The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1906-08-24
RIDICULOUS PERFORMANCE,
One of the most extraordinary ofici,

One or the most extraordinary ofilc1a
public documents ever promulgated
by the chief executive of a sovereign
state made its appearance in print 9
few days ago, signed by an B. Brow
lard, Governor" of the state of Flor
Ida.
1t begins by rehersing the substance
lof statements made in public speeches
by N. B. Broward This, of itself, con
dennis it as public document, is
sued by the chief magistrate of site
because it relates to matters purely
political and personal, which should
have no place in an official communi
cation.
1t gravely announces as a piece OF
news (which the people to whom it is
addressed have known for months),
that news bureau has been estab-
llished to give information to the voters
Iof Florida on the subject OF the pro
Iposed amendment to the constitution
creating drainage board, and calls
the literature emanating from that bu-
reau misleading That this state
ment is absolutely false. any voter
who has received such literature can
readily testify.
1t afirms that the governor (as an
individually has mo more interest in
the adoption of Joint Resolution No.
than has any other disinterested
but patriotic citizen" when every
person in Florida knows, should know
that the chief purpose of urging the
adoption of the amendment is to make
show of redeeming pledges and
promises made by the individual, N.
B. Broward. when he was a private
citizen and a candidate.
1t declares that the defeat of the
amendment, would entail upon the
rest of the people of Florida burden
out of proportion to what they would
be called upon to pay In retaining
the everglades" but it does not de-
fine that burden" nor explain why
there should be any burden at all in
the event that the amendment is de-
feated and every intelligent reader
of this remarkable proclamation well
knows that the burden" will come
only when the amendment is adopted,
and an irresponsible drainage board
is given thereby unlimited and unlaw-
full power to tax the people for the
personal qualification of single indi-
yidual, and of those who, under cover
of his official position, are forcing him
into a hopeless confess for their own
private ends.
This proclamation purports to recite
"a lot of facts" about the litigation in
which the drainage board attempted
to be created by the last Legislature,
and the trustees of the |. /. Fund,
have involved the people of the state
with land owners who refused to be
imposed upon by illegal taxation and
at whose instance the courts have de-
clared the drainage law unconstitu-
tional but such matters belong to the
proceedings in the courts rather than
in an alleged public document, and
hence need not be debated in a public
press.
But is final paragraph. disclos-
ing the real purpose of the ''procla-
nation" which grossly violates every
sense of decency and official proprie-
ty, by desperately imploring every
citizen to contribute at least two
cent stamp" whereby the governor of
a sovereign state may be enabled to
conduct personal campaign pledges
and promises, made by then private
individual in order to secure votes
through the adoption of an amendment
which will fix upon the people of
Florida, irrevocably and perpetuity, a
grossly unfair and oppressive system
of unlawful taxation, unlimited as to
time, such taxes to be levied and ex-
pended by legislature (the constitu-
tional and only rightful taxing power
but by an irresponsible board of of
ficials, accountable for the use of the
proceeds of such taxation to no earth
ly power.
Thus far we have dignified this most
undignified and absurd performance
of Governor Broward with serious dis
cussion of it's contents; but it is inn
possible to treat this last and most re-
diculous feature seriously. If the gov
ernor was not in such deadly and
desperate EARNEST, it might possibly
be surmised that he had, in weak
moment, yielded to sense of humor
and admitted to perpetrate a sort of
joke or hoax. However this may be
he has admirably succeeded in arous-
ing a sense of humor in the public |
mind, and there will be few to deny
that in thus passing around the hat"
for postage stamps he has made him |
self laughing stock of the entire |
True Democrat.