Another act requires railroads to settle all claims for lost or damaged freight, the claim being not less than fifty dollars, within sixty days, and where the freight is handled by two or more roads within ninety days from the filing of written notice by the claimant with the railroad agent at the point of destination, adding a penalty of twenty-five per cent. for failure to settle within the time specified.

An act requires manufacturers and dealers in commercial fertilizers offered for sale in this state to brand the fertilizers in such manner as to designate the constituent elements of available plant food contained therein.

An act abolishes the imparlance terms in the circuit courts and makes all suits triable at the first term after institution, provided summons was served on the defendant personally within thirty days before the meeting of the court.

An act provides for a commission to prepare a new code and report the same to the next session of the legislature. A stringent vagrancy law was passed, much like the Kentucky law and the Georgia law to be hereafter noticed.

Mississippi submitted an amendment to her constitution abolishing the requirement of the present constitution for taking the census of the state every ten years, and also confirmed by acts amendments which had been carried at the previous elections relating to the apportionment of senators and representatives and requiring the poll tax to be retained in the counties where the same is collected and not distributed among the several counties and school districts.

GEORGIA.

Some of the legislation of Georgia is especially interesting. A law was passed amending the definition of robbery as contained in the Georgia penal code. Prior to the amending act, robbery was defined to be "the wrongful, fraudulent and violent taking of money, goods or chattels from the person of another by force or intimidation without the consent of the owner." The amendment added the following to this defini

tion: "or the sudden snatching, taking or carrying away any money, goods, chattels or anything of value from the owner or person in possession or control thereof without the consent of the owner or person in possession or control thereof." This amendment was obviously made to meet the cases of pickpockets and street thieves and was brought about by a decision of the Supreme Court of Georgia, which held such cases not to come within the definition of robbery.

A very important law was passed with reference to vagrancy and its definition and punishment which deserves more than a passing glance. Under this law vagrants are defined as follows:

"1. Persons wandering or strolling about in idleness who are able to work and have no property to support them. 2. Persons leading an idle, immoral or profligate life who have no property to support them and who are able to work and do not work. 3. All persons able to work having no property to support them and who have no visible or known means of a fair, honest and reputable livelihood. The term visible and known means of a fair, honest and reputable livelihood,' as used in this section, shall be construed to mean reasonably continuous employment at some lawful occupation for reasonable compensation, or a fixed and regular income from property or other investment, which income is sufficient for the support and maintenance of such vagrant. 4. Persons having a fixed abode who have no visible property to support them and who live by stealing or by trading or bartering stolen property. 5. Professional gamblers living in idleness. 6. All able-bodied persons who are found begging for a living or who quit their houses and leave their wives and children without the means of subsistence. 7. All persons who are able to work and who do not work, but hire out their minor children and live upon their wages, shall be deemed and considered vagrants. 8. All persons over sixteen and under twenty-one years of age able to work and who do not work, and have no property to support them, and have not some known and visible means of a fair, honest and reputable livelihood, and whose parents are unable to support them, and who are not in attendance upon some educational institute."

The act then proceeds to provide the machinery for enforcing the law and makes it the duty of sheriffs, constables, police and town marshals to give information under oath to any officer authorized to issue criminal warrants of all vagrants within their knowledge. The penalty upon conviction is that the vagrant shall be bound in sufficient security, in the discretion of the court, for his future industry and good conduct for one year. Upon the vagrant's refusal or failure to give security, he shall be punished "as for a misdemeanor." The penalty for a misdemeanor in Georgia is a fine not exceeding $1000, confinement upon the chain gang or public works not exceeding twelve months or imprisonment in the common jail not exceeding six months, either or all in the discretion of the court. The act ends with a provision that it shall be a sufficient defense to the charge of vagrancy that the defendant has made a bona fide effort to obtain employment at reasonable prices for his labor and has failed to obtain the same.

I am informed that this law was demanded by the agricultural interests of the state, which have suffered for some years past from the dearth of labor, due in great part, as it is claimed, to the idleness of the negro population throughout the state. This act has served as the model for several similar laws passed by a number of the adjoining Southern states.

A law was passed creating a state school book commission and requiring the commission to provide in the public schools of the state a uniform series of text books and providing elaborately for the duties and powers of the commission.

An act was passed to protect the officers and employees of the Georgia penitentiary at the various convict camps throughout the state, which provides that no person shall be allowed to come inside of the guard lines at the various camps with a gun, pistol or any other weapon or any intoxicating liquors, and makes it unlawful for any person at such camps to trade or traffic with any convict or to buy from or sell to any convict any article without the consent of the warden in charge, and gives the wardens the right to establish guard lines, and it

further makes it unlawful for any person to linger or stand around within the guard lines, and makes the violation of these various provisions a misdemeanor.

A law was passed creating a board of health to consist of twelve members, a majority thereof to be physicians. The duties, jurisdiction and powers of the board are elaborately defined, and in a general way the powers of the board may be said to be a general supervision of all matters relating to the preservation of the lives and health of the people of the state. Supreme authority in matters of quarantine is given to the board. The collection of statistics upon the subject of contagious and infectious diseases and the like is made the duty of the board, and all local boards of health are practically put under the supervision of the State Board of Health.

A law was passed repealing the previous law which allowed a trial by jury of a person alleged to have become insane after conviction of a capital offense. The old law provided that where a convict under sentence of death should become insane after such sentence, the judge of the Superior Court in which the original trial was had shall, upon the affidavit of a practicing physician as to his insanity, summon a jury and try the question of present insanity, and upon a finding by the jury that the convict is insane the sentence of death shall be suspended and the convict confined in an insane asylum. This law was repealed in toto, and in lieu thereof it was provided "that upon satisfactory evidence being offered to the governor of this state that the person convicted of a capital offense has become insane subsequent to his conviction the governor may, within his discretion, have such person examined by such expert physicians as the governor may choose, and said physicians shall report to the governor the result of their investigation, and the governor may, if he shall determine that the person convicted has become insane, have the power of committing him to the state sanitarium until his sanity shall have been restored, as determined by laws now in force. The cost of the investigation shall be paid by the governor out of the contingent fund."

Another law was passed, obviously to prevent the service of professional jurors, which provides that any juror who has served as a grand or traverse juror at any term of any court shall be ineligible as juror at the next succeeding term of the court. Inasmuch as the terms of the courts there last six months, this prohibits a juror from serving more than once in

any year.

A law was passed abolishing "days of grace," and making all obligations due upon the day named in the contract.

Another very interesting law, similar to that in Kentucky and the District of Columbia, was passed regulating the sale of stocks of goods, wares and merchandise in bulk.

Another act was passed, which has given rise to considerable litigation in the rural counties of the state. It recognizes the principle of initiative on the part of the people directly affected. It makes it unlawful, by one sweeping enactment, "for any person or persons to permit any hog or hogs to run. at large beyond the limits of his own land or of the land of which he is in control." This law is to go into effect when as many as 150 freeholders shall petition therefor. Upon such petition, an election shall be held in which all the voters of the county are allowed to participate. Those who favor the adoption of the act shall have written or printed upon their ballots the words, "Against hogs at large," and those who are opposed thereto shall have written or printed upon their ballots, "For hogs at large." The law then provides that in the event a majority of the votes are cast "Against hogs at large," the act shall become operative, and that if any hog shall commit trespass or damage, or be found at large upon the premises of any other person than the owner thereof, it shall be lawful for such owner of such land to impound such hog until such owner of such hog shall make such satisfaction for the damage committed by such hog, including cost and expenses."

An elaborate bird law was passed, which for the first time in its history protects in Georgia the nests and eggs of any