The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1878-01-30

al Di trict.l first Monday June and De-
eember, 6 days; Lefore, second Monday
June and December, continue II days. Re-
| ferred
BY Mr. Denham. To reduce ami fix the
bond of officers of Greene, Jones and Jasper
counties. Referred.
BY Mr.. Wilson. To reduce the fees OF
Circuit Clerks in certain cases. Referred.
FREE PASSES.
| By Mr. HoyIe To prohibit free passes or
ticke-s to public officers on railroads. Read
| twice.
Mr. Hurt moved totable the bill. Lost by
the following vote:
| YEAs-Messrs. Allen, Applewhite, Angus
| tus, Bailey, Baker, Ballard, Bean, Bizzell,
Cameron, Carter, Causey, Cham berlain,
Cunningham of Marshall, Cunningham Of
Monroe, Denham. Dockery, Gallagher, Ghol-
sou, Goodrum, Gwin, Henry, HOgtn, Hurt,
Lewis, Liddell, Marshall of Carroll. Marshall
of Warren, Martin, MaGehee of Wilkinson,
Mckenzie, Ii etts, Montgomery OF Marshall,
Montgomery of Oktibbeha. Moody, Parker,
Pegram. Perkins, Pintard, Reed Of Choctaw,
Reid of Coahoma, Richardson, Seabrook,
Seal, Stands, Spight, Showers, Tarver,
Tison, Tucker, Wall. Warren, Washington,
Young OF Calhoun, Young of Panola-54.
| NAYs-MesSrs. Bassett, Bird, Brown,
| Bunch, Catchings, Cook, Cooper, Dabney,
Davidson, Day, Dean, DoZier, Eaton, Erwin,
Farmer, Field. Ford, Gibson, Gilmer, Glass,
| Gordon, Hall, Hampton, Hatch, Heathman,
| Hicks of Kinds, Hicks OF Yazoo, Hill, Hoyle,
johnson, Key, LGsk, Magee of franklin,
/ Marshall OF holmes, McCollum, McSwine,
McWhortcr, Miller of Copiah, Miller Of
Pamela, Moore, Nelson, Niles, Num-, Rainey,
Redhead, Roane, Roberts, Robinson, Scott,
Smith, Spinks, Stamper, Trest, Whitaker,
/ Wilson, Wood-57.
| Absent aud not voting-Messrs. Aldrich,
Cley, Edwards Farley, Libby, Love, Nc
Lean, Ramsey, and Streets.
Mr.. Hoyle moved to put the bill on its
final passage, Mr.. Stands offered an
| not apply to judicial or State officers.
Mr.. Hoyle said: regret that have not
the speech that this subject demands. 1t is
| bill the passage of which Is demanded by
our constituents. Gentlemen say the pre-
senting to public officers offree passes is only
courtesy. 1t is strange, Sir, that this cour-
| tesY is only extended to those who are en-
abled to repay the courtesy IN kind. Why
should the railroad expend so much, IL it
did not expect to accomplish something
| thereby In view of the fact that they are
exempt from taxation. etc.; in view of the
| fact that when we attempt to regulate the
| tariff rate of freight, etc, we are met by
arguments aS chartered rights, bankrupt
court and mOrtgaged property. think that
| it is not unreasonable that the people whose
servants we are should demand that we pass
| the bill. l 10 not say that these officers
could be bribed, but that we, as public
/
| dignity of the Office as to be above mere sus-
| picion.
Mr.. Spight opposed the amendment and
| the bill Reporter could not get his re-
marks.)
Mr.. Gibson favored the bill.
Mr.. Roane favored the bill and opposed
the amendment. He said:
| Mr.. SPEAKER-I am in favor of the pas
sage of this bill. l was here in this hall
&6ring four long, weary years of Radical
/ 10 I'm fIa0F tnd hn rOi de
| of the State were asking for many favors
| at the hands of the Legislature, and during
that period the Legislature was flooded
with annual tree passes over each railroad
| in the State. 1t may be that those passes
had no influence over members; but IL is
| STRANGE coincidence that the railroad in
1 fluence of the State was supreme I'm our
| legislative halls daring that period, and all
kinds of schemes met with hearty sup
| port from those who held annual passes
/ from the railroads. The Judges OF our
/ Courts frequently are called upon to decide
controversy involving the interest of the
| citizen against the railroads, and in those
/ decisions provoke criticism from the citi-
zens of the State. Let US remove our
judges and legislators from the shadow of
such suspicion or criticism. In tho muta-
| lions of political parties in this State, the
| same rulers that are admitted by all to be
corrupt, may come into power in this State
again, and IL they arc met with this prohib-
i itory law upon the statute books, we have
once influence for evil removed.
Mr.. Hurt opposed the bill. He said:
agree fully, Sir, with the gentleman from
Tippah and the gentleman from Claiborne.
! think the time of this House can be better
taken up than in the discussion of questions
of this kind. / have too high a regard for
the members of this House, the Judiciary
and our State officers to suppose for a mo-
ment that they could be Influenced by such
Il paltry consideration. The passage of such
bill would imply that the members OF this
House would sacrifice the interests of their
constituents for the small consideration OF
! their railroad fare to and from the Capital.
/ For my own part / have never accepted a
| tree pass for being member OF this body,
nor would /, and | take it that the other
members occupy the same high ground. /
desire, Sir, to place myself on record as be-
i ing opposed TO bringing this imputation
upon the members of this body. / hope,
| therefore, that the motion to indefinitely
postpone will prevail
Mr.. Martin opposed the bill. He said l
/ am as jealous of the entertainments, of these
| great corporations as any member on this
| floor; learned it from the warning words
| of the great Chancellor Kent, but / learned
also from the same great author, that the
purity of representative bodies in this coun-
| try rests with the people themselves. If
any member of this body forgets his duty
| to his constituents, or legislates iDjuriOusly
| to them in behalf of these corporations, Sir,
| it is in the power of the people to retire him
to the shades Of private life. Sir have never
received free pass from any railroad in
this State; II / had it would not prevent my
doing my whole duty, nor influence In any
| manner my action in this body. 1t is true
that Lord Bacon says, that every man has
his price" But, corrupt as 1t is conceded
| that he was, lac placed his integrity at q
/ high price. Have we fallen so Iowf Have
| the members of this body become so cheap,
that their action in this House can be infiu-
/ enced by the paltry consideration Of free
pass? | think not. Sir, this body consists of
! the intelligence and most trusted represen-
/ tatives of the people; it Is not composed OF
the material that assembled here In 1873. The
| men that compose this body are men above
| the influence of any corporation, no matter
| how powerful. l cannot agree with the
gentleman from Lee, that these corporations
have and can influence any body consti-
/ tuted as this. The history of legislation in
this State disproves the assertion. The
statutes of the State, changing the rule OF
| evidence in all other cases, creates pfIn1d
fdcie presumption against these corporations
| and throws upon them the burden Of prov
ing a negative. The decisions of the courts
in all the States, are uniformly adverse to
| them; and, finally, any question in which
they are concerned is always, as in other
cases. submitted to juries drawn from the
people
Mr.. Dahney favored the bill. He said
Upon the question OF a reflection upon
the members Of the Legislature in the pas
sage of the bill and added that the members
were representing from 11OO 70 i0UO voters
1 each, and that these voters demanded that
the free pass system should be discontinued
/ that it had become q by-w0rd throughout
the State that the railroads controlled the
Legislatures of the State, and whether the
charge be true or false it becomes the Leg
islature TO deny in the most unequivocal
and emphatic manner the charge, and place
themselves beyond the reach OF such a
charge, That to him It appeared that all
delfcacy upon the subject would seem,
should incline the gentlemen to favor the
BILL Mr.. Dabney also quoted from the Con-
i etitution Of the United States as follows