The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1912-02-14
OFFICE SEEKERS
SET UP A HOWL
They Saw Promised JOBS Get:
ting Away From Them.
CONSTRUCTION OF PRISON ACT

Claim is Made That Pending Amend
ment VIII Keep In Office For Four
Years the Incumbents in Fat State
Jobs at Frankfort and EddyvIle-
Naturally Enough Those Who Were
Looking For a Change Protested
Vigorously.
Frankfort, KY, Feb. 13.--When the
hungry office-seekers, expecting places
in the pententaries, at Frankfort and
Eddyville, as wardens and guards,
woke up to the fact that an amend
ment to the bill creating the bi-par-
tisan prison commission would mean
no 'pie" for four years, there was
howl OF wrath and the result Is that
determined fight will be made in the
\ was added in the senate. 1t is claim
led that under the amendment, which
nallows all those in the employment of
1.-THE prison to hold on for four years
! from Jan. 1, 1912, the present commits
sion, which is removed from Office. will
be able to put its friends into good
places in the forces at the two peniten-
iaries and that they then can not be
removed for four years.
This is not the way the act reads
and it is believed that the construction
placed on it has been done so to help
defeat the amendment so that the jobs
can be giver to new men. 1t has been
reported that nearly every good place
In each prison had been promised.
even before the new law was passed.
The amendment which the senate
adopted provides that all officials am
employees of the penal institutions. who
were employed on Jan. /, 1912 shall
be retained for a period of four years
unless removed for cause. This in
sures the retention of their jobs by
all the employees of the prison who
were on duty on the first of last Jan
uary. This would retain those who
have been removed since Jan. 1, for in
stance, a brother of Rufus Vansant.
Of Ashland, who was removed recently
as guard. He was in Office on the
first OF January, SO under the amend
ment to the act would be entitled to
get his position back. !
The attorney general has given as
his verbal opinion that the legislature
has right to provide that certain
men, employed in various capacities
on the first of last January shall be
q iuod In, thnco no citiac ,,nIar ba
new law. Judge James Garnett. at
torney general, says the legislature
could have mentioned them by name
in the act. and therefore have insured
their retention; so the legislature has
the right to provide for their retention
by making a sweeping provision to in
clude all in office on certain date.
At any rate there is certain to be a
fight in the house on the amendment
to the original bill and II the amend
ment is defeated the fight will be
waged again in the senate where the
amendment was adopted
Little humor has varied the mono
tony of work in the senate during the
present session but there were some
laughs when the county unit bill for
dogs" was brought up for discussion
The committee on agriculture pro
posed to substitute for the present law
taxing dogs all over the state, an act
allowing each county to vote on the
question Of taxing dogs. to provide a
fund for payment of losses of sheep
killed by dogs.
One of the senators, used to discus
sion on the county unit" bill affecting
the sale of liquor. wanted to know II
the precinct would govern. or the
whole county, and. II precinct voted
for dogs. would that precinct be al
lowed to have dogs. despite the fact
that the county voted against dogs II
was explained to the senator that the
bill did not have anything to do with
the precinct in settling the question
Of whether or not dogs should be tax
ed.
Senator Bertram wanted the present
law repealed. He said that In some
sections OF the state where sheep are
raised the dog law might work all
right, as the people there did not ne ID
dogs and did not need sheep. But. e
said, he came from a district where
one of the principal industries was the
selling OF animal skins.
I'm my district we do big business
in the sale OF skins OF skunks, mink.
possums and coons. and to get these
skins we need dogs. You in the sheep
districts may not need the dogs. but
ne do and We do not like to have TO