The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1908-02-23
SENATE

The Lieutenant- Governor called the
Senate to order at noon yesterday.
The usual routine reporting of bills
passed by the House and reported from
the committees of the Senate occupied
the early portion of the morning ses-
sion.
Senator Echols, from the Joint Com
mittee of Investigation in the Rhea
matter. introduced joint resolution
providing that there be a meeting of
the two houses of tho General Assem-
bly, on Tuesday evening, at o'clock
to receive the report of the commit
tee. and to take such action in regard
to 1t as the Assembly might determine.
The preamble stated that the printed
evidence would be ready for distribu-
ton on Monday. The resolution was
unanimously adopted under a suspen-
sion of the rules.
Committees were discharged from the
consideration of number OF bills
which now so on the calendar.
Road Bill Discussed.
The special order first considered
was House bill 262. to provide for State
money aid, in addition to convict la
bor for the Improvement Of public
roads.
Senator Sims was the patron of a
similar measure in the Senate, for
which the Committee on Roads had
substituted the House bill. He made
a brief speech. principally in criticism
of the House amendment to the origi-
nal bill, raising the maximum amount
to be allowed to each county in any
one year, but he did not think 1t Of
sufficient Importance to provoke dis
agreement with the House. He ex-
planned that the bill carried an appro-
priation of S250.000.
Senator Mann moved that House bill
2SS. known as the Byrd liquor bill. be
set as a special order for Tuesday at
II o'clock. The motion prevailed.
Debate upon the road bill being re-
sumed, Senator Strobe made a strong
speech against the feature of the bill
which provides for the distribution of
the money aid to the rich counties
rather than to those which need 1t
most. He declared that one-third of
the taxable values In the State were
beyond the reach Of the counties and
cities. This s1.7oo.ooo, together with
the portion of the remainder derived
by the State from the cities. he thought
should be called upon to bear part of
the burden OF building. But he
urged the adoption in the matter OF
State aid to roads of the same princi-
pie employed in the distribution OF
school money: that is. to those coun-
ties where 1t Is needed most. He pre-
scented persuasive arguments In favor OF
his amendment. substituting an area
basis of distribution for that proposed
by the bill.
Snare and Delusion.
Senator l<eezeli said he was for the
bill because 1t had been some kind Of
an issue in recent elections, but his
experience taught him that 1t would
prove snare and q delusion; that the
appropriation would not build half
mile OF road for each county; that the
people VINO have been fooled will wake
up and make 1t warm for those states
men who now think they are making
records for themselves. There was a
coloquy between Senator's Strobe and
Keezell over theanumber of New York
millionaires In their respective dis
itricts The Senator from Amherst adj
mitted that there was one In Nelson
county, who paid larger income tax
than any other citizen OF Virginia.
The reference was, OF course. to Thomas
Z. Ryan.
Senator Ward opposed the STROBE
amendment. saying that the method of
distribution provided thereby would be
neither equitable nor convenient.
RI senator SIMS also replled 10 the Am
iherst Senator who he said, was IN
error In supposing that the money was
to be sent back to the counties from
which 1t had come. He said that only
two-thirds of the fund out of which
tho appropriation is made came out Of
the counties
Senator Strobe asked number of
questions, among them being why the
money should be distributed according
to wealth, rather than according to
need.
Senator Sims said that wealth was
an element MS we'll as population, and
that communities rich aud populous
with teemins industries, We're more IN
need of good roads than very sparsely
settled sections. He declared that the
area basis was entirely too narrow;
that the mileage basis might be better
but that the bill was n composite OF
many conflicting views, and was In
his opinion. the hest obtainnhle at this
time, He repudlated, with some warmth,
the insin,,atlun OF Senator Kceaell that
the people were being fooled and that