The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-05-25
LETTERS TO EDITOR
The Railroads and the state Debt.


To the Editor of The Age Herald:
| / did not say in your issue of Monday
last that Governor Patton had endorsed
railroad bonds under the act of February
| 10, 1857. No bond was ever endorsed under
that act, for the very sufficient reason
| that the reconstruction laws of Congress.
passed the next month of March, abol-
ished the state government. The railroads
naturally waited to see the political flu
hension Of my words.
The white mans legislature that passed
the railroad bond act of February 49,
| 1867 adjourned on the very day that act
was approved. General John Pope took
command of military district No. 8, Geor-
ga, Florida and Alabama, early In April
and there was no more civil government
in Alabama until July. 1868, when Cover
nor Smith went into office. No legislature
sat between February, 1867 when the
white mans legislature finally adjourned,
and July, 1868. when the radical legisla-
ture by order of the commanding general
of the district convened The pretense of
civil authority present was sham only
The act of February 10, 1867, was never
repealed. On the contrary Governor Smith
on September %. 1868, approved an act
which incorporated and amended that
earlier act.
| The act of the white mans legislature
of February 10, 1867, made it the duty of
| the governor to endorse railroad bonds
for construction and equipment in any
quantity to $4,000 per mile, on every
twenty miles This act was amended by
the radical legislature to require state
endorsement of $4,000 per mile on every
five miles, after the first twenty miles of
completed and equipped track.
The object in the white mans Legislature
was to build up the state; to encourage
commerce as substitute in part for the
war-wrecked agriculture, and 1t was the
full length of wisdom.
The object in the radical legislature
was booty for a few favored persons
The act of the white mans legislature
limited the state aid to endorsement of
$1,000 per mile as stated The act of
the radical Legislature not only increased
the general endorsement to SIG, 900 per mile
but added to this millions OF dollars of
state aid in special cases, obtained by
the most vulgar corruption.
The debt commission, Governor Hous-
ton, General Lawler and Colonel Bethea,
scaled the enormous corruption debt Gre
ated by the radical legislature, down to,
say, S6,00O,00O. where it now stands.
If we consider the intent of the act of
February, 1867, we are safe in saying
that the present debt of the state in
CURED for aid to railroads is a legitimate
debt in the spirit of that act If we con-
slider the wisdom then of encouraging rail-
road building, as substitute for the sac
riice incident to the war. we must adj
NIT there was no other open way to re-
covery. and that the recourse was most
sagacious.
1t is quite immaterial, whether every
| mile of railroad built. from 1867 to 1874.
was paid for exclusively or only in part
| by sale of state bonds We have got only.
say, Sd,0O0000 debt on that account, and
to offset ii, we have at least s75CO0,0o0
railroad property directly or indirectly
| from The whole series of legislative acts
through which the policy of 1867 has been
| put into effect. We don't want to give
| up single mile of IL.
We did a good thing in 1867 and we
arrested the base abuse or our good con-
| duct then when we scaled the debt run
| up by the radicals. The business world
| so sees us and trusts us accordingly.
| j. w. DuBOSE.
| Montgomery MAY a.