The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1906-10-26
TROUBLE ABOUT TOBACCO
WAREHOUSES;

1t is understood that opposition has
developed TO the proposed expenditure
ON the part OF the 5 ate, through thu
tobacco Warehouse Building Cumn,s
sion, OF any further SUNS Tor tue con.
struction of new tobacco warehouses,
SAYS the Baltimore Sun"
Under the Act OF 1906. Chapter
SO4, providing for the commission.
about 1851 900, it was thought, might
b, spent for tie REBUILDING OF tobacco
warehouses Nos. 3, and 5, and th.
erection OF new warehouse to hold
5000 hogsheads. The building com
mission is made by the Act of 1906 to
consist of the Board OF Public Works,
including Governor Warfield, Treas
urer Murray Vandiver and Comp
troller Gordon T. Atkinson and
Messrs. Henry Lantz, William B.
Clagett. Joshua S. Rawlings, Adrian
Puspy and John H. Drury.
1t is said that several leading Law
yers of Baltimore have been consulted
as to the validity OF the Act of 1905,
and that they have agreed in the opin-
ion that the statute is invalid, because
the provis ions of its text are not EN-
braced within its title.
Attorney General Bryan, when ask.
ed his views upon the constitutlonality
OF the act, said it was a matter Tor the
courts to determine.
TIE title of the act is an Act to
Repeal and Re-enact with Amend.
lnents S .ction 2 OF Chapter 426 Of the
Laws of 1904, entitled AN act to au.
thorize and empower the Board OF
Public Works of Maryland to collect
the insurance upon the State tobacco
warehouses Nos.1 and 2 and place the
same to the credit of the tobacco
warehouse fund, and to either rebuild
a modern warehouse on the present
site OF tobacco warehouses Nos. l and
and the property owned by the
State adjacent thereto, or to sell said
property or lease the same for such
sum as they may think right and
build tobacco warehouse in some To-
cality OF Baltimore city selected BY
said Board of Public Works."
Although the title provides merely.
for the repeal and reenactment of
"Section 2" of the Act of 1904, the
body of the act contains three addi-
tional sections-3, 4 and 5-and they,
it is claimed, are not described in the
title. 1t is furthermore pointed out
that Section 2 is invalid, because it
conflicts with the title by prescribing.
that instead of the Board of Public
Works new and different com IN ission
shall have charge Of the work, and by
prescribing that instead of rebuilding
a modern warehouse on the present
site OF warehouses Nos. l and 2, as
stated in the title, different warehouses
known as Nos. 3, 4 aud S shall be re.
built, enlarged and equipped. Other
points of conflict between Section 2
and the title are said to exist.
1t is understood that the wisdom
and policy Of the act are challenged.
1t is claimed that there is no need for
either new warel ouse or any,enlarge.
ment of those now in existence. The
capacity of the present warehouses
Nos. and and the available part OF
warehouse No. 8 is $4,000 hogs
heads. The largest number of hogs.
heads in the State warehouses at any
one time during the last ten years
was 10, 943, and only on that one occa
sion did the total number exceed TO-,
900 hogsheads. 1t is contended that
IL WOulu Ue WdStcIul W SpcuU more
than $250,000 to provide storage room
tor more than $4,000 hogsheads, when
accommodations are needed for only
10000 hogsheads.
The assertion is made that the State
tobacco warehouses have been operat-
ed at a loss to the State and that the
loss would be largely increased if the
1851 ,OOO-yielded by the sales Of the
sites of warehouses Nos. and 2. the
insurance money for the buildings on
them and the sum received from the
city for the condemned part of ware
house No 3-were invested in new
warehouses, while the existing facili-
ties tor storage and inspection are con-
in excess of tue needs. The
plans tor erecting new buildings 10
said to be bad business proposition
tor the State, which would suffer q
growing loss.
IL is understood that the subject is |
under consideration by the Board OF
Public Works and the other members |
Of the commission.