The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-10-26
Letters to The Editer
LINDEN RAISES PROTEST.
ssubscriber" ia Amainst Creation Q
 New Eouutfea
Linden, Ala. oct. 22, 1908.

Editor Advertiser:
 l have been a daily reader of your have have read with much interest the communication of ,Mr, J. $. Moore, with respect to the New Counties Amendment" to the constitution. have also, read your editorial in re- ply thereto. In which you set forth strongly In the arguments advanced for more and smaller counties, with much force and refer to Houston and Jener- son counties to illustrate them. You state that the germ of the issue Is, will Alabama be better off by holding year after year it's big county lines sacred and untouched or will the state be bettered by the creation of two or three counties?"
 l respectfully submit that in this you are grieyously mistaken. Houston was not formed under the proposed amendment. nor Is there scintlua or difference to Jefferson so far as area of counties or basis of representation IS concerned. between the proposed II of the Constitution of 1901.
 Section 39 of Art. II of the consti- tuition of 1901 is; so far as is pertinent to the question in issue, in the follow ing words: ,"The Legislature may by vote of two-fhirds of each house thereof. arrange and designate boun- daries for the several counties of this State. which boundaries shall not be altered except by like vote; but no new county shall be formed hereafter of less extent than six hundred square miles. and no existing county shall be square miles: and no new county shall be formed unless 1t shall contain q sufficient number of inhabitants to en- title 1t to one representative under the ratio of representation existing at the time of it's formation. and leave the county or counties from which 1t Is taken with the required number or inhabitants to entltle such county or n ia Az tIon."
 A similar provision was in the Con. stitutlon of 1875
 Under these provisions new counties have been formed and boundary lines re-arranged by the Legislature which Is representative body of all the people of the State and not of a small portion of them--as occasion de- manded. The Legislature has the power to-day. under the present Con- sututlon. to form as many new coln- ties as can possibly be formed under the proposed amendment The limita- tions as to area. population etc. are the same. So the argument for the amendment because mere new and is adopted does. not find any support when Art. xix is compared with Sec- ton 39 of Art. II of the Constitution
 But let us see wherein the proposed amendment will make us a better or worse constitution. If It will im- prove the Constitution of 1901 then 1t should be adopted; but if it will not.
 In the first place. tho present con- stitution contains eighteen Articles. Section Ss of Article II. provides for Legsiature. I e.OP prescriSes @ S@ 'h the minimum T @ urea of 600 square miles, etc. Now, the proposed amendment is to ccnstl- tute Article XIX" It Is so denomi- be added on to the end of the present constitution It does not supercedc Sec. s9 of Art. II. at all. but leaves lt of full force and effect. Therefore. the power of the Legislature over the county boundaries is unimpaired. We would have, if Art. XIX is adopted, Q constitution. which provides for the islature. and also, in addition thereto small portion of the people.
 What the Legislature might do un- the people could proceed to undo, un. der ART. XIX, and wha: this small percentage of voters could do the Legislature could proceed to undo a, any. territory. wherein It is, proposed continual state of agitation and elecS tions involving. local issues. notorious would be frequent. It Is not to be supposed that the old, counties which are robbed of, their territory, while utterly powerless to do or say any make themselves heard and felt when opportunity offered.
 Again. there Is no. limitation in the proposed amendment upon the number of elections which may be held by those Inside the proposed new county. lFhose outside have no voice In the slection.l If defeated in one effort a re-arrangement of the proposed bound aries may be had and another election held upon the same conditions as the first. The new county may be, in or a weasel. If defeated upon one line of battle the contest may be fought over again upon another of petitioners own, choosing. with part ly new and different forces of more congenial views and wishes.
 If this amendment is adopted then the people of the old counties many of which are being stripped of their elections, like Lincoln's bull-half way oyer the fence-fore legs on one side and hind legs on the other. pow erless to gore the dogs that worry him tack him from the rear.
 l submit that there are two power full and dangerous germs in the pro- fposed amendment. as follows:
 First. The people outside the pro- posed boundary lines will have no vote In deciding whether the territory of Lnelr county snail De Ldkcn rom IL or not. if Art. XIX is adopted;
 Second. The double method of form ing new counties If Art. XIX should be adopted. will be fruitful of inter- minable confusion and strife.
 Already it's baneful effects are to be seen in Marengo. Sumter, Hale Perry and Dallas-to say nothing of a great many other embryo counties- wherein 1t Is proposed to take a mar row strip along each side of the South ern Railway to form a new county the proposed line of which is to run just a little over seven miles from tho new courthouse and jail at Linden recently built at cost of nearly $80 00O. and which would leave them seven miles from the northern bound ary and about twenty-six miles from the southern boundary of Marengc. Yet Il Is only sixteen miles from Linden to the northern boundary as Marengo is now constituted. If this new coun- ty IS formed it would, doubtless, con- tain the largest percentage of negro votes of any county in Alabama, and in course of time be dominated by negroes since there are over 100 of them now registered in Demopolis pre- cinct alone and others are qualifying themselves for registration each year
 Please compare Section 39 of Art. II, with the proposed Article XIX and then advise the people wherein the change would be beneficial.
 Subscriber.
 MIR MOORE MAKEs ANSuru