The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-06-12
FIGHT LOST
 BY CALERA -- Committee Decides Court
 House Matter WILL DRAFT ORDINANCE Act of the Legislature May Be
 Annulled. Remarkable Disclosures as to Pas sage of the Act Develop by Testi-
 mony of Representative Deans on Stand.

After careful consideration of 4fa Shelby County Court House matter, holding many sessions and examining numerous witnesses under oath, the Committee on State and County Boun- daries of the Constitutional Conven- tion in executive session at 10:3o o'clock last night by a unanimous vote con cluded that Columbiana was entitled to relief from the bill passed by tho last General Assembly authorizing the removal of the County Court House from that place to Calera.
 | A committee of five, consisting of the Chairman. Hon. George H. Parker of Cullman, and Messrs. Blackwell of Mor- gan. Thompson of Bibb. Reese of Dal- las. and Parker of Fillmore. was ap- pointed to draft an ordinance for sub- mission to the Convention. The ordi- nance will probably annul the act of the General Assembly.
 | The Committee was in session for some time yesterday afternoon and continued taking the testimony of Hon. | G. B. Deans, Representative in the Lower House Of the General Assembly. MT. Deans was the author of the Court House removal Dill. Last night the lawyers representing respectively the Calera and Columbi- ana factions argued the matter before the Committee. after which the Com l mittee went into executive session, and later in the evening the foregoing in- formation was given out.
 Committees's Afternoon Session
 The Committee on State and County Boundaries of the Constitutional Con- yention met at s:sO o'clock yesterday afternoon to consider the question of the shelby County Court House, that has been before the Committee for sev- eral days
 Hon. G.. B. Deans. represeutative of Shelby County. was recalled and said that the cover of the Calera Land Bill was at one time over that of the Court House bill. but that was before either of the bills were introduced. He had put the covers in the right place before presenting the bills. He had said the night before that he had heard 1t said and had seen in a newspaper published at Columbiana that s60.0o0 in bonds were to be issued to build q Court House. He did not say at any particular place.
 An affidavit was presented repeating a conversation with Judge A. P. Long, shore, Probate Judge of Shelby County, in which he stated that 8 new Court House was to be- built at Columbiana for the County of Shelby.
 Hon. W. L. Martin announced that this closed the testimony for the Ca- lera faction.
 Mir. Browne read affidavits in an- swer to the foregoing testimony by R. F. Cox, that he had never heard of any effort being made by the Court or the lawyers or of the citizens of Coiumbi- ana to build a new court house at Co., lumbiana He also presented an affi- davit by l.. w. Clardy that the Pro- bate Judge nor any person in Shelby County ever wrote to him about build- ing a new court house at Columbiana, or that one would be built before fall or sometime earlier. Other affidayits were read to the same effect.
 Bill Taken Out of Calendar.
 MT. B. H. Brown of the Brown Print ing Company of Montgomery, swore that his company printed the calendar of the last General Assembly. He rec ollected that one night MT. Albert Wil- son and MT. Deans called at one time and had the court house bill put in the Calendar and then came later and had 1t taken out. MT. Wilson returned in a day or two but what ne wanted he did not recollect. He made about the same statement on cross-examinat!cn. He said No. 1887, the Court House bill, | was on the Calendar of March, but NO. 1886. the Calera Extension bill was not on the Calendar.
 Hon. Cecil Browne said that the Ca- lera bill was passed on tine 2nd Of March and could not possibly be on | that Calendar.
 Mr. M. B. Browne of Columbiana. said he was Chairman of the Shelby delegation in the late State Conven- ton. Dr. Oliver was not delegate bur | he had Dr. Gunn's proxy. Nothing was ever said about bringing the court l house question before that Convention by that delegation and he never heard of it until stated by Mir Deans. Messrs. McMillan and White made l the same statement. saying that trey were members of the Shelby delega- tion.
 Judge H. D. Longshore of Shelby. said he knew g. J. Jennings and he did | not racclIact having any convsrsation with him about the court house.
 Customs in Lower House.
 Mr J. c. Adams, Clerk Of the last | uouse said it was the custom for | members to be allowed to make favor able report of bills from Committees and send them up. Instead of each oiii being read secoho HniF SSPotoeeS thev were read collectively an1 SO orr Ge, cd put on the Calendar. It was the custom in the last House but he had l never seen if done in any ether House. l h Sill could be changed after it was introduced by a member-but if the l title was che 2ged it could be detected. He had no recollection of having read | the Shelby Court House Dill. i On cross-examinasion Mir. Adams said that there were many bills that | he did not remember having read. He | remembered having read very few hills. | He did not try to remember them. He