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HUE MESSAGE OF
GOVERNOR SMITH
I
To General Assembly and
the People of Georgia.
VIEWS EXPRESSED
|New Chief Executive Discusses Affairs
of State, and Recommends Re
form Legislation Along
Many Lines.
Gentlemen of the Legislature
and Fellow Citizens:
. I take the oath of office with the
purpose, God helping and directing
line, to perform every duty the office
permits in the interest of the masses
tof (he people. But there are certain
■duties which have been speclfiically
placed upon me. They have been
■voiced by the voters at the ballot box.
|They have been declared by their rep
resentatives at the Democratic ccn
(ventlon. I accept office under sol
emn direction by the people to car
ty out the platform pledges.
We must not be led away to other
It* slis until our specific pledges to the
people have been performed.
A government fails to reach its
fcigh est sphere if it does not protect
lire light of property, and at the same
time constantly broaden opportunities
ior mental, moral and financial
*rowtti to the less fortunate.
A government by the people fur
nishes the only hope for such a re
sult. '.. To make It sure, ballot boxes
inust pe pure, and legislative halls
must be free from the influence of
predatory wealth.
Bvefy frank man admits that in na
tional and state legislation more pow
er has been exercised by the great
♦orporations than has been consis
tent with the full protection of pop
ular rights.
The time has come when it is
necessary to determine whether cer
tain favored interests or the state
ghftll rule.
< Suppress Lobbyists.
What has been told of hired politi
cal agents Infesting legislative halls
jls no idle story. They have been
the curse of national legislation; their
Influence for evil has been felt in
jaearly every state, and Georgia has
jheen no exception to the rule,
i The great body of the people in
terested in legislative matters are
Juisy at .home with their daily labors.
The hired political agent has been
permitted to press his master’s inter
est, not only by using his own per
sonal influence, but by bringing from
different parts of the state his little
•trlkers to sit around hotels, and
present' in the presence of members
of the legislature, with professed Im
partiality, what he terms the wishes
4>t the people, while at the same time,
•terotly, he is hired to defeat their
Interests.
1 believe that you will pass legisla
tion to make it a crime for an attor
ney or agent, hired fa support or op
pose legislation, to discuss his cli
ent's interest in the presence of those
■who are to vote upon it, except where
that discussion is at a public hearing
or with members of the legislature
(pfßcially named for conference.
Stop Free Passes.
I urge also the passage of a bill ;
ftfhlch will put an end to the free pass
•ystom between local points in Geor
gia. This practice began, ami was
Hollowed for a long time, with but
Hew harmful results. It has grown
to be a crying evil. It has become
0 means of petty political bribery. Our
oonuuon carriers have no right to
charge for transportation more than a' 1
•um reasonably sttfficleut to pay them
Joi their services. IT some ride faee,
those who pay must be charged suf
ficient rates to cover the legitimate
©ost of their trauspoprtation and the
passage of the free pass holders.
The time has come when all
should pay. less for transpor
tation. The hired political agent
sad the free pass system are twin
evils. Within a few days you can
make their existence Impossible in
Georgia. It these laws are prompt
ly passed, we may expect from
■throughout the state words of confl
uence and praise, inspiring us to fur
,|her action in behalf of better gov
ernment .
Money in Politics and Clean Elections.
The best results from popular gov
ernment can ouly be had where the
individual voter approaches the ballot
box iufluouced alone by a patriotic
purpose to*%erve his county, his state
and his nation. One of the evils which
ptas polluted elections and debauched
voters has been political contributions
by the great corporations and spe
cial interests. Their money has been
given not to advance principles, but
to debauch character and defeat pop
ular rights.
First the voters are to be bought
for the candidate, and then the office
holder is to be owned because the cor.
poration bought the voters for him.
Every time money is used to buy a
vote, or to hire a striker at the polls,
true ideals of popular government are
overthrown,, and somewhere the peo
ple themselves will suffer from it.
Make it a crime for a corporation or
special interest to contribute money
to politics. Make it a crime to buy
a voter or hire a striker at the polls.
Place upon every candidate the duty
of showing, under oath, a detailed
statement of what he spent, how he
spent it and where the money came
from. With these three provisions
enacted into law, a great step for
ward will be made. Then let us make
elections so clean in Georgia that
other states, seeing our good works,
may follow our example.
Constitutional Amendment Fixing
Franchise Standard.
