The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1909-04-11

GOVERNOR INQUIRIES MOTIVE OF
LEGISLATURE IN PASSING
CAPITOL BILL.
Increase in Values May Attend Proper
Cruising-Olympians Clamor for
New Building.

That he may discover Wnat the
members of the legislature had in mind
when they passed the capitol building
law, providing for the sale of state
timber lands to raise the necessary
funds for the erection of new struc-
ture, Governor Hay has written to
each member of the last legislature.
Senator D. H. Cox of Walla Walla is
in receipt of the Governors communi-
cation in this regard and is now pre-
pairing his reply.
Governor Hay wishes to find out
whether the legislature intended that
immediate action should be taken with
relation to the sale of the timber land.
Personally he favors waiting until the
land may be cruised and the aggregate
value of the timber compueted.
People at the state capitol do not
see the matter in the same light,
however To them the matter is one
of great Importance and they are an
xious that the land De sold at once,
and a fund thereby created for the
new capitol building. The situation
places Governor Hay between the
horns of a delemma, and as he is
necessarily at Olympia a large share
Of his time, it is an unpleasant one
that he finds himself in.
No Immediate Sale.
Interviewed last evening by a Union
reported Senator Cox said:
"The bill as passed by the legisla
ture did not intend that the land
should be offered for sale at once. On
the floor of both the house and senate
fal
ter should be dealt with carefully and
without undue haste. The opinion pre-
vailed that the state should know ex-
actly what it possessed in the shape OF
timber lands, and he holdings should
all be appraised by a competent ap-
praiser before any Of it was offered for
sale.
Move Would Be Unwise.
'In my estimation the state would
commit an unWiSe act should 1t at
tempt to dispose of the timber lands
at the present time. Though timber
land now command high prices, few
years more will undoubtedly see
much greater rise in values, and by
waiting awhile the state will receive
greater sum of money for the timber
lands.
Il shall stand by Governor Hay in
his action concerning the matter. He
is doing the right thing 1 am sure in
advocating the retention of the timber
lands for a number of years. The
state can get along well enough with
it's present state house for a few years
yet We intend before long to have a
new building, one that will be suit
able to the wealth, size, and dignity or
this great commonwealth, but the leg
islature does not intend to sacrifice
lot of valuable property to satisfy the
clamorings of a few who are raising
the cry for a new building
Governors Letter.
The letter received by Senator Cox,
which is similar to those written to the
other members of the legislature fol-
lows:
My Dear Sir:-In passing the bill
creating the capitol building commits
sion and authorizing it to sell capitol
grant lands for the purpose of erect
ing a capitol building, l would be
pleased if you would advise me what
your idea was. The good people of
Olympia seem to be up in arms be-
cause several members of the commits
sion are not in favor Of rushing the
sale of these lands and beginning the
erection of capitol at once. 1 called
a meeting of the commission and we
decided to make haste slowly. First
to have the lands thoroughly cruised
and ascertain as nearly as possible the
value of what We have. Some men,
bers of the commission feel that if
these lands are forced upon the mar
ket and all sold this year they will
bring only a small part of what they
are worth, and that if we take our
time-say from three to five years-in
selling these lands we can probably
realize $5,000,000. Now of course you
can understand that this is only an
estimate or practically a guess, but
this estimate is made by men who un-
derstand values and in whom l have
confidence
"At the time the bill was introduced
my understanding was that the COM
mission was to sell only such timber