746 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. (MASSACHUSETTS.) 



shall be taken from those already in the public 

 service, and that no additional compensation 

 shall be given. 



A State board of publication was created in 

 accordance with the recommendation of the mes- 

 sage. 



The Cattle Commission was abolished, and 

 Austin Peters, for several years its chairman, 

 was appointed chief of the Cattle Bureau of the 

 State Board of Agriculture. 



In accordance with the suggestions of the mes- 

 sage, the committee recommended these other 

 changes: That the offices of pension agent and 

 State-aid agent to be merged in the new office 

 of State Aid Commissioner; that the office of 

 State fire marshal be abolished and its duties 

 given to a division of the State police; that the 

 office of inspector-general of fish be abolished ; and 

 that of the inspector of gas-meters be abolished 

 and its duties given to the Gas Commissioners. 



A bill respecting banks provided that after 

 July 1, 1904, no incorporated savings-banks shall 

 occupy the same office or offices with a national 

 bank, or any office directly connected by doors 

 or other openings in partitions with the offices 

 occupied by any national bank or other banks 

 of discount. After the same date no president, 

 vice-president, or treasurer of a savings-bank 

 shall hold similar offices in a national bank or 

 any similar institution. 



Other enactments were: Making vaccination 

 compulsory; regulating the speed of automobiles 

 and prescribing for their management, so as to 

 prevent accidents; providing that elevators run- 

 ning more than 100 feet a minute must be in 

 charge of persons eighteen years of age or over, 

 and other elevators must be in charge of persons 

 sixteen years of age or over; providing that a 

 married woman under twenty-one years of age 

 may convey lands as if she were of age; provi- 

 ding that the succession tax shall be assessed on 

 the value at the time the right of possession falls ; 

 and the value of existing life estates and estates 

 for years is to be deducted ; making it " unlaw- 

 ful for any person to advertise in a newspaper 

 circulated in this Commonwealth, or by any 

 other means, to perform or to procure the per- 

 formance of the marriage ceremony " ; authori- 

 zing cities and towns to appropriate money for 

 celebrations of greeting to returning sons and 

 daughters and other invited guests, and for ad- 

 dresses and ceremonies of historical interest. 



Provision was made for a memorial statue of 

 Oov. Wolcott on the State-House grounds. 



In accordance with an act providing for three 

 additional judges for the Superior Court, the 

 Governor appointed Charles A. De Courcy, Rob- 

 ert O. Harris, and Lemuel L. Holmes. William 

 C. Wait was appointed to fill the vacancy caused 

 by the death of Justice John Hopkins. 



The Governor vetoed a bill for nearly $33,000 

 for Herring river in Harwich, as extravagant and 

 wasteful. 



Among the bills defeated was one for abolish- 

 ing capital punishment, and one for preference of 

 Spanish War veterans. 



Requisition for a Criminal. It was reported 

 in August that the Governor had refused to 

 honor a requisition of the Governor of North 

 Carolina for a negro who was under indictment 

 for arson in that State. It was true that pro- 

 tests were made against delivering up the negro 

 on the ground that he would be lynched; that 

 though the Governor of North Carolina had 

 promised him protection the fact that two ne- 

 groes had been lynched during his administration, 

 though he had made vigorous attempts to stop 



the crime, showed that there was no certainty 

 that he would be able to afford protection. A 

 hearing of the protests was held before the At- 

 torney-General; in the end, the requisition was 

 honored. 



Political. There were 5 tickets in the field 

 for the State election this year Republican, 

 Democratic, Socialist, Socialist-Labor, and Pro- 

 hibition. 



The Democrats met in convention at Boston, 

 Sept. 17. Following is the ticket named r For 

 Governor, William A. Gaston; Lieutenant-Gov- 

 ernor, John C. Crosby; Secretary of State, \\ ill- 

 more B. Stone; Treasurer, Thomas C. Thatcher; 

 Auditor, J. L. Chalifoux; Attorney-General, John 

 J. Flaherty. Some changes were made in the 

 ticket later. 



The nominations and the platform, which was 

 adopted after they were made, were a triumph 

 for that part of the party opposed to the Kansas 

 City platform and to Mr. Bryan. There was a 

 minority report from the Committee on Resolu- 

 tions, offering a platform, which was read by 

 George F. Williams, approving the Kansas City 

 platform and reaffirming the principles advo- 

 cated by the party in the last two national cam- 

 paigns. The majority report, which was adopt- 

 ed, made no reference to these. It declared that 

 the supremacy of the State over its corporate 

 creatures, the trusts, must be asserted and main- 

 tained; that tariff duties should be reduced to 

 a reasonable revenue basis; and that duties on 

 raw materials, particularly on coal, iron ore, 

 wool, and hides, should be removed; it favors a 

 reciprocity policy and demands reciprocity with 

 Canada; demands the repeal of the tariff duties 

 upon articles whose production is controlled by 

 trusts; condemns the coal operators for refusal 

 to submit differences with employees to arbitra- 

 tion; denounces the Republican Congress for 

 failure to give tariff concessions to Cuba ; opposes 

 all forms of Government subsidies, whether on 

 land or on sea; reaffirms opposition to colonial 

 imperialism; and declares that the State, in con- 

 nection with the city of Boston, should join in 

 the work of harbor improvements. 



In Boston, Oct. 3, the Republicans named the 

 following candidates: For Governor, John L. 

 Bates; Lieutenant-Governor, Curtis Guild, Jr.; 

 Secretary of the Commonwealth, William M. 

 Olin; Treasurer and Receiver-General, E. S. Brad- 

 ford ; Auditor of Accounts, Henry E. Turner ; At- 

 torney-General, Herbert Parker. 



The platform approves the gold standard, and 

 says of trusts : " These combinations of labor and 

 capital, by whatever name they are called, are the 

 natural results of modern economic developments 

 and are entitled to the due protection of the laws 

 so long as they are innocent and law-abiding. 

 Publicity, honest accounting, issuing stock only 

 for its tme value, the prohibition of improper 

 devices to break down competition and severe 

 penalties for corrupt interference with elections 

 or with legislation by the use of money or oilVr- 

 of employment will protect the public against 

 injury from large combinations of capital." The 

 Democratic plan of free trade in all products 

 made by trusts is opposed as meaning lln- ^n-at 

 est possible injury to all the competitors of 

 trusts. The anthracite-coal strike is deplored, 

 but is declared not to be a political question, and 

 should not be used as such. President Roose- 

 velt's efforts toward ending the strike are heartily 

 approved. The platform concludes with a com- 

 mendation of Gov. Crane's administration. 



The candidate for Governor of the Socialists 

 was John C. Chase; of the Socialist- Labor party, 