1 realize how difficult it will be to
reach the standard for which I plead
when a great number of qualified vot
ers are nopelessly ignorant and pur
chaseable. The difficulty is greatly
increased when a class of voters has
for generations inherited incapacity,
and must transmit the same incapaci
ty for generations to come.
i favor an amendment to the con
stitution of the State which will fix
anew standard for the elective fran
chise. The proposed constitutional
amendment will be before you. With
an oath fre,~h upon my Tips to support
the Constitution of the United States,
1 favor the amendment. There is
no restriction upon the right of a
t rate to fix the qualifications of those
who may vote, except the provision
of the Constitution of the United
States, which declares that “the right
of the citizens of the United States
to vote shall not be denied or abridg
ed by the United States, or any State,
on account of race, color or previous
condition of servitude.”
] have no doubt that the amend
ment proposed is entirely free from
constitutional objection. It neither
denies nor abridges the right of any
citizen of the United States to vote
on account of race, color or pre
vious condition of servitude. It only
fixes certain standards which must
be reached by every citizen of the
United States before he can become
an elector in Georgia.
Regulate Primaries by Law.
Popular government can only exist
as a substantial reality where the
voters are given a full opportunity to
express their convictions at the ballot
box. In our state it is especially im
portant that this opportunity should
be given our primaries. By com
mon consent, an overwhelming ma
jority of the people accept the verdict
of the primary as conclusive. If
machine politicians are allowed to ma
nipuate either the time or manner
of holding primaries the will of the
people can be defeated, and the
schemes of the machine may be sub
stituted for popular goVernment. A
common dodge is to call a primary long
before an election when the issues
are not before the people. No pri
mary should he permitted more than
Sixty days before the election.
Regulate Railroads and Public Ser
vice Companies.
Ohr pledges made to the people
covered legislation to promote pure
popular government, and also legisla
tion upon the great question of pro
tecting the rights of the people In
their relations with common carriers
and public service corporations.
Railroad corporations and public
service companies are monopolistic in
their nature. It is impossible for
the ordinary rule of competition to
protect the rights of the public in their
dealings with such comaanies. Rail
road corporations and public service
corporations are given special privi
leges primarily that the people dis
connected with those companies may
be benefited.
It is especially important at this
time when many are ready to trans
fer all control to the national govern
ment that the state show capacity to
meet Its part of the responsibility.
Western and Atlantic Extension.
I commend this suggestion to your
careful consideration. I believe the
ownership of the State Road to be a
thing of great value to the people of
Georgia, not only on account of its
capacity to produce an income, but
on account of the influence It may
have upon the future regulation of
transportation questions. If it can
be extended to the sea at one or more
points, I have no doubt the investment
would be profitable, and its value to
the people as a whole greatly increas
ed. I trust that you may be able to
present & satisfactory plan for the
i completion of the road.
STOP AT THE
ZETTLER HOUSE.
The best SI.OO a dsy house in the
city.
2b3 FOURTH ST., MACON, G*.,
Mrs. A. L. Zettler, Proprietress.
Liquor Legislation.
For a long time the St;\te of Geor
gia has adhered to the policy of lo
cal option applied to the sale of li
quor. All restrictive liquor laws arouse
intense feeling. As the enforce
men tof the laws depends largely up
on the sentiment in the counties in
which they are to be enforced, we
hake permitted the voters of each
county to decide what should be the
policy of their county. While my
sympathies in a local election are with
those who oppose the sale of liquor,
for the present, local option may fur
nish the best plan for controlling the
liquor traffic. But after the people of
a county vote liquor out, it is not fair
to permit the daily in-pouring of li
quors by jug trains. Our platform
demands that the dry counties of
Georgia be kept dry. I cordially fa
vor legislation to accomplish this re
sult, and I believe it possible to re
strain to a great extent the use of
liquors shipped from outside the state.
I suggest also the propriety of making
the operation of a “blind tiger” a fel
ony.
Education.
The chief object of government
should be to prevent special privileges
and to give to' all equal ( rights and
opportunities. To this the men and
women of Georgia are entitled, and
you are preparing legislation which
insures it to them. ,
The relation of the State to the
children goes much further. It is tire
duty of the State to see that the chil
dren are given an opportunity for all
preparation which their probable life
work requires. Education from books
alone is not always of much value. It
should be accompanied with practi
cal training, having in view the fu
ture of the child.
Let me refer to the negro children
in this connection. Any plan for
the negroes which fails to recognize
the diffefence between the white and
black races will fail. The honest
student of history knows that the ne
gro had full opportunity for genera
tions to develop before the days of
slavery; that the negro race was im
proved by slavery, and that the ma
jority of the negroes in this state'have
ceased to improve since slavery. Few
have been helped by learning from
books. All nave been helped who
have been taught or made to work.
