THE WISCONSIN LEGISLATIVE LIBRARY.

CONTENTS.

Low opinion of state legislators not warranted, p. 288; their ability and integrity sufficient, but handicapped by lack of legislative experience, p. 288; complexity of problems presented to them creates a danger, not of corruption but of misunderstanding, p, 289; need of impartial information and the legislative reference department as a means of providing it, p. 289; character of Wisconsin reference department, p. 290; its purpose to act as depository of information, not to influence legislation, p. 291; the library force, p. 292; the reference department brings university experts and legislators into touch, p. 293; method of drafting the public utility law as an illustration of its work, p. 293; moderate expense of department, p. 295.

A

SINGLE piece of freak legislation now and then and an isolated instance of corruption here and there have been made by the public the occasion of placing a low estimate upon the intelligence and integrity of all state legislators. The truth justifies no such judgment. On the contrary, the legislators of the various states are as a class keen, bright, honest men who have been successful at least in a small way in business or profession. They are for the most part inexperienced in legislative work, have had no special training for it, and have had no opportunity to give legislative problems any study. They have been hurried through a political campaign, have hastily arranged their business affairs for the winter's absence, and find themselves in their seats at the capitol with only the most vague and general ideas as to their duties.

The party leaders stand ready to help in legislation, but they represent temporary partisan principles rather than permanent public interests, and their help may well prove a hindrance. Aside from these leaders the average legislator is wholly without assistance. He is ignorant of the existing law and procedure; knows little of economic principles; has had no experience in the use of legislative forms; is unskilled in the accurate use of legal phraseology. Worst of all, he knows nothing of legislation elsewhere and can profit not at all by the experience of other states and countries. He is ignorant as to all these things not

because he is an ignorant man, but because his knowledge is of other things.

But withal he is probably a better legislator than the technical lawyer or the visionary scholar. Common sense is better than knowledge too special in its scope, and the ordinary legislator's very ignorance of detail gives him a clearer perspective than either lawyer or scholar and better enables him to solve legislative problems; provided always, however, that he can have impartially presented to him accurate facts and sound principles of legislation.

The problem with which each legislator is confronted is not a simple one. The difficulty of the legislative problem constantly and rapidly increases as social and economic conditions become more complex. Indeed the needs of society have become so varied that a political legislature unassisted is well nigh helpless to meet them. Yet the member of the modern legislature is expected to legislate upon subjects arising out of modern complex conditions: first, in proper legislative form; second, in simple language to be understood by laymen, but with definite legal significance; third, in a manner consistent with existing law and procedure; fourth, in a manner embodying sound economic principles; fifth, without violation of party or personal preelection pledges; sixth, without coming into conflict with constitutional limitations, state or federal.

The average legislator cannot be corrupted. There is danger, however, that he may be misled to form wrong judgments on questions before him. Indeed the lobbyist who depends for success upon direct attack upon the integrity of the legislators would be considered a crude bungler. The successful lobbyist/ must be intelligent, tactful, pleasing, and frank. The task before him is to get into the legislative mind a set of facts and suggestions that will lead to results favorable to his interests without letting the legislator realize the source or purpose of the knowledge or suggestion. The legislator then lacks neither integrity nor general intelligence. What he does lack is a source from which he can obtain complete information and intelligent unbiased suggestions on legislative topics. He needs, too,

assistance in putting his measure into proper form. To be this source and to render this assistance is the function of the legislative reference department.

The Wisconsin legislative reference department is the pioneer among the departments instituted by the various states. It is under the control of the free library commission of Wisconsin; the president of the state university, Charles Van Hise, the secretary of the state historical society, Reuben G. Thwaites, the state superintendent of public instruction, C. P. Cary, are all ex officio members of this commission. In addition there are two other members appointed by the governor for a term of five years each. So constituted, the commission is nonpartisan and no politics has ever crept into the legislative department.

