Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1917-01-11

both branches, but was vetoed by the
governor too late to pass it over his
Veto If similar measure is passe
by your honorable body. | shall
promptly sign it, I believe in the
interest of economy that the present
membership Oh this board should De
reduced from "a to Is, giving each
county two directors, and that these
directors should be elected by the
qualified electors residing in each
county. who have owned land in the
levee district for six months prior %
the election of directors. 1t is not
right that the expenditure of millions
of dollars for levee purposes should
be vested in a political board appoint
ed by the governor and amendable %
his will, no matter who is governor,
because this frequently means that
the levying of political tribute is a
matter of more vital concern to the
governor than the leveeing of the
Mississippi river and it's tributaries.
Tax Liquor Shipments.
No people can ever rise higher than
their ideals. Arkansas has been par
TALLY redeemed. resenerated. and
disenthralled' from the degrading in
fluences of the liquor traffic by the
passage Of a stately wide prohibition
law and by the defeat in the recent
election in no unmistakable terms of
act No. 2, which would have meant
not the; restoration OF local option.
about which good people differ. bit
the introduction of staturnalia Of
license and immortality such as the
state has never witnessed. But heavy
interstate shipments of liquor con-
tinue, and I believe this evil should
he regulated by the passage of law,
similar to Alabama's. prohibiting the
publication of liquor advertisements
in our newspapers. and taxing every
package of liquor coming into the
state. The Webb Kenyon bill. recent
ly passed by congress and upheld by
the United States supreme COURT
makes the police power of state
full and plenary. and l believe A
kansas should take advantage of this
fact to save the boys of the rising
generation from a certain degenera
ton. A tax of say o0-cents per gal
Ion on every gallon of whiskey com
ing into the state and of 80 cents per
case of every case of. vine AMI beer
coming into the state would produce
a substantial revenue, if enforced
but l urge the adoption of this or
some similar tax, not as a revnue- pro-
duqer but primarily as an extension
of the public power of the state IN
checking a dangerous and nefarious
traffic
A Public Utilities Commission.
Practically every state bordering
Arkansas has public utilities COM
mission. having jurisdiction over rail
roads. street railways, telegraph AMI
telephone lines. gas ami electric aom
panies. and all common carriers
operating or doing business within
the state. The idea OF properly con-
trolling the rates. franchises. reserve
capital. bond issues, and terms of
competition of public service corpora
tons has become so popular that
within the past deGrde 33 states have
secured regulation of all public utii-
ties through such commission.
Such regulation could be accom-
Eiloucu NCly tlleSlINely anu cCOuOull-
cally in Arkansas, II seems 10 me-, by
simply charging the jurisdiction Of
the railroad commission so as to in
cluie the supervision of all public
utilities. the only additional expense
attached to such a plan being the EN-
ployment Of technical expe-t to act
with the three members of the rail
road commission. and perhaps an ad
ditional secretary. Such a commits
sion. if created. would not only reduq,
rates TO consumers. which are in
many instances eXhorbitant in Ar
kansas, especially in the case of long.
distance telephones. but could sup
ply the tax commission with valuable
information on questions Of nhysiool
valuations. Such data is 'n3ispensi-
BILE # the tax commission is 10 really
perform its functions as a state
board of equalization especially if =
is given the power of reassessment. I
respectively recommend to the general
assembly that the railroad commits
sion be enlarged as 10 jurisdiction.
supervision and membership. so as 10
enable il TO control all public utilities.
An Absent Voters Law.
t. I believe that simple Justice to the
great body of our commercial trav,
elers, railroad men, ana other citizens
who are frequently called away from
-