Newspaper Page Text
VOLUME FIVE
BONDS OR NO BONDS
BY JOEL T. DEESE
The thought processes of prac
tically all men —whether so ex
pressed or not —are in terms of the
ECO.
One of two questions nealy al
ways arises: —“What is the. rela
tion of this proposition to me and
mine?’' or, “What does the other
fellow get out of it, that makes him
favor it?”
I shall therefore, with 01 without
permission, be as egotistic as J
choose, by way of introduction to a
discussion that will become impar
tial as we advance.
It will doubtless be assumed by
some that liecaqse 1 happen to be
one of the county officers, 1 want to
T»ae built a splendid, showy court
house —one that will he a magniti
cent advertisement for Cochran and
Bleckley County —one that will af
ford luxurious apartments for the
county uncials.
On the contrary, those who really
know me, will bear witness that 1
dispise all superfluous luxuries and
vanities as the plague that eats up
the virility of men; that 1 w’ould
lead hack, were it in my power of
persuasion, to a Spartan simplicity
which breeds men and women in
stead of weaklings—a s implicity of
life that would abolish even the
'court house and jail in a few gen
erations.
I would not have, could I help
it, one superfluous frieze, or dado,
or cornice, or other ornate “ginger
bread” abomination upon, or witli
in, this home of the county’s civic
life.
Let a court house be, pot indeed
stern and forbidding, but simple
and stately as befitting a humane
people’s authority; simple and state
ly from corner stone to roof.
I would build it of Evergreen or
Beaver Dam stones, with rough en
terior that would speak of the
“Everlasting Ilills.” If not of
these, then of durable concrete,
with big spacious rooms, and broad
windows to let in the air and light
of life —Tt perfect adaptation of
jue’.ns to ends.
1 But this is not for me to say.
Does any one imagine that be
cause 1 happen to occupy a room at
the county site, that I want to see
her built up at the expense of the
county, as I have heard insinuated
of others now and again?
Let his mind be disabused.
Narrow sectionalism —jingoism—
is as repulsive to me as any other
•form of bigotry.
And let no man believe that my
intellectual convictions as to the
public good will ever be influenced
by any man or men, or by the pie
sumption of personal advantage to
• myself, or by any other presump-
®lje Cocljran Journal.
tion than that of bald fact and con
clusive argument, based upon the
welfare of all alike.
Let it be remembered that 1 have
au established leeord fur combat'
ting popular ideas, stating unpopu
lar truths, and aeti.ig contrary to
my own pecuniary and political ail
vantage; that I do not hesitate to
kick out of teaming with my
friends, where ruth d mauds it,
that 1 do not sii on the fence where
it is to my personal advantage to
do it.
That is why I am “hutting into”
this hood mallei —just because it
would lie the easiest way, to let it
alone; and, because truth demands
a, discussion.
Does all this seem insufferably
bombastic?
In the words of Patrick Henry,
Make the most of it. ’’
But enough of this offensive ego
tism, now to tiie facts, and mind
you, facts are verifiable. You
don’t have to take my word alone.
There are those in this county
who are above petty predjudices—
men who want to judge of a propo
sition, without any green glass gog
gles covering their eyes, men win*
don’t want to “bite off their noses
to spite their faces” —who having
once looked at the wrong side of a
question, want to be put right.
To them I address myself, with
however, one other personal refer
ence.
I opposed the $200,000 bond is
sue for old Pulaski, three years ago.
Ist Because it would have made
the division of the county impossi
ble.
2nd. Because the funds already
available were being injudiciously
applied.
3rd. Because the system of build
ing roads without expert supervis
ion is nothing but patchwork, and
such a big road bond debt would
handicap instead of help the expert
road building that will in time be
adopted. When expert supervision
is assured, road building by bond/’
will be the most economic inveb,
ment a community can make.
I favor the small issue of road
bonds for Bleckley, because it is
for the purchase of absolutely r.ec
cessary equipment without which,
road repairing is like felling a tree
with a pocket knife.
Who wants to go hack to the
pick and shovel, when by actual
government observation, forty times
the amount of dirt can be moved
and better placed, as measured in
the unit of one man’s time?
It once seemed good economy to
use the Opera House which twenty
five men have agreed to supply as
(Continued on sixth page)
COCHRAN, BLECKLEY COUNTY GEORGIA. THURSDAY, APRIL, 24, 1913
READ THIS AND SAVE ICE!
You can cuy an odorless Refrigerator that will beat anything saving ice
you ever have used. We are of the most complete lines
ever carried in this section, and will be glad to show you this line and
quote prices.
JACKSON FURNITURE CO.
Splendid Letter On The Bond
Issue, From Actual Experience
To the Voters of Bleckley County,
As tin* question of building n
Court House and .Inil for Bleckley
County, is being discussed, pro and
eon, 1 desire to give the voters of
Bleckley County a little of my ex
perience along this line. 1 have
helped to build four different court
houses in four different counties,
three of them were built by issuing
bonds, one of them was built by
direct taxation. Those that were
1 milt by bond issue did not burden
the people at all compared with the
direct tax issue. The direct tax
issue paralyzed the business, pro
gress and energies of its citizens for
three or four years, and the major
ity of the citizens borrowed the
money to pay the direct tax.
1 lived fn Dodge County when
the county was bonded for $130,-
000?vj paid taxes in Dodge* five
years alter the bond issue. 1 also
paid taxes in Pulaski County, which
bad no bonded indebtedness, during
the same time, and my taxes were
the same in Pulaski on the thous
and as they were in Dodge, with
the bonded indebtedness being paid
off in Dodge and none in Pulaski.
Now to illustrate, there has been
many a child born into the world
that was not desired or wanted by
the parents, still that fact did not
relieve or excuse the parents from
the moral obligation of taking care
Everybody Eats & Drinks
At Walker’s Soda Fount
WHY? BecauseAheir s are better,
cleaner ana more wholesome .
