The age-herald., 1902-02-13
Bailey Raises Great Fuss Over
 Proposed Increases in Salary.


 This discussion leads to story of the late Sunset Cox regarding a now famous river of Alabama. the Warrior. MT. Cox was violently and relentlessly opposed to river and harbor improvement by tha owner of all rivers and harbors the gov- ernment, to-wit, and His opposition. uk. that of many other Democrats, was on account of alleged unconstitutionalitv. When the proposition first came m in Congress. some thirty years ago, to i'm prove the lower Warrior, MT. Cox had cn his customary war paint, and he based his fight ag%!i.st tho general bill through merojless Iidiculo of the War rior, a st1 cam he had never heard of and tho very namc of which he had never read on the maps,
 Invective. satire bitter irony and calm argument, all these he urged against the unknown stream which is now the most important river in Alabama, and aside from the Mississippi the most important in the South.
 Why, MT Speaker" shrieked Sunset Cox in that staccato voice which some of us who were in his day boys about Con- gross remember so well and affection ately-
 Why, MT. Speaker on this Warrior river there Is not a dam by mill-site, nor mill, by damned sight,"
 The House roared with laughter-the House often roared that way at Sunset Cox's wit-and the Warrior improvement was voted down, and the full development of America's richest coal and iron de- posits was postponed for fifteen years.
 There was no sense, no logic in Sum set Cox's disastrous fling. He even mis- pronounced the name of that great river, calling it "Warryer." But his sense- less fling was no less reasonable than the protests of those of our own people who swore solemn oaths on the "unconstltu- tional" side of the issue
 It is pity that Sunset Cox is no longer of this world, for he might be induced to visit Birmingham and the Warrior coal fields now. and five years hence.
 
 Now, in this second year of abundance in the Twentieth century. seven and thir- ty years after it was decided by the sword 1lat the Supreme Court, the crea- ton of the Democratic party, was the mas ter as well as the interpreter of the constitution, there comes up from various Southern communities the echo of shrieks against the "undemocratic" and "uncon- stitutionaT' ship subsidy bill now pending in Congress. Yet some of us know that some of those who are protesting most loudly against this "undemocratic'' measure have been themselves within re- cent years politically rebellious against the Democratic party. and came into line at last solely on the principle of ''an eye to business" It makes a real Demo- crat, one who has never so much as dreamed of rebellion against the man dates of his party authority. very weary. II you will pardon the slang.
 Tt is undemocratic" these parrots of politics cry, echoing what they conceive to be the popular opinion of a multitude of the politically faithful.
 These latter opponents of the present ship subsidy measure are truly and noblv Southern and faithfully Democratic- heaven bless them abundantly! But the unfaithful apostle of cant who for gain echo the opposition-these are not to be considered.
 All honor to the men who for the sake of principle would deny even their own children of blessings which might come from an order of things their consciences cannot approve! But morally he is A coward who does not consider the other side of an issue in whicI he is personally or politically interested.
 The man who accepts immorally a cop per cent is just as much a transgressor against moral law as the man who would accept enough money to provide an open Warrior river
 Senator Hanna has declared in The Age-Herald in language that will live his conviction that the pending ship subsidy bill will dc. more for the advancement of the South on material lines than for any other part of the Republic. Some people may doubt this view of the powerful man who has no axe in the South to grind, but most Alabamians believe him and be- lieve that he knows what he is talking about.
 As to the details of the proposed law, whether the subsidy shall be based upon tonnage alone, or on both tonnage and speed, as the Frye bill provides there is wide and honest difference of opinion AS to the principle of subsidies that is fixed and no amount of "undemocratic" argument can change It. Every man in Birmingham who receives a letter or sends out a newspaper enjoys the ad- vantage of subsidy, for last year the government subsidized t-Ie postal service to the extent of four million dollars or more than four times the amount that can be expended next year in ship sub sdies and more than can be so expended in any one year for five years to come. Last year the government subsidized H. legitimate newspapers to the extent of twelve million dollarsl
 LUCIEN JULIEN WALKER.
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