About Americus times-recorder. (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current | View Entire Issue (June 19, 1924)
PAGE SIX SUMTER COTTON FARMERS, COTTON SQUARES ARE FORMING: DUSTING COMES NEXT. UNDUSTED FIELDS WILL BE RIDDLED BY THE WEEVIL’ TIMES-RECCRDER published u» '' ■■■—.- —«*«— <*» Published by The Timcs-Recorder Co., vine.) Lovelace Eve, Editor and Publisher Entered at second data matter at the poatoffic* at Aasericua, Georgia, according to th« A«t o 4 Coogreaa. The Associated Press is eaclaairely entitled ta the nee for the republication of all news die patches credited to It or not otherwise credited to this paper and alao the local news published here to. All right of of special dispatches are alao reserved. National Advertising Representatives, FROST LANDIS A KOHN, Brunswick Ildg., Nett York; peoples' Gas Bldg.. Chicago. A THOUGHT | The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the jhughtiness of men shall be bowed. —Isa. 2:11. In general, pride js at the bottom of all great mistakes. —Ruskin. What’s the Matter With Georgia? What’s the matter with Geor gia? That question is being asked by thoughtful men in deadly earnest. Our possibilities are realized and we wonder why Georgia lags, why the States to the north and to the south are out-stripping Georgia. Representative Lee J. Lang ley, member of the General As sembly from Floyd county, asks the question and attempts to an swer it in a letter to the Atlan ta Constitution. Read Mr. Langley’s letter. It should provoke serious thought on your part. It may give you a new angle on the situation. The letter, addressed to the Constitution, follows: “The paramount concern of Georgia is business, both pub lic and private business. Geor gia’s public business is not be ing well managed, with a result that Georgia’s private business suffers, and its development is stagnant. “Georgia’s public policies are fluctuating and unstable. “Georgia’s fiscal system is fundamentally unsound—a patch work of emergency legislation, inequitable in its application and incapable of proper administra tion. ‘‘lf the Georgia government machine was an automobile in a garage for the repair, the me chanic’s report would be this: ‘The spark plugs are foul; the headlights are too dim; the cool ing system is poor and it gets hot too quick and burns out the bearings; the brakes are worn out, in fact, about all you seem to have done to it for years is to polish the body; it will never give you any service until the en gine is completely overhauled.’ “.Georgia can never prosper undeTthese conditions. Too much politics is at the bottom of the trouble. Prosperity and progress are impossible where politics dominate business. Eusiness is afraid of politics. Politics is not only keeping money out of Geor gia but our political system is imposing unjust burdens and hardships upon taxpayers. Geor gia, much richer in natural re sources than other Southern States, is trailing the progress procession. We are even driving our educated boys and grils, our greatest asset and most useful .citizens, out of the State to where a greater prosperity offers them better remuneration for their services and their reasonable chance in life. “I have just learned that graduates of the State Agricul tural school leave George for about double the pay they are of fered at home. One State last year made a bid for all the grad uates of the University of Geor gia who wanted to teach, at 100 per cent more salary than they could get at home. The same thing is true of the Tech grad uates- and graduates of the en gineering and some other de pratments of the university and its branches. “This has been said many times before in recent past, but let’s keep on saying it until the people of Georgia are convinced that it is the truth, and a truth vital to their welfare. “Can anybody explain why Georgians select n.en for the public service who are utterly incompetent, perhaps shady and risky in reputation, without any of the essential qualifications for the service, while they would not think of doing such a thing in their private business and per . sonal affairs? “Can anybody explain why Georgians will waste their mon ey on excessive law-making ma chinery and through extravagant, duplicated and complicated gov ernmental agencies when they know such practices in their own affairs would drive them speed ily to the bankrupt court? “People glibly talk about spending the ‘public money.’ There is no such a thing as pub lic money. Every dollar spent in politics and government is the money of the taxpayers, drawn directly from the pockets of voters. “Every twelve citizens who are earning anything is supporting one citizen in government. The sum we pay to run our federal, State and local governments is equal to one-half the amount paid for services by all the man ufacturing industrial plants in America. Men in the employ of m government are not producers, but they are consumers, and they enter into competition with the regular citizenship for their food, clothing and other requirements, and they use the proceeds of the taxes paid by scuh citizens to increase the cost of living to those who pay the taxes. “The cost of government in Georgia is already excessive and unless wc check the trend of po litical movements it is going to grow greater. Speaking to mem bers of the legislature last sum mer during the noon recess, Mrs. W. H. Felton said: ‘Boys, let grandmother appeal to you not to create any more offices but on the contrary, to reduce pres ent official forces and increase efficiency. Why in my own county I can not stand in my tracks and throw a stick twice without hitting an office holder.’ “Os course, we must have public employees and we must pay taxes, but when there are too many officials, and more taxes paid than are needed to run the government efficiently, it is we who bear the burden and our children and our chari ties are the ones penalized. “I am not criticising any of ficeholder in Georgia, for we have a singularly clean set of of ficials, so far as they are per sonally concerned; it is the sys tem that is blamabk. There can be a lot of weeding out, elimination of duplication and overlapping in departments with out impairing the service, but which will tend to increase ef ficiency and reduce expenses, “Essential to any substantial change of system that will af ford relief if legislation provid ing for: “First—Election of all State officers for four-year terms, with the governor ineligible to succeed himself. This will elim inate the tremendous waste of money spent in useless political campaigns and election. It will abate political strife, friction and confusion. Sound and econom ical government is impossible as long as voters are continually swayed by passions and swept off their feet and their judgment marred by the excitement of po litical campaigns and the persua sive appeal of candidates. Few pie realize the money cost of campaigns and elections to say nothing of the resultant evils. “Some who oppose this plan say that the candidates and their friends pay thes e expenses and that if they want to spend their money that way it’s nobody’s busines but theirs. This is not true. It does not work that way. Every'dollar spent and wasted in campaigns and elections comes directly out of the taxpayers’ pockets. Politicians live and support their families off of the money earned and paid by the voters. “This system will largely free State officials from the sinister influences of politics. The few er elections held the fewer po litical debts must be paid. It will give them an opportunity to for mulate and put into practice con structive policies and programs free from th e constant fear that any courageous act in defiance of political demands will defeat them, for re-elcetion. This ap plies to every department of our government. “An eminent and able Geor gian made this statement in my presence sometime ago: The game and fish deparment has been an expense instead of prof itable to the State, for the rea son that no mdn has been al lowed to head it long enough to work out and put into op eration a practical and progres sive policy to govern it. Goo'd men have headed th e department but they did not remain long enough to do anything with it. This branch of our government has tremendous possibilities. Un der it the sea and food indus tries of the Georgia coast ought to be promoted and protected, and if this was done it would de develop into one of the great money-making enterprises of the State.’ The same thing may truthfully be said of other branches of the State govern ment. “Second: Biennial sessions of the legislature. Annual legisla tive sessions are unnecessary and the money spent thereon is one half waste. I have said, and now say, that, every law required for the conduct of business and the regulation of society in Georgia could be written into 500 statues of reasonable length. William Jennings Bryan, approving and commenting on this statement, suggested that I cite the Ten Commandments in support of my contention. “Under the existing system, we have thousands of statutes, hun dreds of volumes of laws and from 600 to 1,000 new laws pro posed every year. Th e appellate courts are unable to construe statutes as fast as we make them and decide between legisla tive sessions whether our acts are laws or not. The absurdity of this situation must appeal to any intelligent mind. It is enough to shame Georgia. ‘ Third: Reduction of general assembly membership. The Geor gia legislature is too large and unnecessarily expensive. There are too many committees and some of the house committees are too