a, gO lt n- nt: us yilk as 0SS led’ ing ° ich TS. ict- the ons ark Om Fa oOwW- fiver red ral. ANS nal for- are: ard: of all,. and. nile fom tly ged: WO Yial,. 311s-- wag- Dial’ 815. five, OW... uck: the t- ped’ four 1851 ided ake- pred | — pans = THE MEYERSDALE COMMERCIAL, MEYERSDALE, PA. NEWS ITEMS FROM STATE CAPITOL Moms of Interest Picked Up , Among the Lawmakers, —— BILLS STILL BEING INTRODUCED ®lsasures Affecting Persons In All Walks of Life Making Thelr Appear @nce—Committees Busy Aeting on Various Bills 4nil Chiendare & Hulk Moussa Are Well Pitied. Harrisburg, Ph, May 1-~A “ous: dry” Pennsylvania during the rest of the war is provided for in a prch.bi- ton bill introduced in the house by Representative Mitchell, of Jefferson, one of the “dry” leaders of the legi:- lature. i! Mr. Mitchell recently tried to have another prohibition measure he had previously sponsored so amended a: 10 make it a “war bill,” but the house law and order committee, of which Representative Wagner, Allegheny, an avowed ‘““wet,” {is chairman, reported it out with a negative recommenda- tion. Undismayed by the committee’s ac- tion Mr. Mitchell prepared the new bill which made its appearance today and about which one of the biggest and b't- terest anti-liquor fights in the history of the state is regarded as certain to be waged. Representative Isadore Stern hes in- troduced a bill in the house. passage of which would silence advocates of birth control in Pennsylvania. The bill prohibits the publication, adver- tising, selling, distributing or other wise disseminating knowledge or infor- ‘mation tending to interfere with or diminjsh the birth of human be'ngs. Violations of the act, it is specified. shall be punished by a fine of not less than $250 nor more than $1000 cr im- prisonment for three months or one year. The long expected bill to establish a text-book commission for fourth- class school districts of Pennsylvania tas made its appearance in the senate Senator Charles A. Snyder, of Schuyl- kill, made the Introduction of this bill his last offic'al act as a senator and as it followed his retirement speech. in which he took occasion to say that during his career as a logi¥lator he. ‘was more interested in public sehonl ‘matters than anything else. the <enate had the text-book bill ym ed! y vTeported out and by unanimous eon- #ent put through on first reading. By the terms of the Snyder bill th- commission would consist of the eoun- ‘ty superintendent, two superintend- ents or supervising principals of the fourth class school districts, and the two school directors chosen at the eon- venition of school direntors, All hooks Tor use In for=th-class scaol districts, which include places of 5000 p-pu’~- ton and under, must first be swbm't- ted to the dena-tment of ‘pub'i~ in #traction and from thig the suverr. tendent’' will furnish each texgbock commission with an authorized list of Books from which selections: must he made. The bill is modeled after similar ‘bifls in other states and; accordine ‘to: the author, is of tremendous im- portance to the rural achools of th- wtate. © “A body composed of schco' men selected for this special purpose ‘will feel keenly the responsibility. of getting the best books adapted to the meeds of the pupils.” sald Senator Sny- der. "Also, when teachers change po- sitions they will know the books and the same appHes to pupils, who In moving from one district to another. will not have to go over the same mat. ter on account of subjects being treat ed differently by the several schon! book authors.” The Schantz bill to enable Bethle- hem and South Bethlehem to comsoli- date Is through both branches and ready for action by the governor. Charles Schwab, president of the Beth- lehem Steel company, is an advoeate of this measure. Recently the house refected the Thomas bill to prohibit the sale of deadly weapons or the carrying of fire: arms without a permit from the sheriff. It was modeled after the fa- mous Sullivan act of New York. If the senate puts through the Pow- ell hill, which passed the house last week hy a vote of 105 to 55. and if it receives the approval ef the gover- nor, every hunter in the future will ‘have to wear a red coat or a red cap or a red hat when out in quest of game. This is backed by manv hunt- ers and the purpose is to safeguard human life. The house has fixed May 1 as the last day of the session of 1917 upo- which bills can be introduced. There are over 1600 bills on the house list pow. The resolution to fix a time woe presented by Mr. Lewis, Jefferson, and an unsuccessful effort was made bv Mr. Shaffer, Columbia, to substitut May 1. : A bil making it lawful for any thea- tre, moving picture theatre, music hall or assembly reom to exhibit moving pictures « Sunday: after torely oc and pri by R p tative J. W. Smith, o Philadelphia. . time the United States is éngaced i+ NEW OFFICIALS ASSUME DUTIES Snyder and Kephart Sworn In Before Senate. MANY WITNESS CEREMONY Appeintments of Auditor General and State Treasurer Not Yet Annoutio- od—Bil Introduced in Legistature fe Susjiend Full Crew Law During Wir With GeFmady. ; . Harrisburg, Pa., May 8.