Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-07-15
Constitutional Amendment
Authorizes Bond Issue
Limited to S15,000,o0O
for Work at Savannah

The movement for a state-owned
and state-operated port, terminal at
Savannah received strong impetus
| Wednesday afternoon when the two
agricultural committees of the
| house of representatives unani-
| mously Endorsed port terminal
bill presented by Representative
Kittrell, of Laurens county, vice
chairman of the port commission.
The bill submits to the people a
constitutional amendment authoriz-
| ing bond issue Of not over SIS ,000,-
900 with which to construct a port
| terminal on deep water at Savan-
nah, the same to consist of ware
| houses, grain elevators, cold storage
warehouses, docks, wharves, tracks
| and other terminal facilities.
Endorsement Of the bill by the
| two agricultural committees means
| that it goes to the house with
their combined backing as an ag-
| ricultural measure.
Being a proposed constitutional
| amendment, the BILL after introduce
ton, will go to the constitutional
| amendments committee of the
house.
Representative Kittrell, in pre-
senting the bill, gave brief out
line of the publicly-owned and
| operated port terminals at Mon
treal, New Orleans, Portland and
other ports. Georgia, he showed,
must have facilities for the ham
| ding, storage, shipping and mar
keting of her products. The advent
of the boil weevil has made it
necessary to reorganize the entire
agricultural program Of the state.
| Facilities that were adequate for
cotton in the old days, are no long
er adequate even for cotton, he
showed, while diversified products
must have facilities of great mag
nitude.
The terminal at Montreal, he
showed, was built by the Dominion
Of Canada for the benefit primarily
| of the farming interests, and those
interests have benefited enormous
ly from it's operation. He showed
that the Montreal terminal has
never cost the taxpayers of Can
ada a dollar, and that the same is
true of the terminals at New Or.
| leans and other cities.
Savannah Donates Site
Savannah, he showed, will donate
the site for the proposed Georgia
terminal, thereby reducing the cost
| Of the plant at least $1,000,000 at a
conservative estimate. He called
attention to the fact that Louisiana
paid over $6,000,000 for the site of
| the New Orleans terminal. The
terminal at Savannah will be worth
more money the day it is finished,
he predicted, than the state puts
| into it. t.'.
Full. details OF the project will be
ready for submission to the legis'
| lature next week. he soid, when the
| port commission receives the re-
Iort of F. W. Cowie, the engineer
engaged by the commission 10 make
a survey and work out plans. These
will be completed by next Saturday,
showing blue prints, maps, archi'
| tects drawings and all other details,
| ne said.
| At the conclusion of Representa-
| tive Kittrell's presentation Of the
subject, Representative Holland, OF
| Tattnall, moved that the two com
mittees jointly introduce and spon
sor the bill.
IT regard this project as the great
est we could undertake for the con
structive upbuilding of the state,
said Representative Holland. 81
will give us cheaper imports ant
a better price for the goods we ex
port"
Other members of the two com
mittees heartily Endorsed the pro
ject. Two or three expressed de
sire to go into it more fully and
learn more about it. Representa-
tive Kittrell stated that the port
commission would have complete ant
detailed information ready for the
legislature by the first Of mex
week.
Text of Bill
The text of the bill as Endorsed
by the two committees follows:
can act to propose to- the qualified
voters of this state an amendment
to article seven Cd, section twelve
az, paragraph one ~ of the con
stitution of Georgia an amendment
authorizing an increase in the bond
ed debt of Georgia for the purpose
of constructing state-owned termi
to show their hand at any time. HI
suggested that if the people of At
lanta were equally frank and hon