The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1907-04-11
A SPECIAL. MESSAGE
Transmitted to Legislature by Gov.
Broward Regarding Charges
Against Trustees.

Gentlemen OF the Senate and House OF
Representatives
Certain persons have, through news
papers and other publications., clrci;-
lated many falsehOOds against tile
| present trustees OF the Internal lI.-
Drovement Fund, which may deceive
the people as TO the honor, integrity
and ability Oi those state officials. BY
inpuendo and otherwise, they have al
tempted to traduce not only your
trustees, but to create in the minds
OF the people, even beyond the cc:i-
fines OF the state, the belief that the
| trustees were guilty OF mismanagc'
ment OF the internal Improvement
Fund
Those officials are composed, as yol
know, OF the governor, comptroller,
| attorney general, treasurer and corl-
missioner of agriculture.
1t is charged by these certain indi-
viduals that the trustees have violated
the laws, which laws they are sworn
to uphold, by diverting public funds,
charging that your present trustees
have used school funds to build
dredges and do drainage work; that
they have used money appropriated 10
the purpose OF good roads from that
purpose to the purpose Of building
dredges and draining lands; that they
have also diverted money from the
state treasury, derived from taxation,
to the purpose of building dredges
and. reclaiming lands and paying III.
warranted attorneys fees, etc., and 1t
| is safe to assume that these papers
| and literature bearing these charges
| have reached you, and it would be j
miracle if one hundred men can Ee
| gathered here, whose confidence has
not been affected more OF less narni-
fully by the charges against the pres
| en1 trustees, who are composed OF
the highest state officers, and feeling
that nothing should estrange the re-
la1ionshiD that should exist between
| the legislature and the trustees as
servants and representatives OF the
people: therefore, | earnestly recon-
| mend that a numerically strong COM
mittee, equipped with sufficient tecE-
nical knowledge to make searching
| Investigation, be appointed at once,
composed OF members OF each house:
to investigate the charges and innuen-
does intended to reflect upon the pres
| ent trustees, and make report OF their
| findings at the earliest possible date,
| and | ask that the committee be given
power to summon persons and admin
ister oaths in swearing witnesses, and
| TO REQUIRE them also to bring BOOKS,
accounts, newspapers, circulars, htera'
1ure and hand-books, bearing upon
this matter in any way that the conf
mittee may deem best and necessary.
This recommendation is not made
by ME on account OF any lack on my
part OF confidence in the innocence
of the present trustees, as know tnem
TO be innocent OF the innuendoes anil
false accusations, and l further kno"
that they are patriotic, painstaklnS'
able and industrious state ohclal1'
.,d thar they are entitled to the Vi
most confidence of the people; put
feel that it is my duty to you ana u
rho trustees and TO all tne homes!
necple of the state, that full lnVeS'
tigation be had, and that a report DC
made of the actual findings, that the
legislature and the people of Florida
and the people OF other states may
NOT longer be humiliated by any queS'
tion OF the integrity OF the h1gnes!
officials in a sovereign state.
further recommend that the VIII
ers on the seven newspapers referred
10 by me in my message OF this moru'
ing be summoned, and also the VIII
ers ON the newspapers referred to III
that message under the head OF TWO
or three Others" one OF which is tne
DeLand Record.
have learned that the ownership
CT management, Or both, OF the othef
TWO newspapers, the Lakeland ouh
and the Fernandina Star, have chans'
I'D MANAGEMENT and ownership within
the last six months, and / Suggest
that the former writer's on those .t"9
naners if they can be found, be SUM-
ncned also; these, together WIN 'ns
! ! writer's on the other papers nameI'
should be able TO give you the SOURCES
| ,.h .boy obtained their mis-