The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-03-14
Conner Also Signs Bill Providing
for Various Municipal
Improvements
WOMAN PLEADS GUILTY
TO ILLICIT DISTILLING
Judge Jones Refuses to Assess Pun
ishment and Sends Mrs. Hawkins
Home to Her Seven
Little Children.

MONTGOMERY, March 13-(Special.)-The
Moody local option dispensary bill mas
been signed by the governor ana is now
a law. 1t will work along with the gen
eral local option bill, providing for open
saloons, dispensarles prohibition Ihls
bill was worked on for many years py
Senator Moody of Tuscaloosa who finally
got it through at the present session oil
the senate.
Another bill signed by the governor
gives the towns of the state with more
than 400 inhabitants the right to provide
drainage and other municipal accommo-
dations. This was presented by Senator
Miller primarily to aid Woodlawn.
A bill to establish a criminal court
of record in Clarke county has also been
made a law. There was considerable diff
fculty in getting this matter finally
wound up and the provision was very
much desired.
The other bills signed include minor
matters, among them being provision
for the disposal of the fine and forfeiture
fund of Jefferson county.
The new state tax commission has
opened an office in the senate chamber
where headquarters will be until such
fine as room is assigned in the new
building.
New Circuit officSrs.
The governor has announced the ap-
pointment of John w. liner OF AshVille,
as Judge, and G. W. Darden of one
onta, as solicitor of the new Sixteenth
circuit, composed of the counties OF
I.ount. Etowah and st. Clair.
ID. l.. Peacock of Brooklyn, repre-
sentative of the Carnegie institution of
washington, is working in the library
of the state department of archives and
history. securing information about the
farmers credit systems. He was here last
summer looking after labor legislation.
Mr.. Peacock finds that the lending laws
and the supply provisions are very intrl-
cate in the SOUTH no two of them being
lust alike This brincs about an interest
ing study as well as some rather haro"
wor4:.
AT a meeting of the executive commit
foe of the Fifth District Agricultural
school in the office of the governor to-
day. authority was given for the drawing
of 5000 of the 10000 appropriated TO the
school by the legislature, to aid IN re-
nairs to damage by the fire. Those pres
ent were the governor, the superintendent
of education and the commissioner or
agriculture.
Woman Pleads Guilty.
Mrs. Cynthia Hawkins. an old woman
+odav plead guilty to Illicit distillmg In
the United States court, with the view,
IL is believed, to shield her prother' 1eze-
kial Diggers, charged with the same OF
fense. She says that her brother has tried
to
she would not allow him to do So Judge
Thomas G. Jones failed to assess any
punishment to the woman, telling her
to go home to her children.
Mrs. Hawkins is the widow OF the
late Charles Hawkins who died rev
weeks ago and of whom Dothan ana
Montgomery papers had so much TO say
in complimentary way. She lives III
Houston county. He had been i'll for
wear and as a result of such illness the
woman was arrested, becoming involved
in the trouble with the revenue OIL
GERS She has seven little chlldfen at
home. left all alone while she is mere
at court.
After being released by Judge Jones,
Mrs. Hawkins told her story to a re-
porter of the Journal. She said that
her husband was i'll for long time and
he was very fond of wine. 1t seemed TO 90
him a great deal of good She had some
grapes on the place and she mashed
them and made him a sort of wine. She
KEEP this up for some time while he
was sick and from it's use he got much
pleasure.
Neighbors vindictive.
There was a neghbor who did not like
them, she said, and this neighbor IN
formed the officers that she was making
l,ouors on her place. They made a raid
and captured her brother who, she says,
was only there to see her and had moth
ing to do with the making of the wine
or spirits or whatever they were being
arrested for, and seeing his sister was
in for it, the woman insists, the man
took the blame upon himself and said
she had nothing to do with it.
Mrs Hawkins sat in the office of the
clerk, waiting for the court to call the
case of her brother. Tears streamed down
her face. my poor little children are
at home without anyone to look after
+beu." she sobbed. "The man who told
that I was making whisky was bad
man He hated us and just did it to get
mo in trouble Poor folks had better be
dead in this world. You folks in the
cit, do not know what we have to con-
tend with. We cannot get medicine and
food like YOU and when some of
sicl. wo have to do the best we can.
Tha. L. the reason tried to fix up that
drin,, for my husband. He needed some
thing like it and l could not get it.
I did not have the money anu couiu
not go to the town TO get 1t and leave
min, / hone the Judge will let my
brother go. He is not guilty and said
he was only to save me"
Other cases up today We're those of
=, C. Brunson of Coffee county and Joe
weeks of Geneva county. both of whom
!, Mead guilty of running Illicit distilleries
\ Alex Harris was adIudsed not guiity OF
lrelling liquors.
Governor Visits Prison.
/ ! Gov. B. b. Conner went out to the
PRISONS Of the state known as NO today.
mn = 1rIrI nv nAGE. n