legislative, powers to boards and
commissions has narrowed the scope of legislation. Whatever be
the reason the fact is certain. Very few States now allow their
legislatures to sit _ad libitum_, and only six or seven States permit
annual sessions. In nearly all States sessions are biennial, if
not, as in some Southern States, quadrennial. That is to say, the
legislature is only allowed to meet once in four years; and in more
than half the States the time of the session is limited to ninety,
sixty, or even thirty days, or the pay of the legislators cut off at
the end of such period.

A few States have laws aimed at corrupt elections, that is to say,
limiting the expenditure of candidates and requiring publicity. Most
States now forbid contributions by corporations, as does the Federal
government.[1] Thus, by the California law of 1893, expenditures are
limited to one hundred dollars for each candidate, or one thousand
dollars by a committee, and in no case exceeding five per cent. of the
salary of the office for which the person is a candidate for one year,
and the legitimate expenses are specified; that is to say, public
meetings, printing, postage, and head-quarters expenses. Probably
no one regrets the prevalence of extravagant expenditures more than
persons who are themselves in public life. If the bosses of many State
machines were consulted in private, they would agree that the only
really legitimate expenditures are the hiring of halls, and the
mailing of at most one printed circular to every voter in the
district. The Missouri law of the same year fixes a limit of
expenditure of one dollar per hundred of votes thrown at the last
election for the office for which the person is a candidate, which,
in an ordinary congressional district of say fifteen thousand voters,
would be one hundred and fifty dollars--certainly little enough.
Voters very generally have to be registered.

[Footnote 1: Bill signed by President Taft, June, 1910.]

As is familiar to the reader, there has been a decided movement for
the direct election by the people of United States senators, a large
majority of the States, and the Democratic party in all States, having
in the last few years expressed themselves in favor of a change in
that particular. Until within a few years it was thought only possible
by Constitutional amendment, but the example of Oregon and other
States has shown that it may be done by means of a law providing for
the expr