The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1907-07-09

in Tallahassee a commission consist
ing of three members of the senate
and four members of the house of rep
resentative5 for the purpose of inves-
tigating the acts and doings of the
trustees of The internal improvement
fund of the state from the time of its
creation to the present day.
This investigation was called for by
the press of the state long before the
legislature assembled, and immedi-
ately after the organization of that
body a concurrent resolution was in
troduced providing that the legisla-
| ture should conduct the investigation.
From the senate, John S. Beard, of
Escambia, H. H. Buckman, of Duval,
and T. F. West, of Santa Rosa, were
| appointed, and from the house the
speaker appointed Representatives ].
F. c. Griggs, of Franklin, R. Pope
Reese, of Escambia, sgd L. Carter, of
Alachua, and NJ. L. Knight, of Column
bia. The senator from Escambia re-
| fused to serve, and the president of
the senate appointed j. H. HUMPHREYS,
of Manatee. The committee organized
by the election of Senator Buchanan
| as chairman, and proceeded at once
i to its task.
How many meetings were held dur
| ing the sixty days spent in Tallahas-
| see is not a matter of record, as the.
| committee held star chamber sessions
| and refused to give out any ;nforma-
ton as to the progress it was making.
On the last day of the session, the
committee did make report, and it
was to the effect that it would be i'm
possible for them to complete the in
vestigatiOn. They asked for further
| instruction, which was given them in
| the shape of the bill which passed
| that day creating a commission, to be
| elected by the legislature, to carry on
| the work of the committee and COM
plete the investigation
All of the members of thu fegisla-
tive committee were offered places
on the commission, but some Of them
refused to serve In the senate Chair
| man Buchanan and committeeman
HUMPHREYS and West refused to serve,
| and Park Trammell, of Polk, G. L.
Leggett, of Madison, and Fred P
Cone, of Columbia, were elected in
their places. In the house, Repre-
sentative Griggs refused to serve, ard
Representative G. G. Matthews, of
fcI in hi hi
commission met in Tallahassee few
days ago and organized by the cleo
ton of sgd. L. Carter, Of Alachva, as
chairman.
Since the adjournment of the legis-
lature, several of the sta+e papers
have been insinuating, and some
have been bold enough to MY as
sert, that this investigation is to be
whitewashdng affair; that all of its
members are special friends of the
governor, and of the administration
1t is only natural that such cry
should come from certain quarters,
and it has caused no surprise, but
when member of that legislature
makes such a charge in his paper, it
puts him in a bad light We refer
particularly to the senator from
Manatee county, who is credited with
being the editor of the Bradentown
Journal, and who was not only a mem
Der of the senate, but a mem Der OF
the Legislative investigating commit
tee and offered a place on the new
commission, which he refused
Now if he believed that this com
mission was to be whitewashing af-
fair, it seems to us that it was his
business to stay on the commission
and prevent such a state of affairs as
he is complaining of now If he is so
solicitous for the interests of the
people, why did he desert them when
he had the opportunity to serve as a
member of this commissio and ex-
pose all this rottenness he talks
about? Failing in that, he should
have placed, before the commission
all the evidence he has in his pos
session tending to show any illegal
acts on the part of the trustees. If
he can not, or will not, then he ought
to keep quiet, and not continue to be-
smirch and belittle the good names of
these state officers.
The Palatka News is another paper
in the same class. In a recent issue,
Editor Russell throws the following
slur at the new commission:
The l. l. Fund whitewashing COM
mittee is now comfortably settled in
Tallahassee with, the long summer
months before it in which to dissi-
pate its $4,000 appropriation from
the general revenue fund. But as
the committee is composed of seven
able bodied members the task does
not appear so 'great'-except to
members of the committee.
In justice to the Palatka editor, we
L.