The department at Madison does not maintain an extensive or expensive library. There is in the city a complete state law library, a large state historical society library, the state university library, and the city library. A book found in one of the other libraries in the city is not duplicated in the legislative reference library unless it has a direct bearing upon legislation and would be in constant demand. It is rather made available by being indexed and by an arrangement to transfer it temporarily to the legislative library when it is needed. Arrangements have also been made to temporarily procure books from other cities and even from other states.

It is a primary purpose to make the library the depository of all kinds of documents relating to the legislation of the other states, of the federal government, and of foreign countries. It is to be remarked that the legislative problems before all civilized communities are essentially similar. Everywhere are problems growing out of crime and pauperism; marriage and divorce problems; problems relating to hours of labor, child labor, and wages; various problems connected with the relation of labor and capital and the rights and duties of both; problems arising out of insurance, inheritance, taxation, and the regulation of public service corporations. What the legislator needs to know is what efforts other communities are making to solve these problems and how they are succeeding, so that good measures may be

adopted from other communities and failures need not be duplicated.

Prior to each session a special effort is made to get copies of every law on every subject which is likely to be legislated upon at the current session. All data bearing upon the success or failure of the legislation enacted in other states and countries are also collected. If a measure has failed or has been repealed, the reasons for the failure or repeal are sought. If it has been successful, its provisions are carefully studied and analyzed with a view to their adaptibility to local needs.

Books are not always nor often up to date on current legislation, and hence letters, legal briefs, and articles and clippings upon legislative subjects are carefully collected and classified. Experts, including both university men and men of practical experience, are asked to make criticism and comment upon existing legislation. A store of critical data has been thus collected. Every effort has been made to so classify and arrange material as to render it quickly accessible and to place it in such form as to make it understandable to the man who desires to make a hurried study of any question.

What is wanted is not so much an exhaustive study of a subject as a concise presentation of it. A mass of material which might be of great value to the university man with leisure to go into a subject in a scholarly way would be in too much detail to be of use to the legislator in his hurried view of the same subject. One of the problems in collecting the material is to keep it concise and to prevent it from growing to unnecessarily large proportions.

The department in its work carefully avoids any appearance of influencing legislation. The prerogative of the legislator to make laws is carefully guarded. No legislation is, even suggested by the department. It does no drafting whatever except at the request of a legislator. The legislator must first know what he wants and can then go to the department for help. It originates no legislative ideas whatever, but places itself in a position to aid in working out and improving the legislator's ideas.

It has been suggested that a partisan or corrupt department might do incalculable harm. So might a partisan or corrupt

court.

But as the very existence of the department is dependent upon the legislature and its continued appropriations, corruption would speedily spell extermination.

At the head of the department is Dr. Charles McCarthy. He is a graduate of Brown University and has a Ph.D. degree from the University of Wisconsin. He has a knowledge of constitutional and common law, is a close student of political science and economics, and is familiar with legislative forms and with legislation throughout this country and Europe. He has, moreover, rare tact in dealing with the men with whom he comes in contact.

There is under him a cataloguer who not only knows indexing, but knows enough of law, economics, and legislation to classify and index intelligently the great variety of material which this department is constantly collecting.

Another assistant is a close student of social and economic conditions and well fitted to do research work. This assistant each year writes a number of valuable bulletins upon the questions likely to interest legislators.

During the last session of the legislature three lawyers were engaged in drafting bills, consulting with legislators, and in studying and briefing legal questions connected with legislation.

Dr. McCarthy lectures at the University of Wisconsin upon practical legislation. His students, mostly graduates, do extensive research work under his direction and give to the department the results of their work. These students are also drafted in as assistants during the legislative session and do valuable work for members of the legislature.

This department makes every effort to bring the legislators into contact with the university professors who are dealing with subjects parallel to those legislated upon. Inquiries as to constitutionality are referred to the law school men. The engineering department of the university is called in when questions as to water power, dams, drainage, and similar subjects are before the legislature. The agricultural department is consulted on such questions as Canada thistles, bovine tuberculosis, and all scientific phases of practical agricultural subjects. The