T58 





to its present location in the Yellow Creek valley 

 has been very successful. ha\ ing increased iu assets 

 in the three years from $ 15.000 to nearly $100,000. 

 It was. chartered by 19 men, who contributed in 

 money* and material $15.000. Th.-s,. men -ntied 

 on a barren waste, without houses, well-. <>r ma- 

 chine -y. Tin- plan of inoorporali>u and by-laws 

 it necessary that each incmU-r shouhl be a 

 socialist, be willing to do any work that seemed 

 best for the general good of th.- . ,,!,.,, v . and receive 

 no warn other than th<> maintenance <>f himself 

 and his family. Kv ry man and woman who i- 

 abletodosois expected to work forty-eight hours 

 of each week. Their leisure i- -p.-nt in athl, 

 ercise in the gtmnaMum. reading in the 111 

 attending music and dancing classes or tin- -. h.,,.l 

 Ittical economy, in the study of the science*, 

 or anv line desired. " The foundation is hid for a 

 school to be called "the College of the N 



The colony had 880 memlicrs in .Inly. 



frjrMatlTe Sens Ion. The fiftieth se-ion of the 

 ral Assembly began .Ian. 4 and ended Ma\ 1. 

 John Thompson was president of th. Senate, and 

 Morgan Fit z|t rick Speaker of the House. 



Oov. Taylor was inaugurated .Ian. 'Jl. In March 

 the legislature re-elected the Secretary of State, 

 the Treasurer, and the Comptroller. TM Govern- 

 or*s message advised legislation amending the elec- 

 tion laws so as to protect the legal voter, prevent 

 unlawful voting, and do away with the abuses of 

 the |oll-tax law; also reform of the fee system, in- 

 of the tax levy, abolition of nn'nccessary 



offices, making penitentiary convicts sclf-suppori- 

 ie estMUHinMOl of a reformatory for youth- 

 ful offenders, and an appropriation for the < Ynten- 



Assessment and revenue laws were passed. The 

 tax-rate was raised to 30 cents for general purposes, 

 with 15 cents for schools. The office of back-tax 

 attorney was aliolishcd. and delinquent taxes are 

 to be collected by the trustees of the countio. 

 Changes wen- made in the laws on privilege taxes, 

 which will increase the income from that source. 



There was a general demand for legislation to 

 the COM ,,f criminal proceedings. The 

 Com pi roller's report showed that the State paid 

 forthi* pur|ose in 1809 $949416; and it wa- esti- 

 mated that the cost to the counties was about three 

 times as much, t'nder the fee system the clerk of 

 a criminal court sometimes earned $10.000, while 

 the salary of the judge was $2.500. Three hills 

 affecting the comity attorneys-general were passed. 

 One abolishes the system of payment by fees, and 

 fixes their salaries at $2,500; a second act allows 

 assistant attorneys-gen, ral in the four largest coun- 

 ties, and a third jermit- county courts to vote 

 $1,000 a year additional salary in "counties of more 

 than 80,000 inhabitants Davidson and Shelby 



< .:.-.. 



An act called the Janris law, which was passed, 

 will -ave about $700.000 a year on the cost of crim- 

 inal trials. It was opposed on the ground that in 

 a mj v** it would confiscate the services 



ks, and witnesses; and was brought 

 before the courts in test cases. In two courts it 

 was derlarvd unconstitutional; hut the Supreme 



.t it i* not open to any constitutional 

 objection, and is valid. 



the special session of 1896 a bill was passed 

 providing for the submission to popular vote of the 

 Question of calling a constitutional convention, and 

 April 1, 1897. was named a* the time for the elec- 

 tion. But as the subject was not mentioned in the 

 call for the extraordinary session, the con-titution- 

 ality of the act was called in question, and the Gov- 

 ernor did not issue the call for the flection. In 

 order to do away with the doubt, a bill to the same 



fled WM pa-ed in the regular Natal, naming 



Aug. 5 as the day of the election, and .-n Ma\ :. 



the llovernor isMied a proclamation lOOOfdingly. 

