"An act making appropriations for certain expenses of government and supplying deficiencies in former appropriations."

The total of general appropriations, exclusive of canal sinking fund, barge canal and highway appropriations, passed by the Legislature this year was $27,276,314.76; I have disapproved bills and items to the amount of $277,712, leaving a total of $26,998,602.76, as compared with $26,703,270.07 for 1905.

The direct tax for the old canal debt sinking fund and the barge canal debt sinking fund and for highway improvements has been done away with by the appropriation of $5,325,000 from the State's indirect revenues for such purposes.

The finances of the State were never in a more prosperous condition. The fiscal year ending September 30, 1907, should leave a working balance of about $8,000,000 in the State Treasury.

We have had, by way of unusual necessary appropriations, the following:

Economy has been manifested in the appropriations for the departments and extravagance has been carefully avoided. The Legislature has been clean, courageous, independent, intelligent and industrious.

The most inportant work of the past year has been the insurance investigation and the enactment into law of the recommendations of the Armstrong joint legislative committee. We now have an insurance code framed for the policy-holders and not moulded by the insurance companies.

Next in importance, I rate the two acts which at once do away with the annual mortgage tax and the direct State tax. The Legislature determined that the State should encourage thrift and economy by relieving the landowner from the burden of taxation for the great canal and highway improvements voted by the people, and by shifting the cost thereof from the country farm and the village home to the centers of wealth and commercial activity, at the same time assuring lower rates of interest to borrowers on mortgage security and thereby promoting the growth and development of the cities.

The Legislature has been the partisan neither of labor nor of capital, but has dealt fairly with both, to the end that justice and equality might characterize its acts, rather than hatred of wealth on the one hand or disregard of the working

man's interests on the other. A law regulating the rate of wages and hours of labor of employees of municipal contractors has been made operative; employees engaged in the extra-hazardous employment of railroading have been given a remedy for personal injuries where practically none existed heretofore, and the labor law and the public health law have been materially strengthened.

Bills regulating the rates of service of public utility corporations, which seemed confiscatory, premature or unreasonable have not become law, but the failure of last winter's Legislature to give New York city an eighty-cent gas law has been atoned for.

Rapid transit facilities for New York city have been increased, and the discontinuance of the death-dealing operations of the railroad in Eleventh avenue has been assured.

In no Legislature of recent years has the absolute divorce between politics and business been more noticeable. A Corrupt Practice law has been enacted, corporations have been prohibited from making political contributions, and the lobbyist has been driven from the halls of legislation. The freedom of the Legislature from corporate influence working through party organization for mutual advantage has been manifest.

A serious and intelligent effort to do away with the abuses of the so-called Raines law hotels has been made.

An attempt to strengthen the alliance between race-track gambling and the agricultural societies has met with rebuke.

Two State commissions have been abolished, and no new permanent commissions or offices have been created except in response to the constitutional amendments adopted by the people.

Wholesome amendments have been made to the statutes regulating the winding-up of corporations by receivers,

whereby the allowance of excessive fees to receivers and their counsel is prohibited and final settlements are expedited.

The franchise tax law and the stock transfer tax law have been amended in the interests of the localities benefited and of the State, and the personal property of non-residents situate within the State has been subjected to taxation.

An appropriation of $150,000 has been made for the maintenance and repair of good roads constructed with State aid. For the first time since the establishment of this system of highway improvement, the towns have been relieved from this expense and the State Engineer and Surveyor has been charged with the direction of the work.

(Signed)

FRANK W. HIGGINS

DISAPPROVAL OF ITEMS IN ASSEMBLY BILL
No. 2425 THE SUPPLY BILL

STATE OF NEW YORK

EXECUTIVE CHAMBER

Albany, June 1, 1906

Statement of items objected to contained in Assembly bill number 2425 (Introductory No. 1304), entitled "An act making appropriations for certain expenses of government and supplying deficiencies in former appropriations."

On page 7: "For the judges of the court of claims in addition to the sums heretofore appropriated for salaries and expenses, six thousand, six hundred dollars ($6,600), or so much thereof as may be necessary."

On pages 8 and 9: "The sum of twelve thousand, six hundred and sixteen dollars and seventy-one cents (re. $12,616.71), being the unexpended balance of the appropriation made by chapter seven hundred and one of the laws of nineteen hundred and five, for the payment of expenses of the joint committee of the senate and assembly of nineteen hundred and five, for investigating and examining into the organization and operation of gas and electric lighting companies of the city of New York, is hereby reappropriated for postage and expenses of committees, compensation of witnesses, legislative manual, clerk's manual, and indexing the bills, journals and documents of the senate and assembly and other contingent expenses of the legislature."

On pages II and 12: "together with an unexpended balance of any appropriation heretofore made for legislative printing."

On page 22: For Henry B. Coman in full for services and disbursements as attorney and counsel for the comptroller of the state of New York, pursuant to the designation of the governor and attorney-general under the provisions of the executive law, in the case of the town of Tonawanda versus Nathan L. Miller, as comptroller of the state of New York, the sum of sixteen hundred and eighty-nine dollars and twenty-two cents ($1,689.22), or so much thereof as may be. necessary."

On page 25: "For O. C. Breed, for services performed and expenses incurred by him, in making investigations and obtaining evidence in respect to claims against the state on account of the Phoenix dam, two hundred and seventy-four dollars and twenty-five cents ($274.25), to be paid on the certificate of the state engineer and surveyor."