The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-08-01
LOOK INTO LOBBYING
.,-,,I he TAKEN BY A JOINT
LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE.
BOTH HOUSES TAKE ACTION
ADOPTING SUBSTITUTE REsOLU-
TION TO INVESTIGATE.

Meeting of the joint Committee VIII
BE Held on MOndny-RepOrt Is to
n. Made within a Week-HOn. j.
Ferris Cam a Member From the
House Overstreet and Tfgner
smoke Upon n Point of Personal
PriviIeEe-Overstree Is Ready to
Back Up Anything He Has Said.
Atlanta, July 31.-Both the House
and Senate adopted to-day by prac-
-icaIlv a unanimous vote, the substi-
.ute resolution providing for an inves-
,igation of the general charges of lob
living. President Howell appointed on
the part of the Senate, Senator H. w.
Hopkins of the Seventh District chair
man, and chairman of the Joint Com
mittee, Senators ]. D. Harrell of the
Eighth District and w. H. Davis of
the Seventeenth district. Speaker Nor
ris appointed from the House Messrs.
saton of Fulton, chairman, Howard
of Baldwin, West of Lowndes, Halves
of Ebert and Cam of Chatham.
Senator Hopkins has called a meet
ing of the Joint Committee to be held
in the Senate Chamber at O'Clock
Monday morning. The committee is
directed to examine witnesses and to
call for any papers that may be neces-
sary, and is requested to report its
findings to the General Assembly with
in one week, which will be next Fri
dav
Following the adoption of the reso-
luton by the House to-day. both
Messrs. Overstreet of Screven and Tig-
ner of Muscogee made sensational
speeches, on a question of personal
privilege. in which they reiterated the
charges they had made,
Challenge From Overstreet.
IF any member of this House takes
my statements as personal to him
self Mr.. Overstreet said, II want to
reterate them here and now" Mr..
Overstreet criticised the Senate for go
ing over the charges made on the floor
OF that body, and coming to the House
and quoting his own language he said
he had nothing to retract. He de-
cared there had been practices which
were disgrace to the House and to
the state.
IF there are any hit dogs around
the Capitol" he said, "let them howl
to their hearts CONTENT
Mr.. Overstreet said his remarks were
general. He could not prove that there
had been lobbying, but he was NOR
ally certain of it, as were other mem,
bers 1t was difficult to get at because
the lobbyist knew just whom to ap-
prOach.
When the Atlanta Constitution at
tempted to construe what l said into
an insult to the honest members of
the House or Senate" Mr.. Overstreet
declared, lit was an effort to protect
the lobbyists subterfuge and they
knew it. If any one who is running
a newspaper through which he hopes
to control, to crafty ambitions or to
become Governor, will come to me per-
sonally, l will tell him what I mean
and to whom I refer so that he cam
not misunderstood it,"
Mr. Tigner Not So Personal.
Mr.. Tigner of Muscogee spoke along
similar lines, reiterating the general
charges he had made. The corporations
and men of money and influence, he
declared had their paid attorneys in
legislative Hobbies and on the floor of
the House for the purpose of influence
ing legislation. He had noticed this at
the time the child labor bill was I'M
der consideration, and felt it his duty
TO call attention to it. These prac-
tees were deleterious to the best in
terests of Georgia, he declared, and
ought to be broken up.