Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-08-13
The New Constitution.
OBJECTIONS DIssECTED.
Able Speech of the.Bcimont Dele
gate.
JUDGE ID. d. T. COWEN AND ROSS
]. ALEXANDER AT BELLAIRE.

SPEECH OF ROSS J. ALEXANDER.
The 81 eaker began 10y saying that there was
40 party interest at stake; that the new Con-
stitution was formed by honest men with care
and delioeration. in the iterest of economy
and purity in government.
He then referred TO the economy of the in
strument and proceeded as follows:
You have been hearing through your papers |
that the Auditor of this County receives 5000 a
year and Judges 5000 and $500. Some Audi |
tors ia the State get 1900 and $1,000 a.year for
their work alone, all clear OF clerk hire. In |
this county over 5000 has been paid TO the Au-
ditor every dollar of it out Of the county Treas
ury, because that don't include transfer fees. |
Now the Legislature is to salary the AUDITOR
That will be fixed perhaps at 5000 in a county
like Belmont. They may fix IL in counties be-
tween 10000 or 80 600 lin population at s2OO0 over
that at 81 500. They will fix some regular sum
but regulate 1t as the Prosecuting Attorneys
salary is regulated. There will be a saving OF
$4,000 in that item alone to this county. Your
proportion OF that is sI00-one-tenth Of 5000
which goes 10 your credit The clerks of your
courts are perhaps getting pay of $500 a
year; and that, say, will be cut down in III
same proportion. Belmont county is of such
a size that these large salaries will not he al>
lowed by any Legislature. When Supreme
Court Judge, with his learning. study and
years given to his profession. receives but $500
| a year, they won't allow 10 the Auditor and
Clerk OF the Courts more than $1,000 or $500 a
year. So with the Probate Judge, and SO with
the Treasurer Instead of 5000 he will get
about half that amount. See how much that
will save to the people of the county. Put
these things all into account and the new Con-
stitution Will be cheaper than the old. When
against the increased expenses Of the Judica-
ry-and that increases the expense, because
there will be more Judges-you put the reduc-
tion of expenses for county officers, the expen-
ses of annual elections saved. it will leave
large credit balance in favor of the new Con-
stitution.
There are other matters almost too little to
talk about. Here it prevents our Representa-
tives and other officers from having free passes
from railroads in their p 'ckets. Persons Will
say that certainly no man who goes TO the
Legislature should be effected in legislation by
a ticket. Well, now, gentlemen, 1t seems Curl
GUS the railroads give these free tickets out
They never give them too man until ne Is
elected, and whenever he goes out oil ONCE they
stop giving them. don't know what that
means. When they want the Legislature Oh
Ohio to do anything they will give the Legls-
lature free ride down to Cincinnati or up to
Cleveland and back. and generally, somehow,
have Just such leg isation as they want. But
| If it does no harm. stop the business. Let q
man say there is nothing on earth TO effect his
Judgment or influence him any way unfairly.
Let the county Treasurers have no free passes /;
let the Auditors have none when they go up TO
equalize railroad property for taxation. it will
| inst Rnt these railroads. man.
AGED by the sharpest men in the country, never
try to get business finished whek they have
Judges on the bench with free tickets in their
1 pockets Ard lately here we have these
Judges sitting and telling the juries they must
not let themselves be nfiamed against the raf,-
roads by any kind Of prejudices and that they
are great institutions. So they are. Let the
: Judges tell the juries that because they are
great institutions they must not come in and
crush the humble citizen. Now, that is the way
these things are working to great extent
Let us have what is fair and right all the way
through. The other day in Bridgeport met
lone of the county officers OF this county. He
was opposed to the new Constitution, He
spake against 1t pretty strongly. In talking
with in little bit he objected very much &C
this provision forbidding the accept fance o.
, free passes: said the railroads were good things
to be legislation that would favor their con
2 struction and protect them every way it could
! Well, on that subject, asked him If he had 1
complimentary ticket over the railroad across
this county This has nothing to do with thu
: question, said he. Nothing OF that kind wouit
influence me at all. passed the question
"Haye you a complimentary ticket?" "Well,
saws he 81 have" GLaughter.l Well, now, n
# didn't think 1t was influencing him at all, bu
;, vet that was the only subject on which he wa
talking, the only one in which he seemed to b
II interested. and yet he was opposed to the ne'
:, Constitution Gentlemen, it has many enc
mics. 1t Is hard to go through. Itinaugurate
q great many reforms. 1t strikes deadl
blow to railroad monopoly and combinations
II makes them act fairly as men have to act
/, and they should have no greater rights becaus
they are gigantic corporations. 1t bring
g about purity and honesty in legislation. Tha
It free pass system not only operates on tn
M mind and influences the judgment of our rer
resentatives, perhaps, but it creates grea
deal OF absentism. They have got free tickt
)f and it is SO convenient to go down and sta
,r over Sunday, and often don't get back In Tin
for work Monday. 1t prolongs the sessions
our LEGISLATURE. That is one great objectio
ct to 1t.
is. that the members of the House and Sena'
are to be paid an annual salary also, and the
o. are to fix il. If they fix it too high, 1t will
ofllike our Congressmeu. No man Is hon-hear
ed enough to stand against an aroused publ
opinion. The Congressman who voted the IL
ty cres sed pay hastened back to repeal Ii. Ar
re- So you can depend on your Legislature. The
will fix the regular salary. Then they will {
or there to attend their business. No free ticket
They will stay there; dispatch their busine
promp pity and then return home. 1t Is the
I, interest to make a short session and they w
Ill lido it. Those Improvements are in the ne
II Constitution. only give you few nf the
points in that way. Persons may object to u
ia lengthening of the terms Ct some OF the ofhcer
" but it was necessary to lenthen those OF L
of Probate Judges and clerks from three to fe
years So the biennial plan would work. Tn
increased the term of the Common Pie
Judges to six years. Why, In Pennsylvani
u- their Judges are elected for 2l years. T
e. United States Judges hold their places for L
and after they become superanuated they q
VI retired and pensioned as long as they live
s, cause they have spent their best years in t
is service of the Government. Ten years VOL
nv be too long. Why isn'tit as good as five? T
Judges who hold but for five years are the
working and trimming their sails for the pc
ular breeze TO be reelected. Put q man in
l., ten years and he cannot keep up with
IN changes of political parties. He Will be Ii
OF out of politics and be a fair and upright ms
not biased or controlled in any way by the pc
ular feeling. 1t will make your judiciary
ms dependent and better because the tenure
be their officers do not hold on popular applau
On or votes.
Another great thing in the new CONSTITUTE
is, minority representation OF different kim
ia Here we have five Supreme Judges to be ele
;or ed. Although no man can vote for but thr
w. II the party in the majority get large majo
=, ty they can elect the three, but the other pal
"; will have two. Won't 1t be better to nav
IL Judiciary of that kind, where minorities "
III be represented. In Ohio with one thousa
majority for either party they will have
-, whole Supreme Court, under the present CO