The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-08-17

we would do with that and 1t was prac- { ficable at that time to have located that script on the rich lands of Ne braska, but they declined to do it. and # was sold at $1 .25 an acre, and cov- cred into the Treasury and used for State purposes, and consequently the State owes that amount of money. That is the measure of the appropriation on the part of the Legislature for the support of the Auburn College.
 Mir. Lomax-Is it not a fact that the State of Alabama pays to the Agricul- tural and Mechanical College 8 per cent. on every dollar that was re- ceived from the sale of the lands of the Agricultural and Mechanical Col lege?
 Mir. oates-No lands were sold-they sold the script at SIPS an acre.
 Mir. Lomax-Does not Auburn get S60, 900 from various resources.
 Mr. Oates-Now, sir, while I never did believe that that was as large a sum as the State of Alabama ought to have acknowledged itself owing to the University, yet I stated that I under stood that. It went on until in the winter of 1896 and 1897 about the time I went out of the Executive Office. remember the agitation. which finally culminated in the acknowledgement of a much larger sum, my colleague states about $2.000.O00. and l am informed that measure was vetoed by the then Gov ernor Johnston.
 Mir. Lomax-It was not vetoed by the Governor. It did not pass
 Mir. Oates-Well, I do not know, I Z may have been incorrectly informed, but they passed a measure appropri- ating sl0,oo0 a year to aid the Univer- sity. and that has gone along ever since. Now, sir, this proposition of my colleague is to put 1t $36.00O a year Nov, sir, is it right and fair to ap- propriate out of the Treasury $36 900 a year to the University. Let's look a minute and see. The University was endowed as my colleague stated but during the war. and at the time when the Federal troops came there, some of the boys in the University, gallant young fellows. went out to meet them and shot some of them, and they came tn and took possession of the building and burned a good many of them and occupied the others for a considera be time. In order to make that loss good our senior Senator. the able Morgan conceived the idea of originating a bill, and passed it through the Senate. to give the University 46,0s0 acres of the mineral lands of the State of Alabama. It came to the House and got it re- ferred to the Judiciary Committee, of whichai was a member. I engineered 1t through and 1t was passed through the House of Representative on my statement out ot its order. Now sir. or those lands renamed a considerable number Of acres no. sold, They have not been utilized in that way. If the sale that was made by Governor Johnston would stand 1t would leave The University with 30,000 acres of rlcn Hhnefal ianos still. That was over 4.OOJ acres. There is an attempt made. and do not know anytn.ng apoul me negotiations. to return that land anu to repay the money which would make nearly thlrty-five thousand acres or mineral lands the State owns today NOW without attempting to go into dhat transaction at all, because it will take consldera Dle time to do it. and | oo not know that it Is material to con- sioer IL nere. yet the sale of that land. there was evl&nce to show thai NWnetner there was fraud or not 1 do not undertake to say) there is plenty or evidence extant, to show that the sale of that Ianu at $l250 an acre was the market price. No lands could be sold. and Eugene Smith and his assis- tant in geology afterwards examined and so certified. Now, sir, $5o, ,OUU was paid into the treasury on that purchase and that money has been lying there ail the time. that taxpayers have been paying $lO,OO0 a year to run the Uni Vers1ty. No man is a greater friend of the University than l am, although never had the benefit of a college ed- ucation. delved by night and worked as hireling and got all the education that l possess. which is limited, 1 am sorry 10 say, but know good thing when see 1t. The University has a future. which it is not yet on the road to reach at all. It has splendid loca. tion. good climate, beautiful sit uation. and 1t ought to rise to an equal footing with the very best universities in the United States, and the road is open to it. if it will only pursue it. In the first place they ought to abolish the military system. There never was a genuine University that had it. That does for a second class college, and peo- pie send their boys there to have them disciplined. and to keep them out of mischief. Instead of doing this, there should be sent young men who are bet ter qualified than those received now elevate the standard of qualification and put them on their honor, and there is no reason why. properly endowed and properly conducted, the University of Alabama cannot equal Yale or Har- ward before many years roll by. That is one step in the right direction, to abolish the military system and to ele- vate the qualifications of the young men who are matriculated there. Then to move on. money is necessary. Now you are going to adopt this measure, and drag out of the people more than ten thousand dollars year than now.
 MT. Lomax-Not ten thousand-two thousand.
 MT. Oates-Thirty-six thousand dol lars is two thousand dollars a year more than the State is now giving them. Are you going to do that, with the facilities it has for giving money? Would any man acquainted with finances make this proposition. This Convention could pass an ordinance providing for the issuance of bonds for a million dollars of bonds, and with the security of all that land, that mineral land to back them. and get the friend ship of men in financial circles to float them at 4 per cent and you can get all the money you want to elevate that University up and put it on a higher plane. and you will go along without any drain on the treasury, and taxes of the people. It seems to me that the road Is plan, and easy to it. I desire to say it, why gentlemen, we want a Union. Why not have it. with all of that rich mineral wealth belonging to the State for the benefit of the Uni versity. With this splendid location, | with an excellent climate, why not |