in prep and pub agant and totally inadequate method of accomplishing the Uniformity result. Very few people ever think of reading or preserving aration these interminable columns, and the system has to recommend lication it little except the large amounts of public money which it puts of session into the pockets of the publishers of active party organs. One half the money wisely spent might accomplish vastly better results. 8 Session laws should be well bound, printed on a good, durable paper, exchanged freely for other publications, and sold at a moderate price. Paper and binding are in many cases almost the worst possible, and prices exorbitant; e. g. $2 was recently charged for a pamphlet containing the two brief acts passed at the last extra session in Alabama. Prices as a rule range from $1 to $5. States generally distribute all other documents most profusely, but make it exceedingly difficult to obtain the session laws. The best plan would doubtless be to place a nominal price, sufficient only to prevent wasteful distribution, on all state publications. 9 All bills should be drafted, or revised as to form, by a permanent, specially trained official. For drafting bills special technical knowledge that can be acquired only by much practice is essential. Each bill must be adjusted to an existing intricate system, and its object must be expressed concisely, clearly, and with legal precision. It is, moreover, highly important, for clearness and ease of con struction, that all acts passed should be alike in form. Great Britain, and many British colonies and provinces, have official draftsmen who draw most of the bills. In New York three persons are appointed by the speaker of the Assembly, and the temporary president of the Senate, "to draft bills, examine and revise proposed bills, and advise as to the consistency or other effect of proposed legislation". In South Carolina this work is performed by the state solicitors under direction of the attor ney general, and in Connecticut by a special bill clerk. Some single official should be made responsible for the form, phraseology, annotation, indexing and publication of all acts passed. The acts at present are cumbered with useless verbiage, and are so inaccurately expressed that it is impossible to laws in preparation Uniformity be certain as to their meaning. Constant litigation is the result. With the drafting and publication in charge of a permanent, trained official, all this could be changed and in time other reforms would follow. and publication of session 1aws 10 A uniform statutory construction law should be prepared for adoption by all the states. At present the words and phrases used in the acts have very different meanings in the different states, thus rendering a comparative study of the laws on any subject a most difficult undertaking. Acts of different states having exactly the same wording are construed very differently. No one thing would be of more assistance to the study of comparative legislation than a uniform construction law. Librarians generally, and law and state librarians particularly, are interested in making as easy as practicable the study of comparative legislation. As a legislative library the State Library is specially called on to facilitate, as much as possible, an accurate answer to the question that is asked so often in considering proposed reforms, What have other states done? The degree of satisfaction with which it can perform this function depends in no slight measure on improved and uniform methods of preparing and publishing session laws.1 "The association appointed a committee to carry out the suggestions contained in the above paper, consisting of R. H. Whitten, New York State Library, C. B. Galbreath, Ohio state librarian, and Johnson Brigham, Iowa state librarian. The superior figures tell the exact place on the page in ninths; e. g. Abduction of children, penalties, 230$-322 Accidents, railroad, 220-232 Agricultural experiment stations, Agriculture, state officials, 15-16'; taught in schools, 81° Almshouses, see Charitable institu- American academy of political and social science, 118 Andrews, James Dewitt, Civil pro- cedure, 2262-285 Animals, humane treatment, 82, having contagious diseases: Annuaire de Législation étrangère, 93 Archives, state department, 163 818; mechanic, taught in schools, 818 Asylums, see Charitable institu- sane "Baby farms," 