large. It is about as dif ficult to get a meritorious bill recommended for passages be fore a committee of 40 to 50 members a s it is to pass it. In so large a body there are too many shades of opinion and too great a lack of information on many subjects for harmonious action and constructive legislation to be possible. One or two members of a committee will come in after the whole subject under consideration has been threshed out, insisting on going over it all again and protest that it not fair to vote on a bill before they have tim e to further investigate it. “It ig impossible to get mem bers of committees to attend all meetings or to be present when bills are taken up. As the leg islature is now constituted it is easy enough to plaster the stat ute books with insignificant, useless and often detrimental laws, but next to impossible to get through an important and constructive piece of legislation. What has been said of commit tee conditions applies to the full membership on the floor of the house. There is but one remedy and that is a reduction of the membership of the house to about 100 members and the senate to about 35 members. “New York with a population of approximately 11,000,000 peo ple, has 150 members in the house. Georgia has about 200. Georgia has more counties than any State in the Union except Texas and Teas has an area of 265,000 square miles and a pop ulation of 4,663,228 against Georgia’s area of 59,266 square miles and a population of 2,- 895,832. We have foolishly cre ated too many counties in Geor gia and since we can't uncreate them there is only one way to minimize the evil consequencse, and that is to readjust legislative representation by a zoning sys tem ’.‘The way to do this is to create 100 assembly districts with as neany equal population as it can be worked out. Also courts that are not abso utely necessary for the prompt and efficient ad ministration of justice ought to be abolished and such officers as tax collector and tax receiver consolidated. We can never re duce our tax burdens and educate our children in Georgia until we reduce political activities and conduct our government with due economy and in a business-like and efficient manner. “Georgia cannot longer stand this legislation and administra- j tion. “Fourth: A civil service sys tem for State employees. We can never purify Georgia po litically or enforce economy and efficiency in public service un til we eliminate paying political debts with appointments to of fice and the trading and traffick ing in public offices. Only a civil service system can accomplish this. Th fi bill I propose to intro duce on this subject will pro vide for reasonable civil service regulations and rules. It will per mit the governor to appoint his private secretary, and perhaps one or two other employees oc cupying strictly confidential re lations with his office. This pol icy will apply to the heads of other departments, but the bulk of the employees of the various branches of the government will be put under civil service gov erned by reasonable rules. “One good result of these re forms will be to remove from political life destructive and ob structive blocs and factions. Or ganizations of blocks and fac tions are becoming a detriment and a dang’er to Georgia. I will illustrate this by reciting a re cent personal experience. I was in South Georgia when field agents were being selected for the new revenue department cre ated by the extra session of the legislature. A South Georgia citizen, highly credited and quali fied for one of thes e positions re quested me to say a word in his favor when I passed through At lanta. «ii “I approached a gentleman on the subject who was close to ,and in the confidence of the appoint ing powers and here is what he said to me, ‘I know your man and he is a good n.an. I would like to see him get one of the places but making thes e appointments is proving a difficult and embar rassing job. The Ku Klux Klan is demanding two of the places for members of its orders; labor is demanding two for its mem bers; the farming interest in sists on two for its ranks and the author of the bill creating the department demands that he be allowed to name two of the six field workers as his right. “These demands so far have not taken in consideration, quali fications and competency and in addition to them there are a large number of applicants' who stand only on their merit.’ “Good government is impossible under these conditions and the remedy is to be found in the re form measures 1 propose to in troduce. “I am seriously considering trying to pass a bill th mgh the next session of the legislature penalizing all qualified voters who fail to vote. My idea is to require every registered voter who fails to vote to file with the secretary of the county execu tive committee a legal excuse within thirty days after the elec tion upon penalty of being de nied the right to vote at the next regular election; that, is that he be suspended from the voting privilege for the next intervening regular election. “If the legislature has cour age enough to pass this sort of a law we will have no more public officials selected by 40 per cent of the voters of Georgia. Attempt to suspend,their voting franchise, making them think you are trying to take something away from them that belongs to them and you will have to drug them to keep them away from the polls. That’s some more human nature. “Great progress has been made in every branch of human activi ty except in our political prac tices. Apparently we are unable to advance or improve our po litical system. This goes to the very heart of our public and pri vate welfare, and the responsi bility lies primarily at the doors of the individual voter. But improvement and progress is at hand. I see in the distance a new cod e for candidates dictated by a more interested and intelligent electorate and a quickened pub lic conscience.” Georgia’s ills are the fault of the INDIVIDUAL Georgian, Too many of us fail to vote. All toQ few of us cast a vote free r THE AMERICUS TIMES-RECORDER nbJsfos bijATbcrt Apple DECEIVING Some business men are wearing long faces because* the railroads have over 300,000 freight cars that are in good repair and ready for use and about 180,000 other cars that are laid up for repairs. The total is staggering, at first glance. But the importance of everything is only by comparison. The railroads own over two and a quarter million freight cars. The actual situation is that, out of every 23 cars, 18 are being used constant ly and only five are idle. That’s not so bad. * • » FARMERS Farmers are buying more than in 1923. From the first of the year to June 1, the two largest mail order houses—Sears-Roebuck and Mont gomery-Ward—sold 154 million dol lars worth of goods, compared with 146 millions in the corresponding five months of last year. Farm buying power right now is an especially good backlog for city industries. Commons sense should induce the city man to do every thing possible to keep that back log in good shape. The prosperity of the city man depends consider ably on the prosperity of the farmer. * * * COMING Money isn’t timid lately. That’s one of the most encouraging things about the general business situation. In May 515 million dollars worth of new bonds and other securities were placed on the market. In May. last year, less than half that much. Promoters, with keen instinct, sense that the public has a strong under current for confidence in the near future. Otherwise, there’d be few er new securities issued to finance business expansion and new ven tures. * * * WEATHER We are creatures of the weather. Small wonder we talk about it so much. Retailers blame the late spring for the business recession. Laggard weather held back the sales of spring clothing and other seasonal commodities. That piu a lot of makers out of work. The Weather was like St dam, backing up dull business into many channels. * * * THEN Why have heart failure because the iron and steel business has been so dull lately? In May, the output pf pig iron dropped a lot. But, at 'that, it was almost as much as in ‘May of 1913, one of the best pre war banner years. '* The nation is gradually adjusting itself to peace-time production, af ter abnormal war-time activity. * * * “GAS” It gives one a headache to con template statistics about sales of gasoline. The American people have been using a fourth more gasoline than a year ago. Sales are reported as over 600 million gallons ‘a month for the whole country. This is es pecially interesting and important if you own GOOD oil siocks. * * * OFFSPRING A Rhode Island woman, who died recently at 82, left 85 direct de scendants. If everybody were as prolific, in a few generations the earth would be too crowded for any one to lie clown. Why waste time wonderinf why we die? The answer is ,to make room for newcomers. Life is a journey between two unknown sta tions. We don’t know where our souls came from. And some ape not so sure about where they’ll go after their hearts stop beating. from prejudices. Georgia will rtsume her place in the march of States when Georgians draft able, hon est and patriotic men for serv ice in her legislative halls and executive branches, forever rele gating to oblivion the profession al politician. TOBACCO CURING SEASON BEGINNING MOULTRIE, June 19. —Colquitt county tobacco growers, in common with those in other counties Jof the tobacco belt, this week will begin the work of gathering their tobacco and placing it in barns to be cured. In this connection demonstrators here said that the tobacco should he graded as far as possible