The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-27
HON. SYDNEY J. BOWIE
Gives His for Favorng the New County Amendment HAS VIGOROUS ARGUMENT TO SUPPORT CONTENTION

north and Georgia on the east. And yet when it comes to the increase in bank deposits and of tax values, the
 most substantial indexes of real pros perity, either of those states during the
 past 10 years will show greater actual
 and relative growth than Alabama. I do not attribute this altogether, of course to the size of the counties, but it is quite certain that the number of
 counties in these states has not been in any sense an impeachment to their
 growth; upon the contrary the testi- mony Is all the other way.
 The legislature of Georgia, with hout substantial opposition from any quar- ter, recently created eight new coun- ties after the constitutional amend ment permitting 1t to do so had been carried by large majority. They all
 ready had 137 counties, or more than double the number in Alabama. Why
 did the people of Georgia vote for eight
 more counties if they had too many to start with, and if great injury would be done to any of them by the adoption of the amendment? The reasonable in- ference is that Georgia had found that in bringing her public business close 1 to the people she had adopted a policy whose wisdom had been proven by the | test of experience.
 Again, MT. Kettig, in his campaign address publish ed yesterday, makes this | statement: "If the amendment is
 adopted Bessemer will vote country precincts from Walker, Tuscaloosa, l Shelby, Bibb and Jefferson into a new | county against practically the solid i opposition of such country precincts. l because Bessemer will have more votes | than the country precincts and will not | consult the wishes of the voters in the | country precincts. The same thing may happen to your county sooner or 1 later"
 1 If the balance of their contentious are as unsubstantial as this one. and I think they are, the whole case of the l opponents of the amendment can be 1 disposed of without difficulty. The | truth is, that 75 per cent of the voters
 who will be brought into the new | county if one is created, by any pos | sible combination of lines will live out 1 side of the city precincts of Bessemer If. therefore, these country precincts | are practically solid, as MT. Kettis says they are, against the new coun- | ty, it will be defeated by a vote ofsfully | three to one.
 I repeat no possible combination by | which Bessemer could get the required | area in order to make new county l could be made that did not leave the | country precincts in an overwhelming | majority as against Bessemer city. My { own belief from what have been able | to learn on the subject, is that the l country precincts in the territory af fected will give majority for the new county rather than against it. But in | any event, l connot see any possible | objection to giving them vote on | the subject. It is their affair--not ours !, If they conceive 1t to be opposed tc | their interest there will be no diff l f1cluty found in getting them to vote il l down, and if they think it is to theil 1 interest l can see no reason why we should object to their voting it up.
 But let us meet the opponents of this measure upon their own ground and l treat 1t upon a basis affecting our owr | advantage without regard to the pros perity, the conveninece and the happi- ness of the people immediately in l yolved. Considered from the standpoint of pure and utter selfishness, believe it is to the interest of the city of Bir- l mingham to help the movement along The establishment of new county wil
 not move a foot of ground nor a singl' individual one inch further from Birming
 ham than they are at present. In addi
 tion to the various railroads communi
 eating between Birmingham and Besseme
 the two street car lines between the tw'
 towns make an average schedule durint