The weekly true Democrat. (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1905-1912, 1906-11-16


bic occasion to execute . spectacular
bat none the less apparent bluf, By de-
elaring, in an interview reported BY the
Tampa Times, that he is mot through
fighting YET" that he will have q
constitutional amendment offered At
the next session Of the Legislature"
and that II will have some bills put
through which win cause weeping and
wailing and gnashing Of teeth in GER
tain quarters" And in a formal letter
to the Pensacola Journal he solemnly
affirms that when the voters find out
that we, as trustees, must continue TO
dig with the two dredges built from
the money derived from the sale Of
their swamp and overhowed lands,
thereby retaining the millions of acres
Of land already given to the corpora
tIons, they will see that they were mis-
led in voting against the amendment "
The opponents Of the drainage amend
ment (whOse numbers now officially in
clude a two-thirds majority of all of
the voters in the State who desired TO
express their views thereon at the polls
in the recent election), have never, for
a single moment, imagined that the
drainage raid upon the pockets Of the
Florida taxpayers would terminate with
the defeat of the amendment. They
have always realized the fact that hun
N IU hnl fnA
of. They have expected the scene of
effort to be transferred to the Legisla-
ture and the courts. And they stand
quite ready TO meet the advancing hosts
of the "plunderbund" on the TANKS Of
the battlefield, and to "do them up"
in quite as complete and conclusive a
style as when the attack on the center
was so CALAMITY repulsed.
Leaving the amazing audacity Of the
Governors language to be realized at
leisure by those who read it, we desire,
just now, merely TO consider some Of
the salient points of the situation as it
really exists.
Surely, there will be no disposition
anywhere to seek to prevent Mr..
Broward from offering" to the con-
sideration of the Legislature any amend
ment to the constitution he may desire
to suggest that is privilege to which
even any member Of that body is clearly
entitled but when he has the unmiti-
gated gall to announce the character
of bills which he purposes to "put
through" that bedy, he simply makes
a disgusting display Of the arrogant
staggering Of the ward boss who inn
AGNES that he carries the vote of his
little precinct in his vest pocket. II
Governor Broward or his advisers had
kept tab" upon the sentiment of the
membership Of the Legislature which
meets next April he would have known
that that body will be firmly and un-
alte rably opposed to his fantastical and
deceptive drainage schemes by a
majority of about two to one, and he
consequently would have been spared
the temptation to make such an
offensive exhibition Of his estimate OF
the character and independence OF
FlOridians.
The bOmbastic announcement Of Gov.
efnor Broward's to continue TO dig
the canal upon which he has already
spent so much of the money which
really belongs to the people of Florida -
he has stated the sum to be about
$50, 0O0-was to have been expected
Dominating the Board Of Trustees, as
he does with the willing aid of two
OF her members, IL was evident that, SC
far as the wasting of the funds is con-
cerned, no relief could be expected
without an appeal to the courts; and
the board having spent most, IL not all,
Of the funds in hand, with no immedi-
ate prospect Of making any more sacri-
fee sales of the lands within its con-
troll the effort to prevent further
waste of public funds would scarcely
be worth while. But he should reflect
that a day Of reckoning Is at hand, and
that for every dollar Of the people q
money wasted or misapplied there must
be an accounting that will satisfy the
peoples representatives.
Finally, with respect to the jennings
| Rrogard theorv that the Legislature of