The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-08-14
Embarrassing Questions Asked Gouernor Kilby By Operators m Answering "Open Letter"
eff You Did Not Intend to Create Impression That $1 to $1.5O Profit Was Being Made,
 What Was Object?" Is Query
By ". J. ROLES


 Montgomery, August 1s.-(SpeciaL)-t The coal operators tonight gave out the following reply to Governor Kilby's open letter which appeared in The Age Herald today:
 Hon. Thomas E. Kilby, Governor of
 Alabama.
 sir: We reply to your open letter of August 12th, published today. You say
 I have not said that the miners are netting s1 to sL5o on coal nor have I been so quoted in the press. I made the state- ment that coal operator informed me that the mines are netting s1 to s1.5o.' We assumed that statement from governor of Alabama, however, clever the form of the statement, on a subject of great importance was intended to af ford real information insofar as it dealt with the material facts of the case and to throw real light insofar as 1t dealt with the argumentative features of the case. We did not assume, and we owed you and your great office the duty nor to assume, that you deliberately intend- , ed to give out statement, for which 1 you assumed no responsibility and with the purpose to decline to give even your l authority when the correctness of the statement was chaileneged. Did we err 1 in that assumption
 l WHY WAS STATEMENT MADE? I If you did not intend to create the | impression that profit of Sl to S1.50 per ! ton was being made on coal, what was | your purpose? And did you not intend I to create the impression that the case l you mentioned was a true case, that you | had substantial authority for its proof and that it was not an isolated case, but l a typical case? If you did not think | your statement was material to the issue and entitled to weigh in the solution ot the issue, why did you make 1t? 1 Certainly you would not be so unfair as to expect a single exception to furnish the basis for a general rule, and certain l 1y you will not expect even your closest l friends to be moved by a statement, which being challenged, you decline to support either by evidence, or by nam I ing your authority How can the truth be ascertained? Do you expect your closest friends. even, to act upon state ment which stands challenged in the 1 face of your deefination not only to meet l the challenge yourself but allow it to be met and how can it be met when you withhold your authority? Do you ex- l pect great questions to be settled on statements which are directly and posi- lively denied, merely because you say somebody that you think is truthful told you so, when you also say that you car not tell who that somebody is?
 And must citizens of the state of Ala bama. when they challenge the correct ness of statement emanating from the i governor of the state, be not only denied the right to have the issue met. but also submit to the indignity and humiliation of being told and of having the people of Alabama told by the governor of the state that the issue will not bet met. nor the authority for the statement De given because your tactics lead me to fear that you would not stop at the destruction of an individual who stands in the way of the accomplishment of your purposeT
 TO FIGHT TO END
 1 .SWe have made a hard fight. We are going to fight to the end Our property
 and our business are in grave jeopardy We are free men. We have the constHu-
 tional rights to petition and protest tc
 our legislature And you qualified as
 governor by taking oath to support that
 constitution, a right in common with al
 other rights granted by the constitution
 Such statements as we have made are
 made on our own responsibility, no' hearsay, but supported by itemized cos
 sheets and testified to before commit
 tees of the legislature in open netting: |,
 cross examined by members of the com . mittees
 We have quoted no authority that W
 are unwilling to name. and we do pro . test against having our case determined
 on statements even though they d' 1 emanate from the governor of the state which when challenged. are not onl, neither proven nor retracted, but are re r peated. Yes, repeated on the authorit : of somebody you decline to name an , pressed it's acceptance because you sa : you believe that somebody to be- truth full.
 : PURE CLASS LEGISLATION 'The tonnage tax is class legisla tion You seek to impose every forn of taxation on uAS and on our propert, ' to which others are subject, and thel
 another tax. much heavier in dollar : and cents in many cases. to which III . iothe, property or business is subjeci We do not ask, we have never asked ; to be relieved of one iota of taxation to which others are subject. We d protest and we will continue to pro : test against a special tax applicabl d to us alone. We will join hands wit [ you in advocating any measure o
 taxation which is fair and equal an
 which will produce every dollar thu