The Forrest City times., 1905-01-13

| ten Into DoiltlCS ana are I3Fned out all l over the state long before d state off | cer. who is a member of the board. ever | becomes possessed of the office The | governor should be charged with the l management of the penitentiary: he should be empowered to manage it.
 Worlds Fair Appropriation. | The great Louisiana Purchase Expo | sition has passed into history never to | be excelled and perhaps never equaled 1 Arkansas is one of the states carved i out of the original purchase and with 1 an appropriation of but ss0.000. took a | most conspicuous part at this exposi- | tion. No citizen of Arkansas need hang | his head in shame. no citizen of Ar kansas need regret the small expendi | ture that has been made. when he wis | tied the magnificent grounds of this | wonderful exposition. and beheld the | prominence and place held by his own ] state.
 | Education.
 ] Considerable has been said. gentle men. in the last campaign upon the | fact that my messages did not hereto | fore deal specially with the subject of common school education. did not do simply because I feel that we have the best system of public schools there is in the government. There is no reason why any boy or girl
 
 mon school education in our public schools but if any of YOU gentlemen can conceive of any method by which this system may' be improved or that will afford greater facilities and eppor- tunities to the boys and girls of our | state to help them to more easily ob- 1 tain an education. you will find me in | hearty accord with any measure you l may suggest along that line. 1 l can think of this which seems tn ] me a very valuable suggestion. one very i helpful especially to the poorer classes | of our citizens scattered throughout | the rural districts. which is: Fur | nish every child in Arkansas with school | books free: let the district buy them l from school funds; let librarian be retained in each school house. let the | secretary of each board of directors of | each school district be a bonded officer and librarian and responsible for the care and preservation of the books he | longing to his district and let every child in Arkansas be furnished with l just such school books as it may need free of charge
 In this connection there is another subject to which I desire to call your attention. and against which want to warn You and that Is sentiment which has been fostered for years and attempted to he promulgated through | tlc South by the educational depart 70 ments of our commonwealth which I think IS harmful and detrimental to the best interests of our free school ed ucation, and that is the question of county superintendcncy.
 We are today out of debt that fs vc have but Sl2.500 of bonds outstanding and we have in the state treasury near 1 " one million dollars to the credit of the general revenue fund We would pay thls S12.5G0 in the twiuklng of>ar eye if We could find it; then I say to you, gentlemen, that feel we can inst. ly say that Arkansas does not owe q cent and is out of debt
 We nave enough money on hand ir the state treasury to absolutely max the expenses of the state government honestly and economically administer. eo' TOT two years without the levy ot one cent of state taxes
 Then why not cut the state taxe. half in two?
 7 You will be told perhaps by voul auditor that this cannot be done; that you might reduce it a mill say tf you gentlemen, that it can be done put IT you cannot reduce fl but mill do that much. because every dollar no absolutely needed in the administration or public affairs is wrongfuly tker from the people when taken unneeessar eI fly.
 State House.
 There has been collected from th, taxpayers of this state s62S21272 O this amount there has been spent S32a 39IS0. and stlll we have not anoug, state house to create a suspicion Tbj, does not take into account the vas amount of convict labor used un to tb, present time
 say to you that the architect em ployed in this case will never put II, the building that he originally planned and have It delivered according to tb, plans and specifications originally sub mitted. for million dollars He Ina, already received s34.33451 of his com mission He is to receive only $50 00t in all This leaves only a small bal ance due him. with no substantial nar or the work done. and l imagine that ne feels very little interest in the re malndor of this scheme except the draw ing of the balance of his unpaid com | mission
 But there is one thought. while dea,
 ing with the matter of the state house that l desire to impress upon vou most seriously. which is this: Out of tbe wreck and ruin of this unholy enter prise. you save the old state bonse Save it for some worthy purpose as q monument of Arkansas past. her nros. ent and her future
 The last act of the Legislature mo vided that these grounds and bnildin. should be sold and the money annro' priated towards the erection of a new 1 state house.
 l trust you will SO amend tha; ,av. as to preserve intact these grounds and building, and l would suggest that a small sum be appropriated for it modelling and preservation and ont os the east wing make a public lihr.r,, and out of the west wing a goyernor's l mansion Q Respectfully submitted.
 l Jefferson Davis. Governor.