Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1910-03-04
State TERMINALS PAY
FOR TREASURY BUGAB0O?
Or Was Legislature Simply
Testing When II Directed
Governor to Secure Options

IsyGovernor Browns undivulged reason
for not taking UP the Western and At
lantic terminal options at Chattanooga,
his own belief that the purchase OF the
property would be premature now?
Did he exercise this opinion on the sup
position that the act OF the legislature
directing him TO take up the options was
not mandatory7
Governor Brown has definitely refused
20 discuss this matter. He has already
definitely declined to recite any reason
whatever for not complying with the leg
islature's- instructions nee he SO re-
fused and declined. he has not been ap-
preached again by The Journal for his
reasons: wherefore il cannot be stated
here whether the assumptions above laid
out are absolutely correct. But
WHAT THE RECORD SHOWS
m Is known that on September OF
last year. when the bugaboo OF bank
rcpt state was being held aloft to scare
children. Governor Brown wrote TO inc
attorney general letter concluding Win
these words: LAND which we may pos
sihiy need for railroad terminals ten years
hence
: he was referring to the land which the
legislature had secured options upon ana
had Instructed him to buy-the laho. IN
ChattanoOga which experts and inVesu-
4.
self Believed the state should buy while
II could. that il might prepare for NOV
ing its terminals from the downtown pus-
mess section OF Chattanooga Wnen inc
state railroad reverts to H. anu % 80
moving the terminals leave the downtown
n~operty open 10 development ana reFe-
nue. production
7shat was the land which we may pos
sfbly need for railroad terminals ten years
hence" which he was referring 10.
ft WANTED AN OPINION
He wanted an opinion from the attorney
general whether. in view OF certain Soi-
ditfons that the governor gave mere
was then money in the treasury which
VAS legally available for the purchase
Of thu land
TIN now the existence of that letter mas
not been publicly known
The attorney generals reply was the
only opinion that he has put on TecOFu
an the matter. So far as can De learheu
a. Is the only opinion he has ever fur
nished the governor about the situauoh-
He has not stated his opinion whether OF
not the act Of the legislature command
ed the governor TO make the purchase
or whether il left those purchases to the
governors discretion.
Based on the premises which the gov
ernor cited. and which the attorney gen
eral repeated. the opinion OF the latter
was essentially as follows:
WHAT HART SAID
you state in your letter there Is at
present IN the treasury approximately
$4,000 and that the state is already snort
10000 in meeting the appropriation
made nv the legislature of ls07-s. for the
support and maintenance Of the common
schools OF the state for the year 1909. y
In vie wof these conditions there
fsr at present no money in the treasury
which could legally be used for the pur-
chase Of the land in question.
Judge Hart did not question the premi-
ses which the governor put up TO Jim
IL was not his duty to Investigate the as
ssrtion that the state was so much short.
He accepted the premises. and on them
xave his opinion that there was not then,
on September 1. 1853, enough money in the
treasury TO legally expend II for the
lands
= WAS LEGISLATURE JOKING?
So, as tar the records show. the will
of the legislature was sacrificed TO that
bugaboo treasury deficit which the condi-
tiou of the treasury itself has SO elo-
quently exposed ~
Land which We may possibly need for
railroad terminals ten years hence.
That's another eloquent detail in the sit
uation-
And Judge Hart has never been asked IL
he Thought the legislature meant whaf
n said or was really only jesting about
those terminals or leaving II to the judg-
ment Of one man whether they should be
bought or not