Our Lansing Letter

Somehow the August like torndity of the past week has not acted upon the members of the legislatura as upon Mother Nature'a inanimate productions. Indeed, the effect shave been diametrically opposite. Under oíd Sol's genial diffusion of those life-giving qualities of light and heat the bandsome ghade trees that adorn the streets and the grass upon the lawns, especially that environing the capitol, have experienced a luxuriant growth, and the flowers, the "garden truck" and al] else have fairiy leaped into verdant beau'.y. But the merabers, despite frequent repetitions of the irrigating procesa to which the average legislator is wont to resort as well during the hyperborean penod as the incinerating dog days, have gone on with lethargie step, and have really during the past fortnight accomplished very little work. A good deal of time was spent over the memorial of the "Non-Partisan State Amendment Committee," making charses of intimidation and fraud in the conduct of the election in Wayne county. The memorial was supported by several affidavits reciting the experience of the amants at the polls, wherein is recapitulated the language addressed to them as workers in the prohibitory vineyard, together with graphic accounts of sundry affrays atid jostling matches, the snatcning of bundies of amendment ballots from ticket peddlers and coenate performance?, together with allegations that inspectors of the election substituted ballots, opened ballots, dentro jed ballots, kept ballot boxes out of sight and perpetratod other frauds "too numerous to mention." A motion to incorpórate the memorial in the printed proceedings brought on a long discussion in which it Beemed as though about every member present took a hnnd. The motion was finally adopted. Another measúre of legislation which bas consumed no small amount of time was the liquor tax bill, now familiarly known as the Bates-Diekema bilí, the provisiong of which I have already given you. It was taken up in the house in the order of third readirg, and the deluge of amendments offered, debated and voted down could scareely be enumerated, were the whole of thig epistle devoted to that purpose alone. Notwithstandbg these it passed its third reading by a vote of 51 yeas to 35 nays without modification or change. Although the actual vote on the liquor bill was as given above the Legislative Journal shows a yea vote of 53, two absentees haviDg voted by proxy. These were Mr. Bartwell, of Genesee, and Mr. Williams, of Eaton. Speaker Markey believed such practice to be authorized by precedent. Against his decisión, however, is toase rule 23, which says : "The vote of ao member shall be recorded by the clerk unless such member shall be in bis seat when he gives bis vote." It has frequently been held by legislativo bodies that the only remedy for a member who was absent or uarecorded on the journal as voting, was in a "question of privilege," by which his choice could be shown in the journal of a subsequent day. This is the regular custom in congress. The bilí to abolish the state board of correctiong and charities will no doubt meet with much opposition in the house today, where it comes up on special order. Several members of the board and the secretary have been diligent throughout the entire session in showing the immense value of the commission to the state. No test vote has ever been had on the bill and no one knows how the members will vote. In the house the ways and means committee reported the general appropriation bill lor the University with a great, gaping out of $20,000 from the total atnount of $207,000 as it passed the senate. The cut is made up of numerous items, the main ones being $5,000 for a dental extensión, $2,000 for plans for an art museum, and about $7,000 on contingent expenses and repairs. The entire appropriation is now about $187,000. It is understood that a big fight was had in the committee over the item of $75,000 for the construction of a building for scientific laboratories and their equipment, and that the committee passed this item by a majority of a single vote. This is likely to bring on a fight against the bill when it comes up on its final passage. Representativo Lincoln's bill relating to the care of ballot boxes has passed the house. It provides that a seal ha ving the name of the township or ward thereon shall be provided, which shall be used to hold in place a piece of leather or canvas so placed as to extend from the corner of the box entirely covering the key hole. The box shall be delivered to them sealed' before the election and shall be again sealed, with the ballots therein, before it is returned to the clerk. A fine is provided for the punishment of any one using or having such seal in his possession The bill appropriating $5,000 for the purchase of 26 acres of land adjoining the state public school grounds had rough sailing when it came up the other day. Henry Watson said he was informed by a member of the ways and means committee that there was a job concealed in the bill, and the price which it was proposed to pay for the land- $192 an acrewas denounced as excessive. Sentiment against the appropriation was so decided the bill was finally passed informally to await the return of the chairman of the ways and means committee, who had recommended it. V Mr. Harrington's bill in relation to ages for injuries received by an employee, through the negligence of s fellow employee, was agreed to in house committee of the whole, but no vote was taken tbat would indícate what its strength will be on the third readine. v During tUe consideration of the bilí to organizo an independent forestry commission some interesting statements were made by Mr. Beecher concerning the recuperating powers of forest soils from which the woods have once been cut. He stated that most kinds of forest trees, including even white pine, would soon grow up again unless the ground was burned over. In the latter case the second growth was slower and much more uncertain. He also argued that by keeping out fires many of the denuded and waste portions of the state might become fertile. He referred to several cases within his knowledge as proof of what he airi. The bill requires the state board of agriculture to inquire into the extent to which the forests ot Michigan are being destroyed by fire and wasteiul cutting, the effect of the diminution of the wooded surface of the land upon ponds and rivers, and also as to the protection of denuded regions, stump and swamp lands. The dis3ussion of the Cross bilí has not 80 tar excited much interest, and it is not po88ible at this stage of the proceedings to sayjust what is going to become of it, as the question did not come to a vote before the committee arose. Several of the older members onjected to the section limiting the insurable age to 65 yeara. The two-cent fare bill is not making very rapid progress, the matter having been put over till the last of this week. It looks now as though the substitute of W. A. Baker, of BerrieD, was likely to be adopted. This makes the fare two and one-half cents per mile and Aree cents per mile in the Upper Península, and places the price of 500 mile tickets, good for twelve months, at $10. The mileage tickets are to be good only in Michigan. Lahsing, Mich., May 17, 1887.