The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-07-02

TT IT continue and the purposes tnefe-
 <&aIl have been nrstl submitted to x6<6 of the property tax payers wno 6f& qualified electors in said county.
 voted for by q majority thereof < I1 numbers. and in value of taxable utoperty. voting at such election; pro- V<1&t that the rate of such special tax 1of maintenance of public schools shall 8ot Increase the rate of taxation in any one year to more than SIPS on < every S100.00 worth of taxable prop erty. for all State and county purposes, E excluding any special tax for the erec- < oion construction and maintenance Of necessary public buildings, bridges and roads: and provided further. that such 1oeciai tax for schools shall be ap- portioned equitably and paid to the public schools of such county. by the Court of County Commissioners or Boerd of Revenue thereof.
 Mf. Cunningham (Jefferson)-I desire 10 offer an amendment to that Section.
 The amendment was read as follows:
 Amend Section by striking out in the difteenth line the phrase prop efty tax payers who are" and in the sixteenth and seventeenth lines the following words "in numbers and in value of taxable property"
 Mir. Cunningham (Jefferson)-When the Committee examined this report, there were two or three of us, possibly more. who did not approve of so much of the Committees report as gave to 2 property the right to vote in an cleo :. lion. We did not at the time. how ever, desire to embarrass the purposes 0f the Committee, and the objects that St had in view, by burdening 1t spe- c1nlly with minority report, but we reperved the right, on the floor of the Convention. to offer the amendment that has been read at the Secretary's desk. and to which I desire briefly to call the attention of the Convention. It will leave the Section to read like this. beginning in the twelfth line:
 Provided further. that for the main fenance of public schools any county may levy and collect such special tax as may be authorized by law. provided such special tax, the time it is to con- tinue and the purposes thereof. shall have been first submitted to a vote of the qualified electors in said county and voted for by majority thereof voting at such election, provided that < the rate of such special tax for main tenance of publj- schools shall not increase the rate of tax alton in any one year to more"
 Tn other words. it simply leaves it to the qualified electors of the county.
 Now have two purposes in offering ! this amendment. In the first place I will acknowledge the equity of the proposition that the property which pays the tax has an equitable right to vote upon the question. but I am fearful of the principle, Mir. President, or admitting the dollar to the right to vote. I believe 1t would be an inno- yation upon the established principles of the Party to which have the honor to belong. and the fundamental prin- ciples of Republican form of govern ment. For that reason I am opposed to it as matter of principle. Tn the second place. MT. President, were 1t to pc adopted. l cannot see very we'll how we could determine the fact as to how the property voted at these elections It would either require a viva voce vote, or the ballots would have to be numbered. In either case 1t would re- suit necessarily in a material change an the election laws of the State. am heartily in favor of this tax. I am heartily in favor of local taxation for the public schools. I believe 1t to be to the best interest of the State of Alabama. and this was one of my reasons for supporting the Section which has just been adopted, but be- heve, MT. President, it would be too serious an innovation upon the estab- aished principles, usages and customs of this Republic and of the State of Alabama to admit the dollar to vote in competition with man. For that reason l offer the amendment. and l am firm in the conviction and belief that the property interests in the State can, in this. as in other particulars rely upon the electorate, which we propose to purge. and to make pure, honorable, safe, conservative and patri- otic. by suffrage regulations in this ~. ARm President, hope the amendment will be adopted.
 Mir. Browne-If the conditions all over the State of Alabama were the same as they are in my county. I would cheerfuily agree to the amendment of- fered by the gentleman from Jefferson, but we must not forget that in making this Constitution we are making one for the whole State, for every county in the State. and that conditions are materially different in different coun- ties.
 The provision for school taxation in- corporated in this Section Is identical with the one incorporated in the Con- stitution of the State of Louisiana. Il requires in that State majority of the qualified electors who are tax pay CTS in numbers, and in value of prop erty, voting at an election. The pro. visions are exactly similar.
 When this report was made 1t was said by some of the public press ol Alabama that 1t was a most ridicu- sousiy absurd proposition. That in not single county in Alabama would prop erty vote this tax upon itself for thu education of children. It may be- tha that sentiment found a Judgment with certain members of this body. But wrote to the Superintendent of Educa- tion of Louisiana, and desire to read his letter upon this subject. l only asked him how the law worked, and il 1t was favored by the people; nothing else did ask him, and he said:
 Our State has local taxation fol the schools, voted for by the people who are majority in number and value of the property. Our school dis fricts are either entire counties, cities or small districts. Second, as a rule the voters do favor this special tax Third, regard this special local ta1 as beneficial in it's results"
 Now in Texas they have specia school tax that can only be levied after having been voted for by a two-thirds majority of the qualified electors who are property tax payers. That pro vision is not subject to the objection urged by the gentleman from Jefferson The vote of the man who is worth ei0.O0O does not count for any more sn Texas than the vote of the mar .ER