626 



OHIO. 



retary of State show 40,620 deaths in the year 

 ending March 31, 1894; of these, 21,467 were 

 males and 19,122 females; 1,303 were colored; 

 31,034 were native born ; 11,173 were under five 

 years of age, and 2,552 over eighty ; 10 were over 

 one hundred. The number of births was 68,958. 



Legislative Session. The seventy-first Gen- 

 eral Assembly, elected in November, 1893, or- 

 ganized on Jan. 1. The Senate was made up of 

 25 Republicans and 6 Democrats ; the House of 

 85 Republicans and 22 Democrats. The ques- 

 tion of a single or adjourned sessions came up 

 for consideration immediately. Under the Con- 

 stitution of 1802 it was provided that " the Gen- 

 eral Assembly shall meet on the first Monday in 

 December in every year." In the Constitution 

 of 1851 this was changed to "all regular sessions 

 of the General Assembly shall commence on the 

 first Monday of January, biennially." This con- 

 structive prohibition of annual sessions was 

 evaded by every General Assembly under the 

 present Constitution, meeting in adjourned ses- 

 sion in January of each second year. Public 

 opinion had been strongly expressed in favor of 

 a strict adherence to the constitutional provision 

 lor biennial sessions only, and for the first time 

 since the adoption of the new Constitution the 

 Legislature made provision for two years' ex- 

 penditures, and closed the session May 21 with- 

 out adjourning to the following year. 



The Constitution of the State restricts the 

 right of voting "at all elections" to "white 

 male citizens of the United States, of the age of 

 twenty-one years." The fifteenth amendment 

 of the United States Constitution abrogated the 

 restriction as to color, but that as to sex remains. 

 A movement in favor of giving women the right 

 to vote and hold office in public-school affairs 

 attained such proportions that a measure grant- 

 ing such limited suffrage was introduced in the 

 Legislature, and after many delays was finally 

 passed. The opposition was mainly based on 

 constitutional grounds, but its supporters claimed 

 that the Constitution did not create the offices 

 in the government of the schools, merely direct- 

 ing that the General Assembly shall make such 

 provisions, by taxation or otherwise, as with the 

 income arising from the school trust fund will 

 secure a thorough and efficient system of com- 

 mon schools throughout the State. As the com- 

 mon-school organization was wholly a creation 

 of the Legislature, it is in the power of the 

 Legislature to determine the qualifications of an 

 elector and officeholder in it. Difficulties arose 

 as to the registration of women, and to settle 

 the question before the next school elections in 

 April. 1894, a case, was made up and taken to 

 the Circuit Court of Franklin County. The 3 

 judges comprising the court were unanimous in 

 upholding the law. Judge Shauck, who deliv- 

 ered the opinion of the court just previous to 

 taking his place on the Supreme bench to which 

 he had been elected, based the decision on that 

 of the Supreme Court of the State on a. case aris- 

 ing under the old Constitution, when it was held 

 that " the whole subject of organizing and regu- 

 lating the schools had been left to the General 

 Assembly in the exercise of its legislative pow- 

 ers." and also cited decisions from the Supreme 

 Courts of Illinois. Kansas. Nebraska,, Iowa. 

 Massachusetts, Michigan, and other States with 



Constitutions similar to that of Ohio, where such 

 qualified suffrage has been held to be constitu- 

 tional. 



Among the other laws passed were the fol- 

 lowing : 



To permit married women to act as executors or 

 administrators. 



To enable a husband as well as a wife to sue and 

 obtain alimony pending divorce proceedings. 



Authorizing boards of education to supply pupils 

 with free text-books. 



Requiring suits for malpractice to he brought within 

 one year alter the date of the alleged injury. 



Requiring midwives and physicians to report to the 

 health officer all cases of detective vision in newly 

 born infants. 



Regulating primary elections by applying to them 

 the provisions of the Australian secret voting system, 

 compelling the use of the blanket ballot containing 

 the names of all the candidates for nomination, and 

 requiring that the primarv elections of all parties 

 shall beheld on the same day. This applies only to 

 Butler County, but it \vas passed with the under- 

 standing that if it proves successful it will be made 

 general by a new enactment. 



Providing that husband and wife may testify 

 against each other in the prosecution of either for 

 cruelty to minor children under ten years of age. 



Providing that widows or widowers before electing 

 to take under a will may bring suit in the Court of 

 Common I'leas asking a construction of a will and 

 advice of the court. 



Requiring railroad companies to report the names 

 and addresses of all those holding stock. 



Taxing Pullman sleeping-cars operated in the 

 State. 



Authorizing the incorporation of electric railway 

 companies, giving them the power of eminent domain 

 and other powers possessed by steam railway com- 

 panies. 



Requiring foreign accident insurance companies 

 doing business in Ohio to deposit with the State 

 Commissioner $50,000 in bonds as a protection to 

 policyholders. 



Requiring arbitrators and umpires in disputed in- 

 surance claims to be residents of the counties in which 

 the losses occur. 



Prohibiting the transaction of business under a 

 fictitious name, unless the partners interested have 

 their names recorded with the county clerk. 



Repealing the old laws under which the State 

 banks operated. 



Political. The Republican Convention, at 

 Columbus, June 6, made the following nomina- 

 tions: For Secretary of State, Samuel M. Tay- 

 lor; Judge of Supreme Court, John A. Shauck : 

 Member of Board of Public Works, Charles E. 

 Groce ; Commissioner of Common Schools, Oscar 

 T. Corson. The platform reaffirmed the national 

 platform of 1892; approved the administration 

 of Gov. McKinley; commended the seventy-first 

 General Assembly ; commended the course of the 

 Ohio Republican Representatives in Congress 

 and Senator John Sherman, and also said : 



We recognize the tariff act of 1890, known as the 

 McKinley act. as the ablest expression of the patriotic 

 principle of protection yet enacted, and condemn and 

 denounce any attempt' to repeal or amend it which 

 does not have for its object better protection to Amer- 

 ican labor and American interests than is secured 

 by it. 



\Ve. denounce the unjust and inequitable tariff 

 measure known as the Wilson bill, and the Senate 

 substitutes therefor and amendments proposed thereto, 

 as unpatriotic, favorable to trusts and sectional in 

 their provisions and as subversive of the prosperity 

 and happiness of the people of the United States. 



