Arizona state miner., 1927-03-19
Hunt for Vice Ipresiden+

meets next year, friends OF Governor
Hunt here have launched his boom
for vice president of the United States.
Louis B. Whitney, chairman of the
Democratic state committee and Russ
F. Tatum, Hunts campaign manager
in the last primary campaign, are fos-
ter1ng the movement, and have sent
out hundreds of letters to party lead
ers throughout the nation asking their
support
Hunt has built up an enviable repu-
tation as builder and a doer through
out the west, and his name is not un-
known in the east. His candidacy
would be looked upon with favor by
Democratic leaders in all western
states, with the exception of Cali
fornia
In event that an agreement is reach
ed during the next year anent the
Colorado river the opposition of Cal
ifornia naturally would ,e erased.
Appeal for Fair Treatment
Representative COXon of Wilcox
made forcetul appeal for fair treat
ment of the railroads in the matter of
stage line competition when the 41gh-
way reorganization bill came UP for
final consideration in the house.
Coxon opposed a certain section of
the bill taxing the motor bus and
truck lines on the basis of two and
two and a half per cent respectively
of their earnings. This tax was al
together too low, he argued. 1t would
raise only 100000 a year or just about
the same amount as is now collected
by the present mill tax. Under a
provision in the bill as first approved
by the house the revenue would have
been double this amount, and he NOV
ed the substitution o. the original
provision.
Coxon called attention to the fact
that the Southern Pacific of which
he is an emplOye is the largest single
tax payer in me state. The company
does not begrude the payment OIL just
taxes, he said, ~-I when the state
builds highways parallelling tne rail
roads and then throws them open to
concerns operating in competition to
the railroads, it is only fair that those
concerns should be taxed in accord
ance with the benefits derived by
them"
These facts doubtless would have
had weight with the members but
for the fact that the question be-
fore me house was on the adoption of
the conference report on the bill.
Members were inclined to swallow the
whole report without alteration to
avoid delay, hence Coxons motion
failed to carry.
Governor Hunt has until Friday,
March 18, in which to sign or reject
the highway commission bill. That
was the untimatum laid down by the
legislature when late Saturday 1t de-
clared a recess to that date. The
object of the move was to force the
governor to name e five members of
the highway commission in order that
the senate might have an opportunity
to confirm or reject the appoint
ments.
The manner in which the appoint
ments are to be made constitute the
one big stumbling block as far as the
governors signature to the measure
is concerned The bill says in effect:
"Mr. Governor, you have made a mis-
take in the management of the high
way department. We now propose
to take it out of your hands and place
it in the hands of a commission, the
personel of which must be accept
able to the senate"
Governor Hunt had disappeared
when the famous document was placed
on his desk He was in retirement,
according to attaches of the governors
nd he int 70
until the legislature had gone home.
Speculation is ripe concerning the
outcome of the situation. Some claim
that Governor Hunt holds the whip
hand, whereas majority leaders seem
to think that Hunt mas been placed
in peculiarly embarrassing position.
If the bill remains unsigned it will
negative the work of the entire ses-
sion which from the outset was cen
tered on the task Of refnancing and re-
organizing the department, and a
special session will of necessity be
called.
Here is an outline of the bill as it
was sent to the governor. 1t creates
highway commission of five to take
over all affairs of the department,
throwing into the discard the super
vision now exercised by the state
board of directors of state institu-
tions, of which c. M Zander is the
executive head, and abolishing the
office of state engineer, now held by
G. w. Lefebvre.
The commission would select
highway engineer, and the latter
! would choose his assistants with the
consent Of the commission No two
| Commissioners could be chosen from
| the same county, and no more than
three from the same political party.
! In order to prevent one section of
the state receiving preferment in
| highway construction over another
four affirmative votes of the commits
sion are required for the acceptance
of any project.
The motor vehicle license division,
now handled by the secretary of state,
would be taken over as a division of