The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1871-03-11

lC 11lc SeHtleIllal comes IN mere ana asks II
r. Senate to make an appropriation of Sixt
It thousand dollars, to be placed in the hans
t, of three parties of whom we know nohin
n They may be perfectly honest and honora
# BILE, as the gentleman states; but if vol
!, for the passage of bill appropriating
d large amount of the money belonging
l. part to the people whom have the hone
e to represent on this floor, I must be pre-
t pared to give them an account of the mar
: ner in which that money shall be expended
e and to show them that some safeguard
thrown around the State in its expenditure
f The gentleman claims that the Bayou Coul
!. tableau runs through the section of countr
7 which have the honor to represent. re
! grct to say that have never heard of sue
] bayou before. There are so many bayou
/; up there that have failed to get the name
, of all of them correctly. 1t is strange, how
ever, that | have never heard OF stream
which the gentleman claim is of such vas
Importance to the people I represent
have never received any letters or petitions
from my constituents asking for an appro-
priation for the improvement of this bayou
and they certainly would have communi
Gated with me on this subject, if this hat
been q matter Of such vital importance tt
them. fully coincide with the views ex
pressed by the distinguished and. economi
cal Senator from st. James Mr.. Hunsakerl
The time has indeed come when it behooves
us to act in accordance with the strict rules
of economy in our management of the fl
nances of the State. 1t has been asserted
on this floor tonight that any bill advo
Gated by my distinguished friend from St
Landry Mr.. Anderson had superior claims
npon this body and should be passed imme
diately. So far as | am personally concern
ed, I yield to no one in the respect I have
for the gentleman, and if his advocacy OF
this bill can not secure its passage, the
name of Bayou Courtableau certainly ought
to do so If this measure is to be passed,
if the navigation of Bayou Courtableau is
to be made perfect, in order that the people
If that section may be enabled to boat their
produce down the bayou, instead of being
compelled to wheel it around this bar in q
wheelbarrow. then have got seventeen
bavous in the parish of Avoyellts, and
about nineteen more in the parish Of Con-
cordia, for the improvement of the naviga-
ton of which [ shall ask the General As
scmbly to vote an appropriation. | am in
favor of improving the navigation of all the
| bavous in the State, if we commence at one.
I believe, however, That the navigation Of
these bayous is humbug. Most Of them
have only three inches of water in them in
high water, and an inch and halt in low
water. I have heard a great deal of talk in
this Senate chamber about the present
heavy taxation. which is almost crushing
the people of the State under its weight.
This has been the whale tenor Of the re-
marks of the Senator from Claiborne MIR.
Blackmanl and Senator Hunsaker, since the
beginning of the present session. ! am
sorry that the Senator from Carroll is not
also here tonight, to cast his vote against
this bill. I believe that those gentlemen
are correct in their views. think the time
has arrived when the taxation of the people
of the State should be reduced. They arc
burdened with load which they can hardly
bear There is no people that Gods genial
sun shines down upon that pay such heavy
taxes as d. the people of this unfortunate
State. There is no city on Gods green
earth" enjoying municipal privileges that
is taxed SO heavily as the city of New Or
leans I, for one, propose to reduce, the
taxation of the people. | do not propose
to make appropriations Of this kind unless
/ know them to be founded in law and prac
tice. am willing to yield almost anything
to the honorable Senator from st. Landry,
in order that he may be enabled to give
good account of his stewardship when he
goes back to his constituents. [ want to
make his fame as bright as polished brass
1 want him to 60 home with record so
bright that his constituents will return him
here again, and will continue to return him,
and when he shall have ''shuff1ed off this
mortal coil" continue to send his descend
ants here until the "last syllable of record
ed time" but I do not propose to vote for
a bill of this kind simply because he asks
me to do So enture to say that this
bayou is not known to single man outside
Of the parish Of st. Landry. | hope the
Senate will be more decorous and digni6ed
than to pass bill of this kind in the hasty
manner proposed by the Senator from St.
Landry. I now move that the further con-
sideration of this bill be postponed until
to morrow at one o'clock, and that it be
made the special order of the day for that
hour.
Mr.. Anderson am glad to see that the
Senator from Concordia Mr.. Harrisl takes
such an interest III our welfare The peo-
pie that ship their cottnn through this bayou
probably do not know the Honorable Mr.
Harris at all. They are generally wealthy
men, and seldom, if ever, VOTE. Only few
days ago received large petition from
that country, asking mo to request the GoV-
ernnr to offer reward for the apprehension
Of murderer, who had murdered one of
the gentleman's constituents. | suppose |
he was as ignorant of that circumstances as
he was of the existence Of the Bayou Cour-
tableau. am actually representing por. |
ton of his district without his knowledge. |
Now, the Bayou Courtableau is we'll known
to most of the Senators on this floor: and
all the merchants OF this city are well nc
quainted with its location. 1t is also well
known to the honorable gentleman who
presides over this body. The western por-
ton of Louisiana is certainly the richest
and most productive section in the State OF
Louisiana. It also has q large voting and
taxpaying population. The parish that
has voting population of Six
and the Senatorial District nearly
twenty thousand, and they pay a large
amount of taxes. This work is of. vast I'M.
portance to them, and it is but just and
right that the State should comply with
their moderate request / am perfectly
willing that the interests of the treasury
should be guarded in every conceivable
manner. The gentlemen whose names |
have inserted in the bill are men of means,
and can givea bond for a hundred thousand
dollars If they are required to do so. They
are gentlemen of the highest reputation,
and ara above doinp ANYTHING wrong. They