was found to be due to the parsimonious treatment accorded many of the old and decrepit inmates who suffered seriously thereby. It was also shown that old soldiers of other states came to Southwest South Dakota and there remained one year to gain a legal residence, after which they promptly applied for admis- sion into the home. They found that the complaint of excessive cost per pupil at the school of mines was well founded, but that the charge was necessary owing to the limited number of students who attended that institution. In re- gard to the interest on state funds deposited in banks and held by former state

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treasurers, they found John Schamber held $41,613; C. B. Collins, $51,469; Kirk G. Phillips, first term, $25,396; second term, $26,496; and T. E. Cassill, $50,000. In the department of school and public lands the committee reported that certain sums over and above their salaries had been paid to the clerks in the department for extra work. One commissioner declared that this was "a practice which had become customary not only in the office of the commissioner of lands, but of several other offices of the state." The committee reported that this looked "too much like cutting a melon." They called attention to the short- comings of the Brinker administration, which resulted in his resignation and trial.

By early in February the Legislature had settled down to the consideration of many bills. There were numerous caustic tilts over amendments to old bill wordings and to new bill measures, but as a whole there were offered no serious objections to the submission of any bill to the vote of the members. The nego- tiable instrument law attracted considerable discussion in the House. The Sen- ate struggled over the bill to prohibit false and fraudulent advertising, and both Houses debated seriously the resolution memorializing the interstate commission to investigate coal rates from Wyoming coal fields to South Dakota railway sta- tions. One bill called for an appropriation of $25,000 annually for farmers' institutes. Another authorized counties to make tax levies for demonstration farms, and another provided for a cattle feeding experiment station in Butte County. One established a state board of control instead of the three boards then existing, to have general charge of all state institutions. Another author- ized the calling of an outside judge to sit on the supreme bench in case one of the judges of the court was an interested party. One asked for the expenditure of half of the state school money collected by lease in the district in which it was collected. Aberdeen representatives were present working with both Houses for a measure to require the state board of regents of education to establish certain courses of the collegiate grade in the normal schools of the state. This was a policy which the regents thus far had steadily refused to concede, demand- ing that the normal schools be devoted to normal school work exclusively and that courses of study which would put them into the university class should be kept out of such institutions. Several of the investigating committees just appointed were busy at this time, taking the testimony and preparing for revo- lutionary proceedings if necessary.

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History of Dakota Territory, volume III, Part 40

Author: Kingsbury, George Washington, 1837-; Smith, George Martin, 1847-1920 Publication date: 1915 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : S.J. Clarke Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1146

Author: Kingsbury, George Washington, 1837-; Smith, George Martin, 1847-1920
Publication date: 1915
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : S.J. Clarke Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1146