—Pennsylva- fifa’ now hax tws hew state officers. On Tuesday af last week Senator Charles A. Snyder toek the oath as auditor general and this week Har- mon M. Kephart, who for ten years past has been chief clerk of ‘the "senate, began the duties of state treasurer, to which place he was elected last No- vember by over 200,000 majority. Both men were sworn in before the bar of the state senate. This was an unusual proceeding, but those who ar- ranged it believed that inasmuch as they had been conspicuous in the sen ate it was but fitting and proper that the oath should be administered to them in that chamber and in the p-es- ence of the men with whom they had been associated. HON. CHARLES A. SNYDER Pennsyivania’s New Auditor General. Neither Snyder or Kephart has made any -official announcement as yet re-’ garding appointments other than the former's naming of J. ord Rigby, of Mediu, 4s olifef of thé bureau of cor- porations. - Semi-officially it is known that Attorney John H. Fertig, of Potts- Ville “will: be deputy auditor general ang that Attorneys: Gabriel Moyer, of Lebanon, and Samual Lewis, of York, will be- given responsible places in the same office. ] Friends on Hand. The inauguration of Snyder was wit- nessed by hundr>ds of Icyal friends, especlallv from the northeastern part of the state, where the new auditor general has resided all his life. On motion of Senator Sproul. of Delaware, Lieutenant Governor Mec- Clain, who was presiding, named Sena. tors Sproul, Republican, and Sores; Democrat, of Lycoming, a commit: ea to escort the auditor general-elect to the senate chamber. A second later, Mr. Snyder, walking between his es- corts emerged from the lounging room" at the rear of thé senate chamber. There was a wave of applause as the trio moved over to the bar of the sen- ate where the oath was administered by Secretary Woods. The senate, on motion of Vare, of Philadelphia, then took a recess in order that the mem- bers might congratulafe the new audit. or general. Forming in line, senators and attaches of the senate and mony of Auditor General Snyder’s friends passed along and with a clasp of the hand wished the Schuylkill man a sue- cessful administration. Secretary Woods also administered the oath to Mr. Kephart. Before this was done the resignation of Kephart as chief clerk of the senate was read, and William P. Gallggher, of Wilkes- Barre, was elected as his successor. The state treasurer-elect was escorted to the bar of the senate by Senators Byre, of Chester, and Crow, of Fayette A recess of ten minutes was taken to extend congratulations to the new official. T.deutenant Governor McClain read Mr. Kephart’s parting words to the senate. He regretted the sever- ance of relations and would alwys r~. member the kindness and ccmpanicn ship of senators. Gratitnde to Senator Crow, who had influenced his appoint- ment as chief clerk and Tater. wos in- strumental! in having him nominate” for the state treasurer-hin. wong ex- pressed in the farewell, “I shall he with you often,” the valedictory set forth, “and the latchetring to my f fice will alwavs ba out.” Suspend Full Craw Law. Senator McKee, of Allechany. hag i= troduced a supplement to the "ull crew law, providing that the provisions of the act shall not he in force during th. the war with Germany and for -cix months after the clgse of the war Th bill recites that state and ration -r STATE MAY TAKE LAST WHITE PINE Movement on fo Acquire Fam- ous Cook Forest. TRACT IS IN THREE COUNTIES AIL Has Over 7,000 Acres and is a Natural Refuge and Breeding Place of Every Variety of Wild Life—If Made & State Park Would Rival Great Yéi- lowstone. Harrisburg, Ph, May $.—With the support. of practically every conserva tion association and large sportsmen’s organizations fn the state, the move ment for the acquisition of a great! forest by the commonwealth is assum. ing notable proportions before the leg- islature. The Cook forest, iucluding 769 acres in Jefferson, Forest and Clarion counties, seems to offer the last op- portunity for the preserv-tion of any considerable amount of the primeval beauties of the commonwealth, ani it is Margely for this reason that its ac- qui-ition ,and m-=intenance as a stote park is being urged by the conserva- tionists of the state. If passed by the legislature and av- proved by the governor the hill f~r the purchase of the Cook forest w'll sa cure for Pennsylvania the most beau*'- ful and wonderful pork in the eastern United States. On It are trees that were standing when Columbus dise~v- ered America. They are of the rar-at of all our American woods. the Penn- sylvania white pine. Many of the-e trees are seven feet and more in diam- eter, 250 feet high and 150 feet from the eround to the first limb. Nothin~ Hke them exist anywhere in the known world, . Conservation associations point ou’ that if the Cook forest is pre-e-ved and maintained as a state park it wil be as great a resort for tourists a-’ sight-eers as the Yellow=tone Prk and the great Redwood tress of. Ca'i- fornia, and as a matter of fact, it wi" than these noted parks have attracted. It has been conservatively estimated by men who are familiar with this for- est that it is worth more than $1.000. 