The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1908-03-11
AN EXTRA SESSION
This May Be the Outcome Of Placing
the County Unit Bill on
the Shelf.
THERE is STRONG TALK OF THIS


the county bill is dead, unless an extra
session is called to pass it. The bill
passed the house and would have pass
ed the senate had it ever reached a
vote. but a parliamentary ruse was
adopted to prevent it ever reaching
vote. The few whisky Democrats
In the senate hold the balance Of pow
er and they were willing to do any
thing to anybody or for anybody to
defeat the county unit bill. The other
Democrats were told that if they did
not help kill the bill the whisky Dem
ocrats would unite with the Republi-
cans and pass the Republican redis-
tricting bills, the bills to Gust all the
Democrats from the offices at the pris-
ons and asylums, and the bill author
izing grand juries Of any county to in
vestigate penal offenses in any other
county in. the state. This put the
Democrats up against q tough propo-
sition, for most of them wanted to
vote for the unit bill They had but
one alternative, however, to let the
Republicans have all the Offices and
the next legislature. or put the unit
bill on the shelf. They put the unit
bill on the shelf. Speaking Of the
county unit bill, there seems to be
much apprehension as to the real
meaning of the bill The last legisla-
tutre passed a county unit bill that
applied to every county in the state
except those containing cities of the
first. second, third and fourth classes,
these cities being given the right to
vote on the local option question sep
arately from the county in which they
are situated. What is called the coun-
ty unit bill this session is a bill to ex-
tend the provisions of the law passed
two years ago, so that no city shall
have the right to vote on the liquor
question separately from the county.
The cities claim that 1t is unjust to
allow county to vote away big slice
of their income and thereby force
them to increase their tax rate, and
that it is taxation without representa-
ton. The county people claim that
the saloons in the cities affect the
morals of the county and the country
people ought to have the right to vote
to close up the saloons. This is the
bone of contention
There is strong talk of an extra
session being called by Governor Will
son for the purpose Of having the
county unit bill the redistricting bills
and several other bill enacted and
some of the governors close friends
say he will call It, The governor him
self remains silent, but the frequency
with which he has urged the passage
of these bills looks very much like he
is in the frame of mind to order the
extra session.
It was believed that no further
school-book legislation would be neces-
sary in Kentucky for many years, but
the senate has just passed a bill on
the subject, and the funny part about
ii is that no one seems to know Just
exactly what will be accomplished by
| 1t, though 1t is claimed that the only
object is to give cities and towns
more latitude than they now have in
the adoption of school-books. The bill
provides that there shall be no maxi
mum price fixed for books as under
the existing law, but that the price
charged by the book companies for the
books shall be no greater than that
charged for books of the same quality
sold in. other states. An amendment
offered by Senator Newman was
adopted, providing that no maximum
price shall be fixed for any particular
book, but the prices on a series of
books shall not be higher than the fol
lowing: Spelling-books, 16 cents;
readers, $1.90; arithmetics, 81; Ian.
guage lessons, 40 cents; writing books,
32 cents; composition, 60 cents; geog-
raphy, $1.45; physiology, So cents;
United States history, $1.20; history
of Kentucky, 60 cents; civil govern.
ment, 40 cents; grammars, As cents.
1t is said here that CHM G. Co., of
Chicago are pushing the bill and that
the American Book company is fight
| ing it, so the bill must be in the in
terest of a book company rather than
in the interest of the schools. 1t de-
NtlOpeu III the al ~ luSul III the senate
that someone interested in the passage
of the bill had. early in the session,
forged letter purporting to be signed
by former State Superintendent Fuqua
and mailed a copy to every member
of the legislature. The spurious letter
stated that legislation along the lines
provided for in the above bill ought to
be passed in the interest of better
schools. Senator Linn read a letter
from Prof Fuqua, who is now in Tex.
as. saying he never wrote such let
ter and never heard of it, and that 1t
was base forgery. Strenuous efforts
are being made to push the bill
through the house. but It will take
clever work to pass II.