Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1916-01-11
CAROLINA'S ASSEMBLY
MEETS TUESDAY NOON
State Ends First Year of Adj
miniStratiOn Since Gov
ernorShip of BIeaSe
Especial Dispatch to The JOurnalD


COLUMBIA 5. c., Jan. S.-Important
because il marks the end of the first
year Of the administration since Cole l..
Blease retired from the governorship
the seventy-first general assembly OF
South Carolina convenes for it's second
and final session on Tuesday at noon
Both houses are organized and ready
for business.
The annual message of Governor
Manning will be read on Tuesday as
soon as the opening formalities are
through Ii is possible that Governor
Manning will make a departure from
the annual custom and deliver his mes
sage in person before the two houses in
joint session. This matter has not been
definitely determined on by the gov
ernor, but several of his closest ad-
visers and friends are urging that
he take this course.
The work of the various departments
Of the government will be reviewed by
the governor in his first annual message
and there is general interest in the
recommendation which he will make. 1t
has been generally known some time
that he will recommend a compulsory
board Of arbitration to settle all strikes.
This was brought to a head by the street
car strike in Columbia and the strikes
I'm the cotton mills in Anderson and
Greenville counties.
The recommendation of the governor
respecting the perfecting and strengthen
ing Of the cotton warehouse act will be
another matter of interest. He and John
l.. McLaurin, state warehouse commits
sioner. are in accord with the recon-
mendations which are to be made.
The most interesting fight facing the
session is that against the state tax
commission. This body was created at
the last session and in it's first years
work has equalized the assessments
against the banks and cotton mills.
Some of the banks are making a fight
to have the law creating the commits
sion repealed and failing in this they
will make a fight to prevent the con-
firming of A w. Jones, former comp
troller general; w. G. Query and j. p.
Derham, the members who were appoint
ed by the governor. Their names will
have to be sent to the senate for action
by the governor.
The report of the state hospital for
insane will attract attention. Under a
plan of reorganization of the institution
the general assembly at it's last session
provided an extra $685. for remodel
ing and undermining the institution.
The governor appointed DR.. G. Fred
Williams superintendent and fixed his
salary at $4,000. As only $4,000 was
appropriated by the general assembly
for the salary the governor borrowed
the additional $4,000 and now il is said
the legislature will not reimburse him
for the extra $4,000 because it was I'M
constitutional and because the constitu-
ton prohibits the increasing the salary
of any officer in office while the increase
was made. The opponents of the gov
aXnnnfRd n lxa
litical cutlery against him on this score
but his friends believe that he will be
able to show that he was actuated only
by conscientious scruples and that I'M
der the superintendency of Dr. Williams
a saving of $500 a month alone was
made in the administrative supplies.
There are three new faces in the low
er house, j. Terry Wood, of Greenville;,
r. b. Hicks, of Spartanburg, and r.
b. Belser, of Sumter, all taking the
places of members who resigned, and
one new member of the senate, Charl-
ton DuRant, of Clarendon county, who
takes the seat of Louis Applet who died
after the close of the session last year.
Lieutenant Governor Andrew ].
Bethea is the presiding officer of the
senate, but ii is not certain that he
will be on hand to call that body to or
der on Tuesday. He went to Europe as
VI INC CApC0ANAOh ANNCu Jul
and financed by Henry Ford, and dis
patches from Copenhagen a few days
ago said that he had quit the party of
pacifcation to return to his duties in
South Carolina. He is expected to re-
turn to this state some time next week.
If he is absent, Legrand G. Walker,
senator from Georgetown county, who
is president pro tenn, will call the sem
ate to order and preside until the lieu
tenant governor gets back.
The size of the proposed budget for
next year is worrying Governor Man
ming and the legislative leaders. The
compiled requests for appropriations
totals $4,000, 900. which is nearly ST.
600, 900 greater than the appropriation
bill of 1915, and it would take a levy of
10 mills to raise this amount, an in
crease of mills over the present state
levy. The governor and administration
leaders have expressed their determina-
ton to hold down the appropriations to
not greater than that of last session
and they hope to affect cut in the size
of the levy. The ways and means COM
mittee of the house has been called to
meet by Chairman J. T. Lilies early next
week to take up the budget and began
pruning for the appropriation bill.
Indications are that the harmony
which prevailed last session will again
reign in the Palmetto assembly halls.