162-63 Ballots, see Voting, form of ballot Barbers, examination and licensing, Bees, diseases, 183' Belgium office du Travail, compara- Bigelow, W. D., Food legislation, Bills, drafting of, 30-32, 239-401 Bonds, contractors, 234; for local im- Bridges, bonds issued for, 24'; in- Brown, Elmer Ellsworth, High Building and loan associations, 211'- Bulletin mensuel de la Société de Business corporations, see Corpora- Business science, taught in schools, Butchers, hours of labor, 171o Candidates, elections, 48, 529-588 Car companies, taxation, 748-75°, Carson, J. C., Feeble-minded and Chapin, Charles V., Public health, Charitable institutions, 121-25': abolition of local boards, 121-222; changes in state boards, 121-222; investigation of state institutions, 123; supervision, 121-23'. See also Children; Feeble-minded; In sane Charities, 121-25'; poor relief, 12325'; public relief work, 124* Cheese, manufacture and sale, 164" Children, abduction of, 230-322; dependent, neglected and delinquent: 125-333; in almshouses, 125'; courts, 125, 1273; definitions. 126-27; disposition of, 127"-28"; foreign corporations, 1293; homes for juvenile delinquents, 132'-33; not to be committed to jail, 128", parole officers, 1287; probation officers for, 127; probation system, 129-31'; records, 125, 127: reformatories, 126; religious preference, 129'; state agency, 130'; state supervision, 129, 131'-32; board of visitors, 1293. See also Feeble-minded; Minors; Schools Cities, classification according to 'population, 201 City government, 18-21'; charters, 18, 19", 19°, 20°-212, 21'; factional politics in, 21; growth of home rules, 19-21'; use of initiative and referendum, 39: mayor's increased power, 21; nonpartizanship in, 21'; "ripper bill," 20'; evils of spoils system, 21o Civil procedure, 2262-28 Civil service reform, 21" Cole, T. L., Notes on session laws, revisions and constitutional convention publications, 2331-35 Colleges, right to confer degrees. 86'; definition, 95 Common schools, 85'-87; definition, 898 12-131; journals valuable in, 133; value of study, 7° Comparative Summary and Index of Legislation, 122 Compulsory school attendance, 801, 82', 87' Congressional districts, apportionment, 33-343 Constitutional conventions, publications, 2352 Constitutionality, question of: con tractors, 224; juries, 226; mechanics liens, 224; preservative law, 165; primary elections, 50351'; taxation, 65°-66'; wages, 1783799 Constitutions, changes in, 267-297; size of recent, 28'; amendments, 29-30 Consumption, see Tuberculosis Contagious diseases, 151-52'; regulations for control, 158'-62; of animals, 1841-90° Contracts, 623-631; labor, 24-253, 179-813, 2243 Convicts, commutation of sentence, 147'; labor, 145°-46"; tuberculous, 146-47; pardons, 147. See also Criminals; Prisoners Cooperative associations, see Building and loan associations Cornell university, index of European legislation, 12-131 Corporations, business, 204-11"; in creased capital, 70-713; capitalization, 205, 207, 207, 2081, 208, 210, 210, 2113: consolidation, 206, 211'; incorporation and license fees, 70, 71, 2079; liberal tendencies, 204; public service, 73-77; reorganization, 2071; taxation, 70-77; cumulative voting. 208, 2101. See also Foreign corporations Corrupt practices acts, 483 Company stores, 174-75'; goods Crimes and punishments, 228-32o checks, 1782 Comparative legislation, 7-15; associations, 8'-11; method of COoperation outlined. 136-14"; essentials for work in, 14-15; indexes, Criminals, insane, 135, 147. also Convicts; Prisoners Dallinger, F. W., quoted, 53' Debt (public), see Bonds See Defectives, see Feeble-minded; In- sane Degrees, conferring of, 86, 93°-94'; Delinquents, see Children Dentistry, practice of: 1072-105; Dependents, see Charities; Chil- Dewey, Melvil, Libraries and home Direct legislation, 395-422 Direct nominations, 528-58 Diseases, communicable, see Con- Domestic animals, see Animals Education, unity in, 78". See also Professional education; Schools Embalmers, examination and licen- Employees, railway, 172, 2217. See Epileptics, 139; villages for, 1395; European legislation, index of, 12°- Excise taxes, in Porto Rico revenue Foreign corporations, taxation, 70', Forestry, 1943-983; state departments Forests, cultivation of, 194°-952; fire Freight companies, taxation, 76a, 76' Fusion of political parties, 501 Game, protection of: 198*-204*; big Germany, comparative legislation |