Page:The Wisconsin idea (IA cu31924032449252).pdf/220

 he could immediately stop its passage to the governor and have them corrected. This reform removed one temptation to corruption. The governor at the same time secured an able attorney to examine bills before he signed them, so that if errors were found, they could be corrected before his signature was affixed. What he actually signed was one of the printed copies of the engrossed bills which were laid upon the desk of every member. Here were checks against mistakes in the passage and the final product, together with such watchfulness as would prevent dishonest clerks from inserting or removing something at the behest of interested parties.

With the coming of civil service, the clerical force was at once made more expert and fast, accurate workers were substituted for those who had obtained their positions by political pull. The amendments to bills were also printed and attached to the bills in the files, so that each member had a complete copy of the bill under consideration when he cast his vote. Paper, uniform in size, was provided and bills were required to be in duplicate upon introduction, so that while one copy was sent to the printer, the other was available to the house. This made it exceedingly difficult to steal, change or mutilate a bill by means of the old tricks of the past.

A bill drafting department was established in the