Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1915-04-08

ness in Kentucky that could continue
six months II II were organized and
conducted like the business Of Ken
lucky. Our state Is an enormous bust
ness enterprise that receives and
spends more than 100000 annually.
This money comes from the taxpay-
ers, and they have q right. to demand
that every dollar paid by them for the
maintenance of the government rem.
der a dollars worth of patriotic SER
vice, and that every person elected
or appointed to a government posi-.
tion render honest labor and do a full
days work. The people have never
objected and never will object to pay
| ing for good service and good govern
ment, provided they get good service
and good government. II | am elect
| ed governor. my first message to the
| general assembly will deal largely
| with the business conditions of the
| state and will recommend that the
states financial system be reorgan
| ized waste and extravaganza be elm
mated and the taxpayer protected,
and an equitable, just and progress
sive system of taxation and business
established. am going to use
every power | have to have the debt
Of the state paid off and her business
put in shape so she can meet her obi.
cations when they fall due. | shall
work for a more efficient administra.
ton of the affairs of the state, and
shall stand for the right kind of econ.
omy in all public matters. | am UNI
alterably opposed to any increase In
The tax rate. | believe with the prop.
er business management we can solve
our. fiscal problems without any in.
crease in the tax rate. | shall use my
influence In having law passed that
will call from its hiding place intangi
BILE property, that is largely owned by
the rich and is escaping taxation and
force it to bear its part of the ex-
pense of maintaining the government,
Many, many other wrongs exist and
will continue to exist until the bust.
ness OF the state is reorganized. II
am elected governor | shall recon !
mend that no appropriations be mado |
except in cases OF emergencies, until
the present financial condition OF the |
state is corrected and it is In posi- |
ton to pay her appropriations when
they fall due. | shall recommend
abolishing every useless Office, and
the right kind of economy in every |
department of the government.
When | was a child | used a min |
now hook, a thread and worm and
fished in a hole of water about two
feet deep that was under the roots OF
a sycamore tree that stood by the
bank of a creek. A person may Ash
in this hole of water all his life and
he will never catch anything but min
nows. because only minnows inhabit |
II. II he does not go to the larger |
waters he will never know the differ /
ence that comes from the feeble tug
of a minnow and the thrilling pull OF
a FIVE pound bass. | fear sometimes
that Kentucky has fished too much in |
minnow holes instead of putting out |
boldly upon the great sea Of life and
feeling the spiritual and industrial |
swells that come from larger states |
manship. We have sometimes dab |
bled in the shoals when we should
have been out upon the great blue
deep. We have played secret and
petty politics in secret and dark
places in the interest of the few |
when we should have been working |
for the many and transacting the |
business OF the commonwealth Wei
have been satisfied with inadequate |
educational advantages for our chill. |
dren when we should have demanded |
tho best We have in many instances
robbed the soil of it's fertility, de. |
stroyed the timber and polluted the !
streams instead of conserving them. |
We have too often neglected our agri |
cultural interests, and as a result /
many nubbns and small crops grow
where big ears and large CROWS should
grow. We have been satisfied with
muddy roads and willing to paw the
enormous mud tax when we should |
have had good roads We have ship |
ped our coal into ether states to run
their machinery, when we should |
have been using it for home indus
tries. We have been shipping raw
material into other commemorative |
TO be made into finished articles, to |
be shipped back to us and sold at an |
enormous profit, when we should |
have been making these finished arti- |
cles ourselves and shipping them |
into other states. In fact. we have |
done too much fishing in minnow |
holes and have not had enough of the |
thrill, pleasure and profit that comes |
from larger EFFORT.
Nature has made Kentucky a good |
ly land. lavished upon her gifts with |
4 prodigal hand. bestowed within her |
borders natural resources which |
make her land sanguine in promise
and productivity, mighty In industrial
opportunity and imperial in the ma
jesty OF her soil. Her area is almost |
as large as England. She is one-fifth 1
as large as the German empire and /
four times as large as Belgium II her
population were as dense as Belgium,
there would be within our area 25,.
900 1000; or as dense as Germany,
there would be 12.000,000; or II as
thickly settled as England, 10000, 900
souls. She has a great agricultural
area, marvellous coal fields, much iron
ore. valuable oil and gas reservoirs,
supplies of limestone,
clay and cement material, and within
ron A mn unflao Of HE |