The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-02-06
Somebody Scratched Out a
 Very important Section
LEVEE BOARa LOSES MONEY
Enrolled Bill Is Found to Have Some Mistake ana an investigation Win Be Made Closely
 Into the 5ubject.

sprung today when it became known
 that there had been what appears to
 be some crooked business" in the en-
 rollment of one of the most important
 bills that was made into law by the
 last legislature, and searching investi-
 gation will doubtless be made by the law making body when next it assem-
 bles.
 But for the fact that the supreme
 court recently handed down an opin-
 ion to the effect that the board of levee
 commissioners could not demand and
 collect a privilege tax from insurance
 companies, this fragrant error, either of
 omission or commission, would not have
 been discovered and laid bare just at this time, anyhow.
 The attorney for the levee board and
 members of the legislat ature who happen
 to live in the levee districts and felt great interest in legislation that was
 liable to affect taxes and the income
 of the levee board took notice of the
 decision of the supreme court. and re-
 membered that the amendment to sec
 tion 1882 of the code. in the chapter
 on privilege tax laws, was stricken out | in open session of the house On mo- tion of MT. Stennis of Lauderdale.
 Section of that amendment fixed the privileges on insurance companies and provided that "No county levee | board, or municipal authority shall levy a privilege tax on any insurance company or association" The words quoted were stricken out on motion
 of Mir Johnson of Coahoma,, a citizen of the leyee district, and then Mr Sten- his moved to strike out the whole of section ', which was done. The original bill, or amendment to code chapter SS32, is now in the hands of the secretary of state, and shows large, plain pencil marks across this section r. and the house journal also shows the proceed ings just as above given-that is, that the section was stricken out
 The senate journal shows nothing about section of the amendment to the privilege tax bill, which is evidence that it was not in the bill when it was sent over from the house-and yet this same section ' is printed in full in the acts of 1908. page 59.
 | Section is printed in the acts as a part of the amendment to the privilege tax laws for the simple reason that 1t is a part of the enrolled bill, and the question is how did it get there?
 Under the code, section SS32, the
 privilege tax on insurance companies ranges from s10O to $500. The idea of the law makers in rejecting this amendment to section was to fix the law so that levee boards might also tax such corporations, and it's inser- tion in the laws of the state means that levee boards have been knocked out of large sums that might have been collected on this account.
 The supreme court of the state has always made il a rule to go by the enrolled bill and not by the acts as ] printed, when questions of this char acter have come up, but in this in- stance the tribunal will find, if it has not already done so, that the enrolled 1 bill and the acts are identical, while the house journal shows that this en- l tire section of the amended privilege tax law was stricken out on motion of MT. Stennis of Lauderdale. who had the bill in charge in the house.
 | It is possible that this will cut no 1 material figure in the enforcement of the privilege tax laws as to insurance companies, and that they will stand | just printed in the code, but 1t might make all the difference in the world, and there is doubt the fullest in- vestigation will be made at the next session of the legislature with a view to finding out just why and how this repudiated amendment happened to get | in the enrolled bill and into the acts. Two or three months since it was an-
 nounced that MT. Joe Rietti of this city | had unearthed a zinc box containing
 about S17,50O in gold while he was en- 1 gagged in digging a hole in which to set l a young peach tree. That not only put | half the continuity to setting out fruit l trees and digging around in their back yards, but it brought hundreds of appli- | cations for loans from impecunious | friends.
 | However, MT. Riett has not put out any of his money doubtful securities. Every person who has mad the pleasure | of getting a hand on a portion of that
 easily made wealth has been forced to put l up in double the sum demanded or else | go without.
 l Today MT. Rietti is in receipt of 1000- | word letter from a woman in Kansas, 1 who claims that the money was buried | by her grandfather, who lived on that l place and was very rich She tells about | how all other members of her family were | killed and declares she is the only heir | She requests that MT Rietti take out
 commission and forward her the balance ! Of course he will do it.
 l At the meeting of the city council to- ] day it was determined. and an ordinance 1 was adopted, placing the management of | the city water works plant and business 1 under a commission of three men, yet | to be named, and who are to serve with l out pay. The commission is empowered
 to employ all the help necessary in the | management of the plant, to fix salaries l and discharge employees when necessary
 In fact the commissioners are given ab- | solute power and authority in the man | agement of this the eity's largest enter | prise, and which was purchased a year | ago at a cost of $226, ,000 Since that time i bonds in the sum of $196,000 have been l issued for extensions and repairs, which l are now under way.
 | Oscar Newton, Jr., of Brookhaven has | been elected president of the Jackson I bank and will enter upon the discharge ] of the duties of the position. Mir New ] ton has been president of the Brookhaven | Bank and Trust company since Its organ l ization several years ago. and has seen | its capital stock increased from S25.otO 1 to $100.00O He comes to Jackson as the
 successor of Thomas McClelland, who re- l tires to devote his time to other business l matters, being president of the McC1elland l Hardware company and of the Capital l Light and Power company. The Jackson | bank is one of the oldest and most suc- l cessful in the city.