The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-02-19
Delegates from Birmingham In Montgomery to Fight
 Measure
CALL ON MEMBERS FROM
 COUNTY OF JEFFERSON
There Ie No Certainty as to When the Bill Will Reach Vote, as It Is Low Down on the Cal.
 endar.

Montgomery. February 1S.-(Special)- The Arlington bill to permit pool selling on races at state and county ralrs is at tracting unusua, attention. The bill pro- poses to permit the sale of pools at the track for ten days in the spring and tall in counties having more than 6OOOO popu- lation. This can only be accomplisheo' however after a vote of the people In the county authorizing such action.
 The delegation sent from the mass meeting held in Birmingham today to op- nose the measure reached Montgomery tonight In the party were pr. A. r. Montague. president of Howard college Frank Willis Barnett, editor or the Ala bama Baptist. T. H. Johnston. z. T. Ru- dulph and John c. Pugh. As soon as the committee arrived they had conference with the members of the Jefferson dele gation relative to the bill The delega- tion appeared almost solid in opposition to pool selling in any form.
 There is no certainty when the bill will reach a vote in the house. as it is low down on the calender and Its fate Is like wise made uncertain No one has made a canvass of the situation and it seems impossible now to obtain anything like an accurate poll of the situation.
 Working for Boardman.
 There was a strong delegation of the business men of Birmingham here today to see the governor in the interest of Thomas V. Boardman for appointment to +i 1f1te eaion. The governor received the delegation cordially but as matter of course he did not ex- press his intentions in ae. matter. Mr Boardman is a prominent merchant or Birmingham, and he has an exceptionally strong endorsement on file from the varied business interests of the Birming- ham district.
 Stock Law Bill.
 The house spent three good hours to- night in a good humored wrangle over the general stock law bill. The points or contention were three, as folows'
 l. Shall districts be established by vote of the people or by the Commission- CTS courts on petition?
 2. Shall stock law districts be required to fence themselves in or not?
 g. Shall the precinct be the unit.
 
 It was decided by large majoritles that the people shall vote: that no fencing-in shall be required, and that. there shall be no district smaller than pre- sinct
 Without finishing the bill the house made 1t the special order fo5 tomorrow afternoon and called a night session on local bills only.
 THE HOUSE.
 The house passed this morning by the narrow margin of one vote MT. Simpsons bill to increase the annual appropriation of the normal colleges at Florence and Troy from S7500 to $10,000. It came on as the unfinished business from yesterday afternoon and it was soon apparent that the friends of the measure had put in some good work over night and had the floor campaign well in hand. The debate was one of the most refreshing that has occurred yet on account of the high ground taken for the educational system of Alabama as a whole MT. Simpson led off with an argument to show that the normal colleges are an essential part of the public school system, that every state has them as an adjunct to the common schools to supply teachers snd that no state has ever gone backwaas with them; that the improvement in the common Nschools is largely due to the better teach flag force provided and to the general en- thusiasm which they have helped to pro- mote; that teaching is no, longer mere make shift, but great art and profess sion. He denied that sympathy ought to stop with the barefoot boy. but that every boy ought to be supplied with the means to go on to something better; and that the Peabody fund which has been giving $500 to the schools at Florence and Troy Is to be consolidated into great nstitu- tion somewhere, and this donation will soon be lost He said MT. Thompson who wanted to abolish the schools utterly was fifty years behind the times
 MT. McCluskey of Lamar made a beau tiful speech for the bill full of graceful similes and sentiment. He plead for the educational system as a whole. The com mon schools are at the base, and are the root of the educational tree. These colleges are the fruit and branch. He would sustain the whole tree and de- velop 1t all together. The common school provided by the constitution lets in the light on the barefooted boy, he should not be compelled to go to Virginia or some other state to get it. Let him step over to Florence or Troy or some other Ala bama school.
 Mir. Wilkinson of Autauga, made an appeal for better teachers. Something is lacking in our common schools. and much
 
 of the money is wasted. What is the weak point? He declared that good and competent teacher Is worth his weight in gold to any community and to the state. The progressive spirit of the age looks to the development of the teaching force. We must go forward. He would rather say to the people in the hills and hollows of Autauga that he had brought them better teachers than that he had saved few dollars. The American people are greater than the Anglo -Saxons and their genius and spirit is to develop and build up He opposed a policy that would tear down. He was for the bill
 The previous question being ordered the Thompscli' amendment to reduce the appropriation to 5000 was lost. The bill then passed by vote of 46 to 45, MT. Rvars. of Blount, changing his vote at the last moment from no to aye. and saving the bill
 MT. McCreary, of Lee. introduced a joint resolution memorializing congress