Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-10-02
POR 7 A n 7
MAT TIERS
TO FACE
C0EING SESSION WILL DEAL
WITH MANY INTRICATE PROB
LENS OF LEGISLATI0N-NEW
CONVICTLAWS MUST BE HAD

LENS OF LEGlSLATION-NEW
CONVICT LAWS MUST BE HAD
Only few days remain before the be-
| ginning of the annual session of the
Georgia legislature, The legislators will
assemble in Atlanta on October %, for a
meeting of fifty days. Many questions of
great Importance will be brought before
the house and senate this year and the
coming session promises to be an unus-
| ually interesting one.
Perhaps the most important matter that
will be brought to the attention of the
| general assembly will be the convict
| question. The lease on the Georgia con-
victs expires in April 1904, but 1t remains
for the coming assembly to deal with
the matter in order to allow the prison
| commission to make the necessary ar
rangements for the disposition of the
convicts whatever the action of the leg
isature may be.
Time and time again II has been sug-
gested that the convicts be worked on the
roads of the state, but this plan is not
believed to be a practical one by the
! members of the prison commission who
now have charge of the convict system
of the state, and it is understood that
in its annual report the commission will
| recommend to the legislature the adop-
ton of the present system with the ex-
| ception of the laws now governing the
misdemeanor camps of the state. The
prison commission desires to have abso-
lutte control of all the misdemeanor
| camps and with that control and a few
minor changes in the law as It now
stands, the commission will no doubt be
satisfied.
The convict department is a source Of
| profit to the state al present. Besides
| paying all the expenses of the commits
sion, a large sum of money is each year
paid into the treasury and placed to the
| credit of the school fund. Since the es-
tablishment of the state farm the prison
| commissioners have reaped enormous
profits for the state. The rarm was pur-
| chased so that all women and children
| and decrepit men could have a place to
| work. The Iessees of the convicts want
only ableboded men,
The present system is said by many to
| be well nigh perfect and that the prison
commission could make no better recon-
mendation to the legislature than. that
the present system be adopted again.
The Depot Question.
The depot question may spring up
again in the legislature 1t is a well
known fact that the depot commission
| failed i'm it's mission about getting a new
depot, as the railroads absolutely refused
| to use a union station on the site of
the states property, claiming that the
| space was not sufficient for a depot for
a city the size of Atlanta. The depot
commission will meet in a few days to
| formulate its report and II is said that
the report will recommend that another
depot bill be passed which will authorize
| the commission 10 proceed with the build
| ing of a depot, regardless of the railroads.
The bill which was passed last year con-
| tanned a provision that a depot shou.1
| be built, provided the railroads would
agree to enter the said station That
provision in the opinion of Governor
| Gambler killed the BILL The governor
thinks that If the commission had been
authorized to build depot the railroads
would have used it without any trouble.
| The governor says now that no report
! has been formulated as yet but that he
has discussed the matter with several
| members of the committee.
State Reform School.
Governor Gambler is going to recon-
mend in his report the establishment of
a reform school in Georgia for Eoung
| criminals and boys and girls who are
not exactly criminals but who are in
need of reform. The governor considers
this very important thing for the state
and says that he proposes to tell the
| legislators that they should. without any
hesitancy. create such an institution in
Georgia.
Many of the states have these schools
says the governor, and they have accom-
! plished a great deal of good. The state
of Florida established such an institu-
ton a few years ago and it has been big
success. The establishment Of such an
institution in Georgia would not cost any
great sum of money, and it could easily
be kept up for the sum of $4,000 year.
say the advocates of the measures.
Circuit Court of Appeals.
The lawyers of Georgia are going to
ask the legislature to pass an amend
ment to the constitution of the state Gre
ating a circuit court of appeals for the
relief of the supreme court The Georgia
Bar association appointed committee at
it's recent meeting to prepare bill which
is to be submitted to the legislators and
at the coming session the bill will be
presented. The bill provides that there
shall be five justices of the court to
whom all cases, except criminal cases.
divorce cases, and cases involving the
title of land and cases under $1,000 in
value must be appealed before being car
ried to the supreme court. Nearly every
lawyer in the state is in favor of the
measure and a lengthy and clear argu-
ment will be submitted to the legislators
in favor of the bill. 1t is estimated that
the new court can be created and run
for S200 eco per year, and that in paying
for the court the people would not no
tice an increase of one cent in their
taxes 1t is also urged that it would save
time for the people and the county Of
ficials, and that the court would pay for
itself in a few years time.
The legislature will first have to pass
on this measure, and If it passes the
house and the senate, as it involves
constitutional amendment 1t will have to
be voted on by the people at the next
general election.
Child Labor Bill Again.
Although defeated in the legislatures
for several years past a bill preventing
child labor will be introduced in the house
again this year. The advocates of the
bill are very much in earnest and 1t is be-
lieved now that they will succeed in get
ting such measure through. L. ]. Kill
burn, of Bibb. is one of the most earnest
supporters of the child labor bill, and
since the adjournment of the last legis-
lature he has been busily at work in in
terest of the bill. 1t will be among the
first new measures that will be put in
the house.
Uniformity In Text Books.
State uniformity in text books will also
be urged at the coming session. The bal
IL