St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1913-10-11
ELECT E. B. DUBUISSON
TO HELP LOUISIANA
Labor And Leadership OF Experienced Business Nam
Familiar Vito Finance Necessary To The
Success Of Convention

i l4GIl.. Lie NOtGTS Ol Oh. LdHQFy
will decide who shall represent
4the parish as delegate to the
Constitutional Convention called
to meet at Baton Rouge on Nov
ember 10th.
The Editor of the Clarion
thinks that Hon. E. B. Dubuis-
son is the logical man for the
position, and that it is the duty
of our voters to name him as
their representative, irrespective
of personal preferences or politi-
cal alignments.
This is no expression of mere
personal opinion. 1t is a logical
AN d unanswerable deduction
from the history of the State
Question, the one vital issue for
the solution of which this Con-
vention was called.
/ The Convention is to be COM
posed Of so members, consisting
/ of one delegate from each coun-
| try parish and one delegate from
representative district of the
parish of Orleans. While it ap-
pears as call to adopt an entire
Ely new State Constitution, with
out submitting it to the vote of
the people for approval, the act
of the Extra Session of 1918
which calls it, expressly deprives
the Convention of all power to
change or upset the existing
Constitution of 1898 in a political
or any other direction, except
with regard to the one question
of the States bonded debt of
Sl1, 1O8, 300 which natures on
Jan. /, 1914, and one New Or
leans local question concerning
/ the Sewerage and Water Board
of that city.
This bonded State debt of
S11, 1O8, 800 represents the un-
paid balance Of that portion
recognized as legal of the larger
floating and bonded debt which
was created during reconstruc-
ton times. The debt was scaled
down tnd readjusted in 1874, and
since tLen we h ave
paid not less than SIG, 500. 600 in
interest, and still owe $11, 108, 800
in principal.
Every voter will therefore
recognize the great Importance
os this State Debt question.
This debt is an .old man of the
sea, and has been strangIing
the States progress for fifty
years, eating up each year about
half a million dollars of the tax
PAYERS money which should
have gone into good roads and
other State improvements.
But many will ask: Why Is An
Expensive Convention Neces-
sary? Why must delegates be
summoned at great trouble from
all over the State to solve this
question? The Constitution has
frequently been amended before
to meet various conting ,ncies.
In such cases the Lag stature
would merely embody the alter
nation in a joint resolution, and
submit this to the peo. se for
ratification at general election.
Why Not In This Case? Why A
Convention To Solve This Single
Problem?
The Answer Is Plain. It is
because the General Assembly
has already bungled the matter
twice. 1t tried to solve the
question in 1910, but Failed. It
passed Act 303 Of 1910, which
was duly ratified by the people
in November 1910. Said act
authorized the issue on now 4
per cent State bonds to the
amount of Sill, los, 800, payable
so years after date, to take up
the issue for a like amount fal-
ling due on January 1st, 1914
But the job WIS done by legisla-|
tors and politicians, inexperienc-
ed in business and finance, and
it was a Failure. The Bonds
Could Not Be Sold.
A second trial was made IN
1912. A new joint resolution
was drafted and adopted by the
General Assembly as Act M3 OF
1912. This resolution again
authorized a new series of 4 per
cent State bonds. payable 30
wears after date, to take up the
old bonds of like amount falling
due on January /, 1914. It was
submitted to the people for rati-
fication as a Constitutional
amendment on Nov. 5, 1912, but
was defeated by the overWhelm-
ing vote of "a, 140 to "a, 895.
This defeat was undoubtedly due
to the fact that the joint resoIu.
ton went beyond the scope OF
the 1910 amendment, and at
tepted not only to authorize an
issue of new bonds to take up
tIoe universally recognized bond
ed State debt of S11, 108, 300, but
also attempted to reopen the