000, but <0 anxious has been this fami- ly to have these mighty trees preserv- ed as the last of “Penn’s Woods” that they practically. made a. redutisn of at (east a fourth of the ‘million by asking of the state only $700,000 for the property. ® . Would -Maintaln Itself. The value: of the . property was pretty thoroughly esteblished by nu- merous investigators, both public: and private, about six years ago. Sirc~ that time the valuation of standing timber of all varieties included in the Cook forest has Increased more than 25 per cent.. The bark of many tre-s not. previously used is now of van-, and thers ir a cryinz demand for tes. pop-wood ard chemical wood. The Cao} forest. nroposition has at: tracted the attention of the st-te -s more than a sentimental project. TI‘ is the only matter of this sort under consideration by the present legisla. ture, which will not require a continu. ous series of appropriations for m-in- tenance, to say nothing of the question of the state petting back the princin~' of any amount it might invest. The Cook forest by its gas revenue alone is sufficient to pay all of the expenses and, maintenance, including the un- keep of the roads, and above that to make an annual return to the st-te of approximately $18,000, of whic- if placed at compound interest should re- turn the full price paid by the state in a little over twenty years. Endorsed by Many. The plan to make this, great f-res’ a state park has the endorsement of the Wild Life League of Pennsylvania, the Pennsy'vania State Forest A=zso. ciation, the Pennsylvania Conservaticn Association, United Sportsmen cf Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania State Sportsmen’s Association, some sev niy county and local sportsmen’s associa- tions, as well as many of the women’s clubs, histcrical societies and eivic bodies throughout thé state. Tre ne. cessity for having the purcha-e ~p- roved at ‘his session of the leg's'»- ure arises from the fact that tue e are numercus heirs to the Cook cs- tate, the majority of whom desir> t° have the estate ‘settled up and h-ve. forced the adoption of a resol tion t~ sell the property at once. T" rug the influence of one or two of the hei = this action was held un u=~t‘l1 ‘hi-~ ' s! apneal was made to the state to buy and preserve this timber. If this legislature fails to act, the lumberman’s axe must fall on the-e forest giants and something wil! h~—~ vanished from the face of the e~ t- never to be seen again in all prohab li ty, for thirty generations of man mst live and have their being while one ~f -these monster pines ig attaining its | full growth. Ideal for a Park. For park purposes the Cook fore=* ‘s ideal. Tt lies in the midst of a regi noted: for its scenic grandeur: through it winds the Clarice. river. the m-c! beautiful of Pennsvlwania streams. ad down the sloney of the mountains come tumhling scores of trout brooks. Tre family pride which. for 150 years, has kep this magnificent collection of trees from being cut has algo crused the openine of roads and paths tra reach every part of the property to a probably be visited by more. peanle | degree that it is suitable for pa~k pu- Foro pa’ poses todav without any ma‘e-ial im | auffering fron a shortase of Jahrr | vas 1 referred to the committee on railroads | | ing to the extraordinary demands made | NON Indpci-e Wy 1 1aroe nn 1 Hoveda toc £3 fied time of Nabor laws. The bill w ram eee = - re EY v—— provement. { The Cook forest today, is the ! refiioe ond hreadine a . rh 1d life these gigantic tr 8, th question that if preserve tained as a state par} drawing power Yellow 1 and m= will riya FARMERS The world-wide food shortage has ; put YOU on the firing line The Hunger Cry at Home and Abroad Bids You UP! You know the wheat crop is more than 125,000,000 bushels short in the face of a bigger demand than ever. Other crops must make up this shortage . Here is how you can help: Give first consideration to the non-perishable crops. Increase your acreage of beans and corn. Sow more buckwheat. Plant forage crops to supplement grain feed. Increase your live stock---especially hogs. Raise more chickens for quick meat. If you have more of any kind of seed than you can use, see that some one else gets it. WE MUST FEED THE ALLIES AND OURSELVES THE WORLD IS WAITING TO BUY Don’t Be Afraid of Low Prices If you need help to do your part ask the Loca Committee of Public Safety for Aid ISSUED BY IMITTEE OF PU NT OF FOOD Si NN SQUARE—PHILADELI PY YI OC Array Fb in eal a ei i SRST een i, BREE ev i ATR
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers