The Waco evening news. [volume] (Waco, Tex.) 1891-1894, 1892-02-27

call the attention not only of the
members but to the people OF the state
to what is going on in their capital
so that public opinion may find some
mode OF giving itself expression so as
to Influence members. When this
law was laid upon his table, it was
his duty to examine it most carefully
And it was supposed that by reason Of
his elevation he had the accumen to
detect errors and the manhood to pre-.
vent them. If he examined this law
and failed to detect the disastrous
lurking beneath the words, he wrote
himself an ignoramus. Ii he exam.
ined the law and detected the disas.
ters necessarily lurking beneath the
words, and then approved it he ought
to be impeached If he failed to ex
inc the law and affixed his signature
to it without knowing its contents or
its effects, he was guilty of gross and
criminal negligence unworthy of q
governor Now he can take either
horn of the dilemma he prefers and |
will be satisfied with his choice.
There was no necessity, fellow citi.
zens, for such nonsense upon our
statute book. The purpose sought to
be subserved by good men and true
men with which purpose l am in per.
feet sympathy, was to pass statute
which would prevent the aocumula-
ton Of large landed estates in the
hands Of aliens or Of alien corpora
tons. So far as l am concerned, /
am opposed to any corporate owner
ship of land in my state, except for
the immediate purporposes of the cor.
poration. A corporation has no soul
it is well said in the law books, And
there is another expression which fits
it equally WE'LL it can be made i'm.
mortal | want no such ownership of
landed interests in this state as hat.
1t is contrary to the genius of our in
situations and the constitution which
forbids pe.petuities. l am not will.
ling to stand idly by and see an alien
corporation which can be created and
extended and re extended by some
foreign power, hold at its will, any
portion of the landed interests this
great state; neither do l care to see the
experiment made by our domestic
corporations. With individuals it
may he different, because whether
they be home people or whether they
be aliens, their lands are held under
our laws of descent and distribution
and in vast majority of instances
must change lands with each genera.
ton. But not so with Operations,
1t cannot be a difficult IN after to SO
adjust our laws that the state,
through its proper officers, may at
any time it becomes apparent that the
public interest SO requires, institute
actions against alien owners of lands,
and escheat such lands to the state
under such conditions as the state
may see fit to impose. This would
leave our title undisturbed and pur'
chases would not be required as un
der Governor Hogg's law, to inves.
tigate the family history of his ven
doris in the chain of title in order tC
ascertain fine had ever been a stock.
holder in an alien corporation and to
keep a void title from being imposed
upon him. Whether it be
true or false l know not, but at any
rate it has been published by the Gal
weston and Dallas News that in an
interview with Gov. Hogg at Corpus
Christi last summer, he attributed the
passage of the alien land law to the
railroad lobby, stating that the motive
was to bring disrepute upon the ad
ministration. If such be the fact, fell
low citizens, the administration was
very easily gulled, far too easily fol
the comfort Of intelligent people in the
state who realize that their interest:
are in the hands of such an admins
tratien. If our governor is gullible
we ought to swap him off because
Texans are a smart people, and theil
governor ought to be thoroughly req
resentative in this respect. We ough
to select a man who cannot be gulled
either by railroad lobby or any othe'
sort of inspiration. If the governo
had devoted his time to the study o
multiplying appointments by three
where only one vacancy had to b.
filed, he might have avoided this mis-
take, which in one line upset the Lane
titloa nf tho Stata and naat disnran!