The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-30

condemned the men who defeated it,
! honestly, through ignorance, he is not
a fit guide for the people in such mat
| ters. If he was not ignorant, and nev-
ertheless. sought to excite the prejudices
| of the people against his fellow men
/ for not doing what he is bound now to
/ know they could not do, his comments
| upon the defeat of this legislation pro-
claim the werking of a mind totally lack
| ing in scruples, or on the other hand
| wholly barren of the faintest conception
| of justice to his fellow-man.
The People Opposed the Legislation
The rejected legislation fell of its own
weight. as soon as its object and effect
were fully understood. 1t was debated
for weeks in the newspapers, in editorials,
communications and pamphlets, and at
hearings before committees of the leg
islature, well as in the discussions
before that body. Weeks before the de-
bate drew to an end, 1t became clear
from the attitude of the majority of the
weekly and daily press, and from the
expressions of the leaders in the business,
industrial, agricultural and political life
of the state, and the numerous petitions
of citizens protesting against the legis-
lation, that the people OF the state
strongly opposed Its enactment.
have not had access to the complete
newspaper files of that day, and have
only had opportunity to examine a few
incomplete files of the Advertiser If any
one CLEANS the old newspaper files he will
find scores of communications from men
representing all sorts of interests, in all
walks of life, opposing the legislation.
Among it's strongest opponents were the
late Henry f., DeBardelaben. a pioneer
in the mining and iron industry of the
state, and the late James w. Sloss, whose
early efforts in the iron business and
railroad building helped to put Birming-
ham on it's feet.
The campaign against the bills was
| one of publicity. Captain Walter G..
| Bragg and Mr.. Milton H. Smith had a.
| long correspondence about the proposed
| legislation which, on the assembling of
| the legislature, was sent to the members
and published in the newspapers. Col
| j. w. Sloss and Capt. j. f. Whitfield
on behalf of the railroads. also brought
| the questions to the attention of the
public and aided in arousing public
| opinion against 1t. When the matter
came up in the legislature, | was the
1 chief local attorney for Alabama for
/ three divisions of the Louisville and
| Nashville railroad, and my only duties
were to supervise their litigation and ad-
wise them about law matters. was
| never asked to undertake any other. AS
| the legislation affected all the railroads
| of the state, their chief attorneys ad-
| vised them as to their legal rights and
| their objections to the bills, and they
| jointly employed, as understood it, spe-
| cial counsel who appeared before COM
| mittees and made arguments against the
| policy and constitutionality of the legis-
| lation. Among the counsel who thus
appeared were Ex-Goxernor Thomas H.
| Watts and General Edmund w. Pettus.
| 1t so happened that | was not asked
to take any part in the matter, though
with my convictions about the consti-
4rVft
L would not have hesitated to appear be-
fore committees In opposition to the leg
lslation either as an attorney for rail-
roads, or representative, because from
the general standpoint of the public in
terest, without regard to the railroads
themselves | regarded the legislation as
unwise and Unconstitutional. l made two
speeches in the house against the only
two of the batch of bills which were dis
cussed and came to a vote.
In Montgomery county, my immediate
constituency, there was practical unani-
nifty In opposition to the legislation
In the Advertiser files of December 1884,
and January, 1885, will be found copies
of two petitions addressed to the sem
ator and representative of Montgomery
county, signed by nearly every one of
the leading men in the county, protest
ing against the passage of the legislation
Other petitions were sent at different
times to individual members of the dele
cation, the signers of which were not
published, containing over 1000 names of
men from all parts of the county So
pronounced was the sentiment of this
county against the proposed legislation,
| that the late Col d. S. Troy, then sem
| ator from Montgomery, gave it as his
| opinion in the debate, on one of the bills
| that any representative from Montgorn-
| cry who voted for them, and went be
fore the people again would be beaten
by 5000 Votes.' The senator and repre-
sentative from Montgomery voted unani-
mously against the bills and in so doing
they undoubtedly obeyed the wishes of
an overwhelming majority of their con-
sttuents.
A. {. HargrOve and Hiram Hawkins
Among my colleagues in the house who
voted against the legislation We're An
drew c. Hargrove of Tuscaloosa, and
Hiram Hawkins of Barbour, two men
whose names all Alabamians recall with
affection and respect. Andrew C. Har-
grove, whose very name is a synonym
of honor, died some years ago. carrying
to his grave scars of terrible wounds
received in defense of Alabama. He was
a lawyer of great ability, a wise legisla-
tor, friend of justice and humanity,
and the possessor of a dauntless courage
which always championed the cause of
the weak and oppressed. Hiram Hawkins
was laid in an honored grave within the
last two months, after reaching a ripe
old age, among a people who loved him.
He was a man of the highest character,
a soldier of distinction, and fine citi-
zen, always striving to improve the con-
dition of the tillers of the soil He was
an early and prominent member of the
grange and afterward of the Farmers
alliance, and was the father of the meas
ure which created our department of ag-
riculture. Is it not inconceivable that
men like these, types of others who voted
with them, would vote either from want
of intelligence, independence or patriot
| ism, or from subserviency to a lobby,
| against measures which would have pro-
noted the welfare of the people?
| Whoever bends over the brook or spring,
no matter how crystal and pure the
waters may be, sees in their depths only
the reflection of his own image. So also
the man who peers into the motives of fell
low men, no matter how pure they may
| be, will see reflected back upon his vision
only images born of his own ideals of
honor and duty, and will proclaim them
| to be good or bad as the standards by
hich he guides his own life are high or
low.
Always Set Example of Independence
The effort to create the impression that
| | ever was, at any time, other than a
| faithful and independent representative
| of all my constituents in public trusts, in
1 view of we'll known facts is ineffably
mean and insncere. Under the circum-