The star-progress. (Opelousas, La.) 1917-1921, 1921-04-27
CONVENTION in
RACE TO FINISH
BEFORE time UP
Freely Predicted Body Will
Be Forced to Continue
Longer
GIGANTIC TASK
FACES DELEGATES
Eight Week Well Under
Way and Important Meas
ures Untouched

The constitutional convention
started it's eighth week Monday with
tremendous amount of unfinished
work before it and facing the pro-
bability of being forced to extend the
session beyond the seventy-five-day
time limit set by the legislature. The
convention, under this time limit, IS
due to adjourn sine die on Satur-
day, May IA, but with the apparent
chaotic condition of the calender and
many of the real big subjects almost
untouched, adjournment on that da.e
now seems both impossible and i'm
probable. The delegates have begun
to realize that too much valuable time
was frittered away at the beginning OF
the meeting and that time, now lost
can not be recovered. In order, there
fore, to mend the evil it will become
absolutely necessary to go beyond
the seventy-five day limit.
Taxation, judiciary, suffrage, high
ways and education are the big ques-
tions yet to be settled, and unQues-
tionably the time is too short IN
which to give each the discussion and
deEberation it deserves. Minor ques-
tions can be settled much easier but
there will be little time in which 10
deliberate over anything. Plainly,
there has been too much politics play
ed in the preceding weeks when more
important and serious matters should
have had the earnest consideration OF
the members.
Redistricting of the state as to dis
trict courts has stirred up hornets
nest in some quarters. There certain.
I ly hasn't been any uniform idea n
view in grouping the several parishes
SO far as population is concerned, and
a glance at lists recently published
shows that the convention, or com
mittee, lost sight of this matter Fol
example, Avoyelles, with not near tn;
population as St Landry, has beer
made a judicial district with one
Judge, while St. Landry and Ev2nge
| line, with over seventy thousand peo
pie have been grouped together. SIN
iliar inequities appear in other dis
ltrict's formed by the committees plan
District judges will be paid FIVE
thousand dollars per year, instead o
three thousand, as under the presen
!, constitution. There is, to be sure
some kick about that big increase
hut it is a trivial matter, for the be5
informed element of the citizenry
the state long ago realized that judge
were not being paid sufficient salary
The question of building the greai
er agricultural college is still bon
Of contention and the governors plal
ia expend some twelve million do
lars Of the severance tax in order L
build the institution seems to hav
hit a large sized snag. The executiV
refuses to compromise on the ma
) ter and insists that we do the thin
: right or not at all and there are me-
( in the convention who are just as bul
: headed in the opposite direction, an
/ unless some satisfactory settlement
/ reached the whole thing promises t
: blow up like pricked bubble. Cove
| nor Parker Saturday issued STATE
. ment concerning this pet hobby
: his and showed some convincing fact
. why the state should line up wit
Z the other progressive agriculture
commonwealth. Opponents of hi
plan. however, are insistent that "
> can not afford to use the huge SUI
collected from the severance tax
the face OF existing financial cond
tfons and commercial depression.
Taxation is the great bone of COZ
tention before the convention and i
equitable settlement is still far
the offing. The people of the sta
are demanding a tightening of tf
load they are forced to bear and u
less something is done along that lir
there promises to be lively scrap
the next state campaign. The sta
: board Of affairs is blamed in gre'
q measure for the existing condition
9 and some reforming along that Iii
. is urged by the conservative elemei
who oppose any revolutionary chang
d Along this line proposition has bee
# made that the severance tax, instes
of being converted into a giant agl
}. cultural college, be turned into Il
v general fund in order to help me
S the expenses Of government. Undoul
e edly this would aid materially in I
J. ducing the burden Of property al
e personal taxes to the individual, al
!" this is the basis of the demand. IT
assessed valuation of the entire sta