The leader., 1902-09-24
THE GOVERNOR AND THE Ex

IRA SESSION.
The LEADER published letter last
week from Mr.. J. w. McGrath, of the
well-known firm of John McGrath &
Sons, showing, among other things
that since the decision of the Supreme
Court on the valued policy clause of
the insurance law and the refusal of
the leading insurance companies to
longer issue what are known as
"blanket policies" the cost of in
surance on cotton had been increased
from to Is cents per bale, all of
which, in the end, must come out of
the pockets of the farmers. It had
been hoped that the Governor might
be able to see his way clear to call an
extra session of the Legislature to
amend the law so as to relieve this
situation, but on the 18th inst. Gov
ernor Longino addressed letter to
Major r. w. Millsaps, chairman of the
citizens mass meeting held in jackson
on July 2, refusing, for reasons set
forth in his letter, to convene the
Legislature in extraordinary session.
The ground on which the Governor
predicates his refusal, stated in a few
words, was this: He addressed series
of questions to all the members of the
Legislature relative to amending the
Objectionable feature of the law, and
at the same time instituted inquiry
and sought information from the prin-
cipal insurance companies as to what
would be acceptable to them in the
form of amendment. This inquiry
and investigation, the Governor says,
satisfied him that majority of the
Legislature was opposed to amending
the valued policy clause of the law, ex-
cept as to cotton; while the insurance
companies we're unwilling to accept
any amendment that did not exempt
all personal property from the valued
policy clause. No common ground of
agreement could therefore be reached,
the calling of the Legislature together
under such circumstances would be
useless expenditure of the public
money, and hence he felt impelled to
refuse making the call.
AS friend and admirer of Gov.
Longino, we wish we could accept his
action Throughout this entire matter,
without qualification of any sort, but
with the light before US at present, we
cannot. Our impressions have all
been gained from what we have seen
in the public prints, and they are not
all pleasant and reassuring. The COM
mittee of thirteen appointed by the
citizens mass meeting seem to have
sent out one form of questions to the
insurance companies and legislators
and the Governor another; the COM
mittee received one sort of assurance
in reply and the Governor a different
one. Then the apparently needless
delay of the Governor in sending out
his inquiries to the legislators after
voluntarily taking the matter out of
the committees hands; the effort of
the Clarion-Ledger and the Jackson
correspondents who stand closest to
the Governor to repeatedly throw cold
water on the proposition and predict
adverse action in advance, as though
they had received 'tips" of what they
knew would finally come, and lastly,
the Clarion Ledger's double loaded ed
itorial brass horn bray against an
imaginary trust goblin, in which it con-
tidently predicted there would be no
extra session called and declared Gov.
Longino would make the mistake of
his life if he did call it,-all this, we
regret to say, smacks of "playiDg pol
itics" with what was plain business
proposition from representative busi-
ness men of the State, and, as such,
entitled to Straightforward, business
like treatment.
In his letter to Major Millsaps the
Governor himself treats with the 81
lent contempt its happiness mer-
tied, the Clarion Ledger's antitrust
stage thunder.