The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-11-05
BIRTHDAY TO BE A HOLIDAY.
HOUSE REFLECTS AN ADVERSE RE-
PORT FROM COMMITTEE.


Phinizy Case Ends in IA settlement
Outside of the LeGi>lhture-ihe
Committee Substitute For the sl"-
TON Lunacy Trial Bill Passed-A
Number of New BiJIs introduced.
Atlanta. Ca. Nov. 4-To-day's feature
sn the House was the Introduction oil
resolution by Mr.. Nesbltt of Clayton can
tny for an investigation of the facts III
regard to the newspaper interviews IN
which Mr.. Pbinizy of Augusta was quoted
as referring TO the opponents of foot ball
in the legislature as "blankety blahk
farmers and jackasses, who knew nothing
about the game of which they were blow
ing so hard" The resolution follows:
..Whereas. Mr.. Phinzy of Richmond
member of this House, presented a state
rnent this morning denouncing as false an
interview with him published in the Au-
e7,sta Chronicle and the Columbus En-
ouirer-Sun; and whereas Walter Adam
son. who is responsible for the publica-
ton of these articles, and who Is not
member of this House and, therefore, not
entitled to the floor, is placed in a posi-
ton before the House by MIR. Phinizy
statement as having maliciously misrep-
resented him; and. whereas Mr.. Adam
son asks for an investigation, declaring
that he has not misrepresented Mr. Phin-
izv: therefore, be it resolved that COM
nittee of ten members of this House be
Amounted by the speaker to make an in
vestigation and report to the House
whether or not Mr.. Phinizy has been mis-
represented"
Mr.. Phinizy rose to a question of per
eonal privilege and denied using the Ian
guage attributed to him in the interview.
So far as farmers" are concerned, his
family had been in the business for years
and he himself had a two-horse farm in
Columbia county. LAS to that other alb
ieetive Gackass)," said he, lit is not in
my vocabulary" He said he did not even
know the correspondent and the interview
as published was false. He said it was
a small matter with him, personally, but
a very grave matter when member of
the House introduced a resolution to in
vestigate his conduct on the allegation of
irresponsible newspaper correspond
ents." He said so far as he was con-
cerned, he courted an investigation if the
House saw fit to set such precedent.
Mr.. Calvin objected to the investigation
of something that happened outside the
House, and moved the reference of the
resolution to the committee on rules and
the matter was given that direction.
After the matter was referred to the
committee friends of both Mr. Phinizy
and Mr.. Adamson conferred and agreed to
settle the matter A written plan of set
Element was drawn up, and tomorrow
morning Mr. Phinizy will read it. In it
he will withdraw his remarks of yesterday
rejecting upon the newspaper man, at
tributing the report to a mistake and the
correspondents statement to the effect
that Mr. Phinizys words were used in
private conversation, and so far as he
was concerned, not meant to be published.
A good deal of routine business was
transacted in the House.
Mr. Slaton's bill providing that lunacy
trials of criminals convicted of capital Of
lenses shall be by a jury drawn as in
court and presided over by the trial judge,
instead of by a jury. summoned by the
sheriff and presided over by the ordinary
as at present, was reported with com
mittee substitute and finally passed. Mr..
Slaton explained the case, showing the
manifest propriety of trying the sanity of
a condemned criminal by a court of equal
dignity with that which convicted him. He
showed how in this country a man who
had previously been pronounced sane by
a Jury summoned by the sheriff before the
ordinary declared insane and sent to the
asylum, when he would have been hung
under the sentence of the court. Mr.. Sla-
ton related the history of the Carr case,
showing that he first pleaded self defense,
but when 40 leading citizens of Atlanta
demolished that, he pleaded insanity He
referred also to the Flanagan case and the
defense there, and the boast of the attor-
neys that they would keep the case in
court two years He said the only safe
plan was to apply the old commonsense
rule of whether the man knew the differ
ence between right and wrong and hang
him or send him to the asylum on that.
Mr.. Blalock, chairman of the committee
which bears his name, has prepared a bill
abolishing the state geological department
and will Introduce it tomorrow. 1t is an
line with the majority report of the COM
mittee on that subject
Mr.. Copeland of Walker got the lead of
him, however, and introduced to-day
bill to abolish the Office of state geologist.
Mr.. Duncan of Chatham introduced
petition from the Georgia Society of Colo
NAL Danes to open the state university
to women.
The bin to perfect In each county rec
ord of confederate soldiers was passed.
The bill TO make the birthday of Jeffer-
son Davis a legal holiday came up on an
adverse report from the general judiciary
committee, but after some spirited
speeches the report was almost unani-
mously disagreed to- When the bill comes
up on third reading it will undoubtedly
pass.
The bill to abolish the three days Of
grace" law on bank paper was lost.
Among the new bills of importance in
troduced were the following:
BY Mr.. Swift of Elbert-A bill to repeal
the act making permanent the income of
rhe state university. This repeats the
funding act for the landscript funds of
the university and is in accordance with
the Blalock committee report of which
Mr. Swift was a member.
BY Mr.. Knowles of Fulton-A resolution
recommending that quarantine questions
be referred to the United States marine
hospital service as more competent to deal
with such questions as yellow fever than
conflicting local authorities, and request
ing the senators and representatives of
Georgia to use their efforts to secure leg
islation on this line in congress.
By Mr.. SlatOn-A bill giving the state
the same number Of peremptory challeng-