Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-07-06

:
years, and who will have to enter
for reelection within tn
next twelve months.
To a Sunday American reporte
Saturday the former Governor CAV
the following interview:
BY JOSEPH M. BROWN.
am going to stay at home for
few days and then ! shall run
up to my farm in Cherokee
County, where / will be for the
next week or two.
The duties of the executive Of
fee for more than a year past
have forced me to neglect almost
entirely my personal affairs;
hence l must give primary atten-
ton to them for some time to
come
Later I expect to make an ex-
animation of the status which in
wolves the States relationship to
the labor union. II there is a d.
vided sovereignty of this rela-
tionship all the people are entitled
to know 1t so that they can shape
their course . accordingly and
choose TO which they will yield
allegiance.
II there is but one sovereignty
that fact should be made so plain
that no man and no organization
of men should be betrayed into
acts of attempted usurpation OF
that sovereignty
Unions Have Made Issue,
In my retiring message to the
General Assembly / stated that
Ia hn he
sue as to whether or not its union
label carried more authority in
Georgia than does Georgia's great
seal of State.
A mere statement of the official
records Of these two sources of
authority necessarily confirms my
declaration, viz: Some time be-
fore the year 1910 the State
granted charter to the Georgia
Railroad and Banking Company,
wherein she placed upon that
company and upon future owners
Of that railroad the duties of a
common carrier. She imposed
upon the owners OF that charter
the obligation to operate trains
for the conduct of the commerce
of the public and Of its power to
travel. AS the proof Of her sover-
eign authority to grant that
charter and to force obedience to
its conditions she placed upon 1t
her Great Seal of State.
In 1907 she specifically and pos
itively made it the duty of the
Railroad Commission to order
and compel" the operation Of such
train service as the needs Of the
public required.
In 1909 and again In 1912 the
labor Union ordered the trainmen
on the Georgia Railroad to ig-
more the States mandate and in
stead to prevent the running of
the trains, which it knew would
result in great inconvenience and
loss to the public. On that order
il placed its union label.
This made the issue between
the union label and Georgia's
great seal Of State square and
plain. No sophistry can obscure
it; no vituperative personal abuse
can wipe 1t out.
Exactly the same issue was
made ir the strike by the street
car employees in Augusta.
note that 1t has been said that
should not at this late day have
first that has been held since the
stirred up this matter, thus re-
newing dissension among the peo-
pie; but / call your attention to
the fact that the present session
of the General Assembly Us the
occurrence of the strikes on the
Augusta street car line and the
Georgia Railroad Hence, this
was the first opportunity l had
for officially notifying the Cen
eral Assembly of these two glar-
ing acts of disregard of the
States authority and of the ne
cessity of enacting such laws as
would protect the public against
their recurrence.
Since the publication of ex-
tracts of the message | have re-
ceived a multitude of letters from
people in Georgia and about a
dozen other States wherein my
position is indorsed and state
ments are made that the labor
unions exactions are becoming
almost unbearable
Thus far the labor union and
its few newspaper advocates are
alone in criticising the stand
which the oath of ONCE made 1t
my duty to take. From these l
note that I have KILLED myself
politically"
Never Considered Politics.
AS to that act of so-styled po-
litical suicide, l will remark that
it never occurred to me to con-
slider any political bearing in the
case. But, now that the point has
been raised, will observe that
there was a matter of gratitude
to the people of Georgia. which
may even be styled political graf
itude, which, I confess, swayed
me. / refer to the fact that the
voters of this State have twice
conferred upon me the supreme
honor in their gift.
Nothing which they control
compares in responsibility, in dig
nifty and eminence with the gov
ernorshipi
Therefore. with my reward al
ready bestowed. they had the
right to expect and demand that /
would safeguard their interests,