The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1895-10-24
THE WATER COMPANY'S CHARTER
MIR Watts Letter to MIR. E. J..
Rowan.
Did He Lack tho Penetration Necessary to
See che Crafty Purposes of tho Bill, or
Did He Introduce it For His CLIENTS
Regardless OF It's Results to the People
OF Roanoke?
RICHMOND. Va. Feb. 81, 1894

NIX DEAR SIR:-Ploase accept my very sincere
thanks for your letter of the goth instant ap.
preclate thoroughly your kindness in writing to
me about the matter. Tho Gas and Water Com
pany's charter was sent down hero and submitted
by me to Mr.. Thomas. We went over 1t together
and cut out what we thou ght the Objectionable
parts and introduced It. 1t has been lying In the
committee Of tho senate ever since, and have
not had 1t reported because wished to hear from
our people every objection that could be made to
1t. Mr.. Glasgow has been here and had asked
him to examine it in behalf OF the city. 1 have
no Idea that 1t ever will be brought up in the
Senate, but will be allowed to rest in the COM
mittee,where 1t is, indefinitely. Yours truly.
j. ALLEN WATTS,
Without questioning the bona-6des of
the above letter TIE TIMES regards Ii
as of email concern to the public except
to show the weakness of Mr.. Watts IS
representative. This letter was pub.
licly read in the presence OF Mr. Watts
and must BIO assumed to have his en-
dorsement as to correctness.
If the records Of the City Council OF
Roanoke be correct the city solicitor and
councilman were sent from this city to
defeat that bill ss soon as chance made
known here les existence and purpose.
This information did not come from or
through Mr.. Watts.
When Mr.. Watts consulted the city
solicitor about the BILL It was after the
city solicitor arrived in Richmond
charged with the express purpose of
defeating that outrageous bill. It was
8 consultation Mr.. Watts could not
readily have avoided. Nevertheless we
must give him credit for describing IL
very sdroitly.
At the time Delegates Logan and
Thomas positively denied that they
would have introduced the bill in the
lower house unless the oppressive &C.
ton 8, giving to the grasplng Gas and
Water Company the privilege of vir-
tually coniscating private property. had
also been stricken out, and THE TIMES
is informed that they both still deny 1t.
1t Ia well-known here, and to any in
telligens person 1t must be plainly APP
parent, that with the Ubiquitous pur-
poses incorporated in sections o, 10 and
IL stricken out the grinding monopoly
did not want the charter. There fore,
Mr. Watts could we'll afford to let 1t die
in committee after 1t was denuded OF it's
evil purposes, without displeasing his
clients. All the rest of 1t was mere
empty verbiage to conceal the crafty de-
signs contained in those eliminated sec
tions, and to cause the State to pro-
nounce valid an oppressive contract Of
doubtful validity which the company
has with Roanoke, as shown in section
8 Of the bill.
Now the question is simply whether
Lawyer Watts lacked the penetration
and judgment necessary to see the
crafty purposes concealed in that bill
and the injury they must essentially
work to his constituents, or whether he
introduced 1t for his law client, regard.
less OF results to the people of Roanoke.
If he could not see the evil effects such
9 bill must produce, without the aid of
other members from this district and
two special emissaries of the people,
then he is but poor representative to
entrust with important public interests
fhe saw all the evil in the bill and
then introduced IL he ignored the rights
OF his constituents and would be very
dangerous person to place in represen.
tative capacity. Take either position
you will and Mr.. Watts is found to be a
very unsuitable man to represent this
district in the Virginia senate.
But If he can 60 before q Justice or
notary and make oath that the obnox-
ious bill was not actually drawn by him.
self or in his law Office then the people
will have reason to think much bs.ter
ofshe good faith of his earnest attempts
to avoid responsibility for 1t.
What the people of this district want
is State senator who ia intelliQent
enough to know what il for tho interes.
and what Is injurious to the people. and
who is faithful enough to protect their
rights and interests on all OCCASIONS
Without being prodded to do his manifest
duty.
Possibly the modest Gas and Water
Company may ask for moro this year.
The Deadly Parallel.
offered as would oer introducing SI that bin f es
the Dill OF any constit- patron. BY pntting my
the right to have his bill complete Control ~ ~
ofrered whether his Nobody could have il
member Will support IL considered in any way
or not, as he may have II had introduced It
others In the body who by request anybody