Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1916-12-07
DR.. DURHAM
Is REMOVED
AS Road Commissioner From
The Scates' Mill
District.
TRIED In FISCAL COURT
Big Crowd Attended the
Meeting Tuesday and Many
Arguments Made.
FRIED In FISCAL COURT

The Fiscal Cont met in monthly
session Tuesday and the most impor-
tant matter to come up was the ques-
ton of removing DR.. w. w. Durham
from his position as a member of the
County Road Commission from the
northwestern section Of the county.
AT the last meeting DR.. Durham was
cited to appear and show cause why
he should not be removed. A petit
ton was filed with the court contain
| ing about $50 names of persons in
TIC part Of the county asking that he
be removed because ne had accepted
the position of second assistant phys-
clan at the Western State Hospital and
had moved into another portion of
the county. The claim was set up
that he held two salaried offices con-
trary to the constitution of the state.
Dr. Durham appeared in person and
was represented by Attorneys Jas.
Breathtt, Thos. p. Cook, Frank Rives
and Ohio Anderson, all of whom
made speeches for him and DR.. Dur
ham made statement himself and
his attorneys filed counter petition
with 600 names asking that he be not
removed. His attorneys took the po-
sition that neither Of the positions
held by DR.. Durham were "offices"
under the constitution and Judge
Breathitt read a decision from Lex
ington in the case of Wills VS.. Scott,
in which the Court of Appeals had
decided that the superintendency of
the Lexington State Hospital was not
an "office."
j. D. Caps, representing the first
petitioners, saidthe people needed and
wanted local representative and that
DR.. Durham held state appointment
at $1,000 and the other place that paid
SO day, not exceeding 500 in one
year. He said his time belonged to
the state and he could not discharge
the duties of the road commission
ship.
Replying to this, DR.. Durham said
his Hospital duties were performed in
the forenoon and he had more time to
devote to the work than when he
practiced medicine. Besides the COM
missioners were not engineers but
attended only to executive details.
County Attorney Ira d. Smith rec
commended to the court that the place
be declared vacant, since it was evil
dent that DR.. Durham had abandoned
the district from which he was APP
pointed and left large number of
dissatisfied constituents without local
representation in the expenditure of
100000 One member who moved
out of his district promptly resigned
and since DR.. Durham had not fol-
lowed this precedent the court, with
out meaning any disrespect to him,
should declare his place vacant and
let the Christian County Good Roads
Association meet as soon as possible
and recommend resident member
of the same political party to repre-
sent that road district.
A motion was made to go into ex-
ecutive session to consider the matter
further. The motion resulted in tie
and Judge Knight voted in the affirm
alive. In executive session the mat
ter came to vote and by vote of 5
to 3 the position was declared vacant
and the Good Roads Association asked
to make recommendation Dec. 18th.
The vote stood: Ayes-Morris, Dade,
Rives, Reese and Rogers. Nays
Moore, Handy and Wcodburn.
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