The Paducah evening sun., 1910-03-16
Using VETERANS FOR BAIT.


USING VETERANS FOR BAIT.
8 The Kentucky legislature stands
adjourned for two years unless Gov
lernor Wilson calls Il in special ses-
sion to enact financial legislation.
! What was done and what was left
undone In the way of public meas
ures must fall squarely upon the
shoulders of the majority in both
houses, which adopted rules. provid-
ling that only a two-thirds majority
could call a bill from a committee
when unfavorably reported, and then
fixed the committee, in accordance
with the designs of a we'll organized
lobby.
One of the loudly proclaimed meas
ures is a Confederate pension bill,
which passed the legislature unani-
mously. II sounds grand to tell about
lprovisious for the brave old soldiers,
who gave four years and much OF
their vitality to the cause they loved:
but in reality it is about as grand as
the act of a man, who. having already
overdrawn his account at the bank,
gives a check for an indefinite amount
TO relieve the distress of a friend. II
is a fraud and a sham. There is no
money to meet the states outstand-
ing obligations. and the men, who
acclaimed the heroes of the south so
vociferously in the legislature pro-
vided no means of raising revenue to
pay these pensions. We cannot see
what the governor can do, but veto
the bill. Probably the astute poiiti
clans in the legislature set the trap
for the governor and baited it with
gallant old soldiers In gray, some of
them minus arms and legs; all of
them silvery haired, scarcely proper
game for such a shoddy political
trick.
Oh, The shameless perfidy of the
contemptible swine, who could think
of subjecting brave old warriors to
the ignominy OF being mere bait to
trap a governorl They forgot the
lpress, as they did when they choked
the county unit and fraudulently
lpassed the Louisville ripper bill. They
didn't have the nerve to pass the lat
ter over the governors veto. They
will be sorry they didn't do some
thing besides talk for the Confederate
veterans, when the press finishes with
them. Some editors have already
spoken on the subject. Monday the
Courier-Journal suggested
There seems to be some awaken
I ing at Frankfort as to the practically
llimitless cost of attempting to PEN
sion the Confederate veterans and
their widows. There is difference
between passing a pension bill on a
} sentiment and a song and raising the
money to carry out the provisions OF
the BILL"
! Yesterday the Mayfeld Messenger
added: srarq <4.1
1T is predicted that the governor
will veto the Confederate pension
bill. II the legislature had not APP
propriated such large sums of money
and had not increased the salaries OF
so many Offices and had not increased
and created so many new Offices the
state would probably have had money
enough TO have paid these old SOL
diers a little money, which they so
muchly need IN the last years OF their
lives These gallant old soldiers in
all probability will not get a pension
which they so greatly deserve. all be-
cause of the extravaganza and bad
business management OF the members
of the present Legislature. We are
sorry to see such extravaganza and
such a waste of our public money in
some things and such rigid economy
in others"
Another failure of the legislature
was the income tax amendment to
the federal constitution. II has been
openly averred that some one pur-
posely emasculated the resolution, as
II was passed by the legislature. by
.omitting the word incomes" When
the governor discovered the omission
he sent II back and the legislature
refused TO adopt II. There Is some
covert opposition to the constitu-
tional amendment and a piece of
money is supposed to have changed
hands on the alteration OF the resolu-
ton. We cannot refrain from men,
tioning that Senator Eaton made a
game fight for the amendment to the
last.
Altogether we entertain hopes that
political debauohery and demagoguery
in Kentucky reached the high water
mark in the legislature just con-
eluded. and that better things are In
store for us in the future. But, as
the Baltimore Sun remarked OF
Philadelphia. the people OF Kentucky
got just what they voted for. -..