It. is not the difference of environ
ment; it is the difference of race—
'deep-seated, inherited far generations
and generations through hundreds of
years. The large majority of negroes
are incapable of anything but manual
labor, and many taught.from books
spurn labor and live in idleness. Few
negroes are willing to work beyond
the procurement of the Hardest neces
sities of life. The negro child should
be taught manual labor and how to
live. The negro teacher should be
selected less by book than by char
acter of examinations. The negro
school to be useful needs less books
and more work. I favor a complete
change in the examination of teach
ers for the negro schools, and for
them a different plan of management;
l would have the schools help the ne
gro—not injure him.
i will not discuss the subject more
fully at present, but I wish to be dis
tinctly understood. I seek the in
telligent treatment of the negro, and
to that end radical difference be
tween the white and negro races must'
be kept in view.
Racial differences cannot be over
come by misguided philanthropists.
They should not be disregarded by us,
hhwever much criticism may come
from any source upon us.
There are other, .subjects which I
would be pleased t.o .discuss, but I
desire to raise no new unnqeessaTy
issues at present. The reforms with
which we are specially charged are
entitled to first consideration. To
them immediately we will give cur
best thought with the earnest purpose
to serve those who placed us here to
represent them. ■
Ours is a great State. The people
make the state. To receive their
confidence is an inspiration. We will
lay aside ail other plans, and, moved
by a great unselfish love, we will seek
to serve the Georgians of today and
the children who must make Georgia
of the future. ,
May God help us to meet the re
sponsibilities which are upon us.
That the problem of sailing the air
has been solved and that the age of
flying machines is here, are some of
the statements made by Professor Alex
audr Graham Bell.
SALE OF ROAD
A SURE FACT
Control of the Central of Georgia is
Transferred to New Hands*
RUMOR IS CONFIRMED
Consummation of Deal Causes Much Spec
ulation in Railroad Circles and Among
People of Georgia in General.
Rumors which have been freely circu
lated for the past few days have final
ly culminated in the definite announce
ment that the controlling interest iu
the Central of Georgia railway has
been sold, or transferred, to Oakleigh
Thorne, president of the Trust Com
pany of America, and Marsden J. Per
ry, president of the Union Trust com
pany of Providence, R. I.
According to New York dispatches
the Southern arranged the transfer.
It was formally announced Thursday
by Adrian H. Joline, chairman of the
Richmond Terminal reorganization
committee, that the committee has sold
to Thorne and Perry all the capital
stock of the Central owned by said
committee, and which was received by
that committee in 1894-5 upon the con
summation of the Richmond Terminal
reorganization, and after the reorgan
ization of the Georgia Central Rail
road and Banking company.
The net proceeds of the sale are to
be paid over to the- Southern Rail
way company, which, as stated in the
testimony given by the late President
Spencer and now on file at Macon, was
entitled to the financial benefit of any
sale of the stock, though it did not as
sume to control the railroad.
As part of their purchase Messrs.
'J’horne and Perry have, declared their
purpose to be to operate and to de
velop the system as an independent
one for the benefit of its stockholders
and the public served thereby;, and,
accordingly, they will, for at least two
years, continue to hold sixty per
cent of the stock.
The control of the Central will even
tually pass to the Rock Island-Frisco
interests, if predictions made in rail
road circles prove well founded.
It is said that Messrs. Thorne and
Perry purchased the road with an un
derstanding between themselves’ and
the Rock Island interests that formal
control should pass to the S:. Louis
and San Francisco after the expira
tion of the two years during which the,
present holders of the road have
agreed to keep it as an independent
line.
Mr. Thorne would neither confirm
nor deny the report. People could draw
what inference they would, he said.
It was pointed out that close relations
have existed between Mr. Thorne and
B. F. Yoakum, who is the guiding spir
it in the affairs of the Rock Island-
Frisco system. Mr. Yoakum is a di
rector in the Trust Company of Amer
ica of which Mr. Thorne is president, j
and in other ways Mr. Thorne and
Mr. Yoakum have co-op; rated in busi- -
ness undertakings.
At the session of the directors of .
the Central of Georgia in Macon a !
few days ago, Charles Steele resigned
as a member of the board. George M.
Havel resigned last fall and another
vacancy was created by the death of
Samuel Spencer. These three vacancies
were filled by the election of M. J..
Perry, W. F. Sheehan and Oakleigh
Thorne.
Following this meeting President
Hanson said that the sale of the road
would not mean any change in its of
ficers and that he would remain as
president. He said that the same poli
cies would prevail and all pains would
be taken to keep the property abreast
of the times.:.
The operations of the road will be
investigated by the new officers who
are expected to come south in the very
near future.
TO CONTEST NEGRO’S ELECTION.
Fight to Be Made on Only Colored Mem
ber of Georgia Legislature.
The seat of the only negro in the
Georgia legislature will be hotly con
tested, ahd a strong effort will be
made to give Mclntosh county the first
white representative she has had in
several years.