 At that eleetion the people decided againM holding 



M-nti-m by a vote of alioiit three to one. 

 A railroad (-"inniission was created, t,. | M > com- 

 posed of three member*, on, from ca.-h -rand di\i- 



!.e\ an- t.- I Slate 



tax assessors of railroad, telegraph, and telephone 

 property. 



A law WM passed prohibiting th. \ing 



a way of cigarettes and oi( pen, Tin- law 



was assailed tattocoaxta, oil the ground that it wa- 



unconstitutional a resiriction of inter-late com- 

 nierci and the deci-ion. given in < > -t..ln r. in the 

 t'nited States circuit court, was against the law. 

 It. h vered but part of the o^ie-tion in- 



volvcd. and other tot ca-e- have been brought, one 

 court holding that, while cigarette- may be brought 

 intotheStateaiid -old in the original packages, the 1 

 can not I .in in the State, eit her in the 



original packages or otherwi-e. (Mher- hold that 

 they may be sold in any wa\. Appeal on the cases 

 decide<I will le taken tit the Supreme Court. 



A law was made for the government of the mili- 

 tia, in-tituting radical change-. The period of en- 

 listment wa- made three year-: the QovmOT WM 

 authori/ed to appoint 20* aid- with the rank of 

 colonel on his honorary -talT: the rank of a-si-taiit 

 adjutant general \va- reduced from colonel to majoi\ 

 and the rank of otherollicer- was also reduced ; the 

 office of in-pector of rifle practice wa- aliili-hed. 

 both for the brigade and the regiment-. 



An act "for the protection of boarding school-. 

 and colleges for females and the principals and in- 

 mate- thereof make- it unlawful for any one - will- 

 fully and unnecessarily to interfere with, disturb. 



or in any way disquiet the pupil- of any sd I or 



college for females in thi- Slate, or the principal or 

 -teachers in charge of them, while on any public n.ad 

 or street, or in any building or struct lire, or on the 

 school premi-es. 'Nor shall any communication be 

 had for such purpo-e- with Mich pupils or anj 

 of them, either orally or in writing, or 1 

 otherwi-e. and it shafl also be unlawful for an] per- 

 son to enter upon any Mich school or college prem- 

 ise*, except on business, without fir-t having ob- 

 tained permission of the principal in chart:''. And 

 it shall be unlawful for any per-on or person- to 

 loiter, wander, stand, or sit upon the public roads 

 -treet-. alley-, sidewalk-, or other place.-, or to fre- 

 quent ly and' unnecessarily pa-salon g the same in -udi 

 manner ami with Intent to annoy, vex. or disturb 

 the owner- upanls of any premise- in 



the Stale used for the pur|M-e of a school or college 



for the education of females, or with intent t 

 turb. annoy, and hara the teachers, principal-, or 

 pupils or any cue of them a- they pa along the 

 public highwa\ "r alley- of any city in the 



The penalty i- a line of *:> to $60 f OT the 

 first nlTi-n-e. and for -ub-e<|uent conviction- sin t<, 

 $50, with impri-oninent at the discretion of the 

 court ten to thirty : 



A design for an Official flag for the State was 

 adopted. It i- to be red. blue, and white, an 

 shaped by diagonal line* a* to represent the geo- 

 logical lines of tin The proportion* of 

 width ami length are to he as 2 to .'i. "The dimcn- 

 -ion-<.f the three colors em | doyed shall be governed 

 by a diagonal line drawn from the upper corner to 

 the lower corner through the center of said colors 

 employed in it s const met ion. and the width of the 

 three colors measured on said lines so drawn shall 

 be equal. The figure MO' shall be on the white 

 field, and shall be made blue in color. The words 

 1 The Volunteer State' shall be placed diagonally on 

 the blue field, and of yellow or gold letters." 