SPOT CASH —All drinks, Cream
Tobacco, We charge to No One;
we sell everything else on credit.
KEEP SWEET
C'styA’yt
Walker s Soda Fountain
Where Clean things . are served quick
of tire child after it was born. Tin*
infant must lie wrapped in swadling
clothes. It cannot wear nee-pants,
nor full grown trousers until it gets
old enough and strong enough to
do such things, iicithes can he eat
strong meat. But the half grown
boy or the man can do do things
with case that Ik* could not do at
all wilen he was an infant. Now
11 1 is is the situation with us. The
baby lias been ixrrn; let us take*
care of it in the right way by vot
ing for bonds. Direct ti*x will not
hurt the large land holders as bad
as it will the poor man or renter, it
all eventually comes out of the man
that works, and this is the reason
wherein the poor man should vote
for bonds. The large land owners
will take their surplus money out of
the bank and pay the direct tax,
and get it back in rente and other
ways, while the poor man will have
to pay the high tax out of the
products of the farm, and when
you go to the bank to borrow
money they will tell you al) their
surplus money went for high taxes,
and the consequence will be, you
get no money to relieve you of your
burden which you voted -on your
self, if you vote against bond*.
I am no politician, no s»x to
grind, have the interest of my peo
ple at heart. For God’s sake vote
for bonds on election day.
liesp’t. W.-J. Hardy.
SEVERAL COUNTY ISSUES
LEO H BROWNING
Fellow Citizens:
Several men told me Saturday
that it would he appreciated by
many citizens who lived some dis
tance from my home and who
would not get to talk to me soon,
if I would state my present inten
tions with reference' to important
pending issues, before the election
for bonds. Believing that the peo
ple should know everything about
their government and should have
all the intelligence possible before
casting their ballots. I deem it
both a pleasure and a privilege to
make known some of the* laws 1
shall introduce at the next session
of the Legislature should 1 not be
convinced before that time that my
constituents want something else.
Ist. Il l should be urged to es
tablish a City Court, I would refer
it back to the people to vote on be
fore it is established. This is just;
for, every man in the county would
have to bear the expense, the bur
den and the annoyance, as well as
the pleasure, profit and protection.
2nd. Commissioner of Roads and
Revenues. Oh, what a. job to draft
a law from the conflicting opinions
of my constituents to satisfy even a
majority 1 lam reminded of the
story'of the Gods who condemned
one to roll a stone to the top of a
hill and each time just before it
reached the summit it would slip
and roll to the bottom again. Af
ter mature thought I have decided
to take in consideration the recom
mendation of th(‘ Grand Jury and,
at the same time, to modify it by
the consensus of public opinion.
I shall name Mr. J. B. Hinson
as commissioner, in the bill, and
put his salary at SISOO without any
clerk expense. In other words if
he needs a clerk he will have to pay
him out of his salary. The county
will pay SISOO and no more.
It is evident that he will need a
clerk and,l do not believe he will be
able to secure the services of a com
petent man for less than S3OO,
lienee he will receive only SI2OO
for salary for himself. Now what
man in Bleckley county is willing
to say that he is not worth that?
Surely a man who has shown the
patriotism that Mr. Hinson has,
will prove to be true to the trust
that people have given him. We
know that a good road commission
er is worth SISOO besides clerk hire,
hut the only question is, Are we
able to pay that salary now? 1
think for commissioner and
clerk is as much as we can pay.
I would like to introduce a bill to
leave it to a vote of the people,
whether they now want one or three
commissioners, but after having
consulted a lawyer 1 find that there
NUMBER 38
is considerable doubt whether it
would he legal; hence the nearest
expression I have from* tin* people
is the recommendation of the Grand
Jury, and the vote of the people on
Mr. Deese’s one commissioner hill
last year, when they voted for one.
But I shall incorporate a provision
even in this bill referring it to Un
vote of the people after adjournment
of the Legislature.
ferd. Am 1 for bonds? Before
answering 1 will say that every man
should study-the issue and vote -ac
cording to his conscience. Each
man must decide for himself. I
shall tell no man how to vote. 1
am going to vote for bonds; because
A. We need a good comfortable
Court House and Jail and we will
have to have one soon, certainly at
the end of five years, therefore why
not get them now and save the
trouble and expense we are having?
B. The law requires Bleckley
County to furnish a comfortable
Court House and Jail. I am told
that the Judge has intimated that
the Court House we are usuing is
not comfortable, lienee he may and
has the legal right to, compel us
to levy the tax to build and pay for
same at once. Now 1 know Bleck-
ley County, after three poor crop
years, is not in any position to bear
such tremendous lax. It would
demoralize our trade conditions and
ruin the fair name of a county
which has started under very favor
able conditions- Instead of this
high killing tax for one year, we
can pay a small tax and never miss
it during the 30 years and at the
end of that time our Court House
and Jail will be paid for and no
one will be injured. Let us reason
together a moment: Suppose we
levy the tax in one year on a man
who is worth $25,000, He will
have a heavy tax to pay that year
to build a jail and court house,
which is to last a half a century; if
he should decide to go out of busi
ness two years later the man to
whom he sells his property would
not have to help pay any tax for
the public building but would reap
the benefits of the former possessor.
Is this fair and equitable?
C. The assessed valuation of
Bleckley is about two million now,
our tax this year would be on that
amount only., therefore the tax
would be high: while we know that
our taxable property is going to in
crease rapidly and year after year
the assessed valuation having in
creased, our tax rate will decrease,
Therefore let us take 30 years to
pay it. .
D. We will borrow this money at
5 per cent. Let us deal in public
(Continued on fourth page)