The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-07-05
EIGHT GOVERNORS OF ALABAMA
 1S74-1901
No. 125-Some Tro ublous Questions
 William c. o ates, Governor
1S74-1901

1 Governor Oates entered upon office un- der interesting circumstances. He was an interesting man. His life had been marked by personal struggles and person. al successes. Born in poverty and reared in diversity" is the impressive au- tobiography inscribed on his tomb, the most elaborate and conspicuous monu- ment in the Montgomery cemetery. l He brought into his new office the self-announced feature of stepping stone to the United States Senate. He had been in the House for many years and re- signed a term half spent to become gov 1 ernor. He would accept but one term as governor, two years, for his precon- ceived purpose was to ask the legislature of 1896 to give to him the seat in the Senate then held by Senator James L.. Pugh. He was an early volunteer in the Confederate army. rose from his start as captain to colonel won distinction in Laws historic brigade, army of northern Virginia, and was twice desperately wounded in action. He was familiary known as the one-arm hero of the Wire Grass" in which region he was born and reared. There is another self-prepared line of inscription on his towering tomb He acquired a competency" He had only a rudimentary academic education.
 Four days after he took the oath of governor he sent to the legislature an elaborate message by his private secre- tary, Col. Harvey Jones. It was a re- markedly clear outline of the conditions that required legislative remedy.
 The tax rate was too low and the method of assessments of taxable values insuf- heient. The governor considered the root of the trouble with the states income to be in the elective assessor of taxes. He recommended a state tax commission to be appointed by the governor and a county board of assessors to be chosen by the commissioners court. It had been ar ranged by Governor Jones to break up the convict lease system and confine the prisoners to agricultural labor on state lands. Governor Oates feared the execu- tion of this plan would not result in the support of the penitentiary, and that in sututfon should be self-supporting be- yond doubt. He conceived a cotton mill as a feature of penitentiary reform. and had one built on the Speigner planta- tion of brick, made on the spot by con vict labor
 Judges of courts of law were over worked and their number should be in- creased. The office of chancellor should be abolished and the duties devolved on circuit judges.
 Adequate statutory law to provide for a contest of the election of governor and other state officers should be enacted.
 Election laws should be amended to satisfy the parties to election that perfect fairness is secured in the whole process The governors salary, 5000 a year. lis entirely inadequate, especially as he has to find a home for himself"
 On January 23, 1895, Governor Oates sent in an interesting message giving orlef history of the public educa- tional institutions of the state The direct object was to make formal pro- test against larger appropriation to normal schools. He said tuition was free at the university and at the A. &. M. college. Graduates from these in stitutions furnished more competent teachers than there were schools ready to employ them. Could a normal school be classes as a public school? No common benefit was expected to come from.it. The amount of $500 annually was taken from the common school found to support normal schools main tained for the benefit of a select few
 The governor recommended that the school fund be raised by a specific tax of # mills and be designated on the books of fiscal officers as distinct from the general fund.
 The tax rate was raised to 5Is miIis The county board of education .sl created The Jurisdiction of the ..ov ernor over county fiscal officers was enlarged. The state auditors responsi- bilfty to his office was increased and other disciplinary reforms in the rev- enue service were installed.