The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1869-08-04

, ment incident to an impromptu speecl
before a large convention, they might
not have deserved the treatement
propose to bestow upon them.
The respect entertained for youl
private character, the reputation yor
had earned in the late war as brave
soldier and skillful commander o.
forces-independent of your exalted
position as chief magistrate of q great
State combine to give force and
credit to your statements OF fact and
declarations of opinion upon public af
fairs.
You have arraigned the legislative
branch of the State Government fer q
reckless expenditure of public money
and for acting in bad faith generally
towards the people.
AS one of the members of the Fifty
Eighth General Assembly, having my
share of responsibility for its acts, ]
feel called upon to repel your attacks
upon that body, and to compare some
Of your principal charges against the
Legislature with your own official re-
concentrations.
You state that "they (the General
Assembly, created between thirty and
forty new offices, at cost to the peo-
pie for salaries, fees and expenses, Of
at least $4,000 per annum." THEY
did not create any such number Of Offices
as yoa state, nor at any satch cost. They
did create five additional judgeships,
three of which were in Republican
and two in Democratic districts. They
also provided for an inspector of steam
boilers, whose salary should be ~, 600
aiyear.
In your last annual message 1 find
the following recommendation II
submit to your consideration the i'm
portance of providing for thorough
and comprehensive geological survey
of the State. Many years ago a partial
survey was prosecuted, under many
difficulties and embarrassments, which
was fruitful of valuable results. 1t is
beyond doubt that such a work as is
now practicable to carry out, will, by
making known the mining, manufac-
turing and agricultural resources of
the State, lead to their development
to an extent which will in a few years
amply reimburse the State for its
cost"
Pursuant to this recommendation,
Mr.. Lee, of Delaware, introduced a
bill providing for geological survey
of the State. 1t authorizes the ap-
,, pointment by the Governor of one
principal geologist and three assistants.
L. f,a 0f ,n
state, and you have made the appoint
ments under it. The annual cost of
this survey will be $500, unless the
Legislature shall modify the law. T
know of no other offices created by
the Fifty eighth General Assembly
than those above mer toned, unless
you intended to include the additional
trustees for the Miami University and
and the trustees of the Reform School
for girls, all of whom serve without
pay.
Permit me further to call your at
tention to another recommendation III
your message, which is as follows
"The interests of common school
education, in my opinion, will be pro-
NOTED by the early adoption of county
superintendency, as provided in bill
on that subject now pending in one
branch of the General Assembly. 1
therefore earnest y recommend the con-
sfderation and passage of the bill )"
Had this bill been passed in pursu-
ance of your recommendation, it would
have created eighty-nine new offices at
a yearly cost of not less than $4,000
for each superintendent. That bill
was fully nsideied, but the General
Assembly did not deem it expendient
to pass it.
When you state that "sixty or sew
enty different acts. were passed, au-
thorizing debts to be contracted
amounting in the aggregate to more
taan S25,OOO,OOO, i and that
they passed serenity or eighty acts by
which additional taxes were authorized
to the amount of over $40, ,000,000,' 1
do not know " what you mean, for no
such number of acts as you specify are
to be found in the statutes of 1863.
You seem to be as careless in fixing
the amount of local levics provided
for as in the number of acts passed,
neither of which bears any specific re-
lation to the actual facts. Not less
than three fourths of all the special lev
les authorized were in the large cities
The 1eyies authorized for the city of
Cincinnati alone exceed all other lev
les. That city and Hamilton county
were represented by eleven Repub-
lican members, all of whom united in
the passage of the bills of which you
complain The only opposition they
encountered was from Democrats.
Special legislation is, as general
rule, expensive and vicious. The
present Constitution was intended to
prohibit all legislation of that charac-
ter. In 1856 the Know Nothing Re-
publican Legislature commenced re-
stricting the authority of counties,
townships and cities to make levies for
ordinary purposes. These restrictions,
under the Legislature of 1862, were
carried to such an extremity that i'm
provements of every kind were prohib-
tied, and it was with extreme difficult
ty that sufficient money could be re-
ceived by taxation for current ex-
penses. If Court House, Jail, In
firmary or Union School was burned
down, or bridge swept away by high
water there was no means of rebuild
ing it, except by application to the
General Assembly to authorize a
special levy for such purposes: There