W. H. Rogers is the negro member,
and Captain George E. Atwocd, a
loading citizen, is tbs contestant.
It is claimed that the recent elec
tion in Mclntosh county, which result
ed in the re-election of the negro, was
irregular.
BEAN CHEESE OF THE ORIENT,
Method of Preparing It —A Dish Ri-h
in Proteine.
Mrs. R., on behalf of a club i a
Orange, N. J., asks for a recipe for
“the bean cheese so popular in many
foreign countries.”
Bean cheese, or bean curd, as it is
sometimes called, is especially popu
lar in Japan, China and Korea, where
it is often peddled in the streets, it
- is a .thick white substance, of a jelly,
like consistency, and is called tofu
In the Orient.
The recipe for making it frhich is
given herewith wa 3 taken from an ag
ricultural report issued by the United
States government. “Soy beans (the
most .important of the Japanese le
gumes'—the white or yellow variety)
are soaked in water for twelve hours,
then brushed between millstones of a
uniform consistency. The mass is
then mixed with three times its bulk
of water and boiled for about an hour,
after which it is filtered through a
cloth. By this process nearly 30 per
cent of the total proteine of the beau
iis dissolved and contained in the fil
trate ready to be precipitated as tofu.
The filtrate is white and opaque,
somewhat resembling milk. To this is
added wiith constant stirring about 3
per cent of the concentrated mother
liquid, obtained in the manufacture
of salt from sea water, whereupon the
albuminoid material is precipitated in
combination with calcium and mag
nesium salts After the liquid is filt
ered off the precipitate, which is tofu,
ia pressed In a wooden frame and then
cut into cakes, usually about ten
centimetres broad, tw r o thick and
titventy-flve long.
“The residue from the boiled and
filtered bean is known -as kara, or tofu
cake, and contains a large quantity
of proteine and carbohydrates. It is
a good fo-od material, being used by
poor people as an ingredient of miso
soup.
“If, the milky filirrate mentioned
above is boiled a sort of film forms
on the isurface. This film consists
largely of coagulated albumenolds and
fat and is sometimes prepared in large
quantity. When dried it is used as
an article of food known as yuba.
“Tofu is generally prepared every
day, and .is eaten in the .fresh condi
tion, with a little shogu, or soy sauce
(a dark brown, moderately thick
liquid very popular for use in cooking
and as a relish or condiment; in odor
and taste it is not unlike beef ex
tract; prepared from soy beans, wheat
or barley, sal. and water, ferment
ed), though it is also frequently cook
ed in shogu or miso soup. Fried tofu,
abruaage, is also a popular article
of food. Tofu may be prepared foe
preservation and transportation. It is
then cut in smaller pieces, frozen
and then dried in the oven.
“Tofu is used extensively ■ by all
classes in Japan. Where fish cannot
he obtained it is an important source
of proteine, and for. Buddhist priests
a popular and indispensable article of
food.” —New York Tribune.
Dresses Made o-f Pure Gold.
The women .of Sumatra wear costly
dresses, many of them being made of
pure gold and silver. After the metal
is mined and smelted it is .formed into
a fine wire, which is woven into cloth
and afterward used for dresses. —
New York World.
THE MODERN WAY.
Mrs. Lawson: “How can Mrs. Wy
kesleigh afford to keep three ser
vants?”
Mrs. Dawson; “Oh, she plays bridge
with them every Monday afternoon
and wins back all their wages.”—
Somerville Journal.
COFFEE COMPLEXION
Many Ladies Have Poor Complex
ions From Coffee.
“Coffee caused dark colored
blotches on my face and body. I
had been drinking it for a long while
and these blotches gradually ap
peared, until finally they became per
manent and were about as dark as
coffee itself.
“I formerly had as fine a complex
ion as one could ask for.
“When I became convinced that
coffee was the cause of my trouble,
I changed and took to using Postum
Food Coffee, and as I made it well,
according to directions, I liked it
very much, and have since that time
used it in place of coffee.
“I am thankful to say I am not
nervous any more, as I was when I
was drinking coffee, and my com
plexion is now as fair and good as
it was years ago. It is very plain
that coffee caused the trouble.”
Most bad complexions are caused
by some disturbance of the stomach
and coffee is the greatest disturber
of digestion known. Almost any wo
man can have a fair complexion if
she will leave off coffee and use Pos
tum Food Coffee and nutritious,
healthy food in proper quantity.
Postnrn furnishes certain elements
from the natural grains from the
field that Nature uses to rebuild the
nervous system and when that is in
good condition, one can depend upon
a good complexion as well as a good
healthy body.."'* “There's a Reason.”
Read “The Road to WeUvflle,” in
fikgs.