The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-03-24
MAJORITY RULE ADOPTED
 BY THE CENTRAL COUNCIL
TALKS OF "MACHINE'
CAPTAIN FORBES SPEAKS TO vOT-
 ERS OF WARD ONE.
At an Enthusiastic Meeting, the Candi- date for Mayor and MT. Rushton Elucidate Methods of
 ~the Ring."

"the Hfng."
 The strongest utterances that have been made by men in the campaign ranks of Capt. A. G. Forbes. candidate for Mayor of Montgomery. were let loose last night to the fifty or more hearers of Ward 1 who assembled in a vacant store at 40 Heron Street.
 The only speakers at the meeting. which was the first held in Ward un- der the auspices of the Forbes Cam paign Club, were Captain Forbes and Ray Rushton, his manager. who acted as chairman.
 the Forbes contingent that as time grows the people of the city would be more pointedly enlightened on what they are terming the machine govern ment" in Montgomery Last night marked the fifth of the series of Forbes meetings that are being held in all parts of the city. and from the spirited declarations of the speakers on Heron Street, 1t seems that a warm climax Is being approached.
 Captain Forbes, In about the longest speech he has made during the cana paign said last night that he believed there Is enough of independent voters in the city who are not controlled by the machine" to elect him on the plat form he has announced. Following this assertion, he dipped into the past some two years ago and shot a criti- cism at a man "who made a race for the Mayoralty of Montgomery on the principles for which I stand" This was. of course. an allusion to c. P. Anderson, who Is managing the cam paign of MT. Teague.
 The speaker said the people of Mont gomery had come within an lace" of electing this candidate of two years ago. even though he did not publish the things for which he was said to have stood. Personally. Mir. Forbes said that he trusted this candidate for his earnestness in that last campaign and thought that he would have carried out the anti-machine platform had he been elected.
 But since this campaign has started and I now see him lined up with the ring" said Captain Forbes. T must say that my confidence in him has been materially changed" No names were mentioned in the course of these allu- sions.
 Then. Mir. Rushton. introducing Mir. | Forbes as "the boldest candidate in the | history of Montgomery politics" made the declaration that anybody in office. whoever he might be or however able. must be regarded as incompetent when he reaches the conclusion that the city cannot do without him." Prefacing these statements, Mr. Rushton referred
 briefly to the fact that he now holds an office in the city government, but he
 would apply the rule to himself as well. He intimated that there are men now at the heads of the executive depart ments of the city who. having served
 for more than two terms, vainly or ar
 rogantly believe they have a lien on the l offices.
 l What right have some offlce-holders
 In this city to go before the people and assert that the offices are thelrs?" ask
 ed the chairman. 'If they can show a
 property right to the offices, then all
 very well. But until then the good people of the city will insist that the of-
 fees are public offices and are to be | filled by them"
 | Captain Forbes again elucidated his platform which declares for Chief of Police young enough to enforce the
 laws of the city. the equal distribution | of the Improvements of the city, opera | tion of the city waterworks not for revenue. but for the actual cost of put
 ting water into the hands of the con-
 sumer and other principles. In all of 1 them he alleged the present adminis- l tration, influenced by the ring" which I
 has failed
 | The Mayoralty candidate explained | that he had been for che last two years
 a member of the City Council and had l gone there not to see what others were
 doing or for fun, but to unearth, if pos
 sfble. the reasons why the growth of
 Montgomery has been stifed these
 many years. He had made these req | sons the subject of careful study both I a Alderman Erac af tk, Commercial and Industrial Association
 in which latter capacity he was engag- | ed in attracting industrial enterprises
 to thls city. He had noted the growth l of surrounding cities, but all to the
 disparagement of Montgomery. After
 Investigating the causes for the slow | growth of this city, he said, he had be-
 come fully convinced that it was due | to the fact that a few persons consti- | tuting themselves a ring" were ruling | the city.
 Captain Forbes told the people of Ward that they had not received a
 just distribution of the taxes paid by
 them. It was charged that they had
 been neglected by the administration
 because they did not have any "puIl'
 with the departments.
 | When I began this series of meet | ings, however" said the speaker. "I | informed the people of West End that
 they were not getting a just propor- l tion of the Improvements. The meet ing brought them good because very soon thereafter the Improvements be- | gan to come their way, although they | should have had them a long time be- fore. And if this meeting shall do that much good for this ward, then I shall have done something anyway. It may bring temporary Improvements which | the next Mayor will make perma- nent."
 The speech of Captain Forbes was | interrupted by applause. The meeting lasted for over an hour.