The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-07-18


 ney for a great railroad in the State of Alabama. 1t ie seldom that ever appear in the defense of the barefoot boy or the horny-handed son or ton. I think a man is not better for being farmer. he is no better for being a merchant. but I hold that man is entitled to consideration, not because of the vocation in which he makes his living. but because he Is man. l hold that a man can be as upright. just as honorable and just ae true to his con- stituents as the representative or q railroad as he could as the follower or a mule. I hold that 1t Is the man that gives dignity to the vocation anu not the vocation that gives dignity 10 the man. I am here as 1 said upon yesterday representing the wishes Of all classes of people in the state or Alabama, do sincerely believe except it be the patrons of the embryo legis- lators and the professional politicians. Gentlemen who will get up on this moor and advocate that the Legislature or the State of Alabama is a great place to train the young men to take part m the government of this State are not the proper sort to influence Legisia- lures about the policy of the govern ment of the State of Alabama and a man who looks upon the Legislature or the State of Alabama as being merely a training school in which the young glsdiators can come out and paw the air and saw the ears of the people In their utterances as to the prmcipies of government. knows too little about it to be asking the people to follow him in a movementof this kind. This gen tleman speaks about consistency. He was one of the men who advocated the three-fourths jury rule. That was departure, sir, from all the precedents laid down in movements along that line and he gets up this morning and opposes this because 1t is an innova- tion. You can use that argument against any reform movement. The Jews used that argument against Christ and His doctrine, that it was a change and it was an innovation and the divine words of the Man of Galli- lee when He expounded law to the fishermen on the shores of Gallilee, If this policy had been adopted would have been dead ashes upon the lips of the people. Now, Mir. President, we may go further back than this and say when Eve suggested to Adam after their downfall that you make clothing out of fig leaves he would say, NO. madam. this is an innovation" and We would be today naked savages hunting snakes for our dinner. That Is no argument against a reform move ment. I am speaking here in the in- terest of the horny-handed sons of tofl. They are the men who are not able to be here as representatives upon the floor of the Legislature to put through pet measures. There never has been a lobby here represented by the farm CTS of the State of Alabama and know ing this the horny handed sons of toll of the State of Alabama ask us not to give the Legislature too much power to interfere with their business.
 MT White-Will the gentleman per- init an Interruption?
 MT. Rogers (Sumter)-with the greatest of pleasure.
 MT. White-If that is correct we ought never to have another Legisla- ture.
 MT. Rogers (Sumter)-The suggestion made comes from a mind that is un- able to grasp the first rudiments of legislation. Suppose were to say to a doctor, 'I don't want you to give my child a whole bottle of quinine" Would he be fool enough to think that I ob- jected to his giivng my child the right sort of a dose?
 MT. President and gentlemen of this Convention, believe the minds of the delegates upon this floor are made up. l believe that no man would allow himself to come here representing any constituent in the State of Alabama whose mind could be changed one way or the other by the winds of doctrines which may be put upon this floor by one advocate upon one side or the other. l believe the great bulk of the members on this floor have minds suf- ficient to grasp and analyze and pass upon any question intelligently without being urged on by anybody on this floor.
 In the interest of the expedition of business. We come here one day and pass section and the next day we come back here and reconsider 1t. This sort of thing ought to stop. We ought to go ahead with the business. We ought to go ahead and try and expedite the business here. The people of the State of Alabama are restless at our delay and therefore I say to you that when vote is had as largely as was had on yesterday in favor or against a measure, we ought to frown down upon a proposition to reconsider because 1t takes up the time of this Convention.
 One further argument, gentle men of the Convention. and am done. The gentleman here upon my right. the distinguished exGovernor of the State of Alabama who is such a pleader here for con- sistency. comes and introduces an or dinance in here departing from all the systems which have been in the State of Alabama which permits an officer elected by the people of the county to be suspended by the Governor pending an impeachment, yet he comes in and says we cannot trust the Governor to do what Is fair and right in calling the Legislature. Where is that sort of consistency? This same gentleman comes and says here. bierrial sessions of the Legislature ought to be permit ted so that the people can be heard from. has come here and advocated upon this floor the election of the Gov ernor for four years. In the name of God. if the reople of Alabama ought to be heard on any proposition, they ought to be heard on that proposition as to who is going to represent them in their executive chair. We elect our Supreme Court Ju lSes for four years, and we propose to elect them for eight years, which 1 think would be a good thing because men who sit upon these exalted positions should be removed from pop ular prejudice. They should be lifted above all considerations and be able to pass upon these things like it was said of Job of old, when he sat in the mar ket place; righteousness clothed him and justice was his robe and mantle" We are for trusting the people of the >E I,h