in the fields. The trashy weeds should be elimi nated and only the good tobacco put in the barn, it was said. “By this means, if care is taken in curing it, p splendid quality will result. It is always best to get the bam filled in one day. Start early in the morning and finish with it so that there will not be a difference of thirty-six hours in arranging it in the barn,” the experts advise. “This will work to the best sort of advantage. It is also the very es sential that it be stored in a good dry place when cured. Tobacco khduld be handled carefully sMihal no bruises will he left on it. Pretty, clean tobacco, free from holes .and bruises will always bring a good price >” . ■ i. V t Old Days In Americas TEN YEARS AGO TODAY (From The Times Recorder. June 19, 1914.) A cluster of corn shoots taken from the tassel of a cornstalk on the farm of Mr. William McGarrah, near Americus, yesterday was a curiosity. Besides growing five well developed ears, the stalk held on its tassel a cluster of nine smaller shoots or ears, all of them well grained and constituting in weight one monster ear. M'Ss Anna Murray, one of the most popular members of the young er social set, is spending the week delightfully at St. Simon as a mem ber of a congenial party of Monte zuma. Misses Mary Elza Sheppard and Marthena Bivins have gone to Cur seta to be the fair guests of rela tives for a week. Mrs. Walter Rylander, at her home on Taylor street, will have as guests for a week her »sister, Miss Mary Davenport, of Mcßae, and Miss Rosa Snowden who will arrive tomorrow. TWENTY YEARS AGO TODAY (From The Times Recorder. June 19, 1904.) The egg market took a drap yes terday, country wagons selling them at 10 to 12 and one half cents per dozen and plenty of them. Americus friends of J. W. High tower will congratulate him upon the splendid success attending hi.n in the recent live bird tourney at Warm Springs, where he won the magnificient silver trophy, offered by lion. Charles Davis for the high est score. Who is to be solicitor of the City Court of Americus? This is an in teresting question just at present and this interest increases as the time draws near when Gov. Terrell will make the, appointment. There are several applicants for this of fice, among them Solicitor, J. A. Ansley, the present incumbent; Messrs. Zack Childers, Allen Fort, Jr., and James Ttylor. Miss Dorothy Cheney, the guest of Mrs. J. R. Williams, has return ed to her home in Ellaville. THIRiY YEARS AGO TODAY (From The Times Recorder. June 19, 1894.) Mr. and Mrs. N. G. Prince assist ed by the charming Miss Emma Prince threw open their beautiful hom» last evening to the young friends of Mr. Cliff and JjiSs Luc.'lu Prince, who have recently returned from college S Lexington, Ky. Dancing was the feature of the occasion, and for several hours the young ,-eople tripped the light fan tasti to the inspiring strains of an Italian orchestra. Captain John Felder returned .omc yesterday from a four months business trip through Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas, where he represented the interests of the Corbin Banking Co., of New to: . ¥ OAI\IS K&ae on improved ’»-farm lands at cheap est rates for terms of 5,7 or 10 years with pre-payment option given Money secured promptly. We have now outstanding over $1,100,000 on farms in Sumter county alone, with plenty more to leiM. MIDDLETON McDONALD , Correspondent Atlanta Trust Co., in Sumter, Lee, Terrell. Schley, Macon, Stewart, Randolph and Webster counties. 21 Planters Bank Building, Americus, Ga. Phone &9 -CJ 2IL THURSDAY AFTERNOON, June 19, 1924 There are between 300 and 400 acres planted in melons within a mile or two of the city limits, and shipping will begin on or about the Ist. This crop will put several hundred dollars in circulation here this summer. Remember the festival at the library this evening for the benefit of the Cycling Club and be sure to attend. A good band will furnish music for the occasion. u/ 1 ' DAILY POEM FATHER S FOOTSTEP;*— The trials of poor mother run rampant all day and the kidlets, it seems, are to blame. With mud covered sandals they’ll come in front play and the answer is always tire same. Some imprints from shoes travel all through the place from the kitcli e-n way up to the front. It’s always the youngsters whom mother can trace as the ones who are pulling this stunt. They’ll scuff through the parlor and mess up the floor and they'll scrape off their feet on a chair. Mom cleans up the house; then she cleans it'' some more, but the foot prints will always be there. At tlie end of the day, with the kids still at play, they are called to the suppertime meal. They cofne with a roinp, leaving mud as they stomp, and you know iiow their mother must feel. Then Daudy comes home and his wife makes it clear that her rule o’er the kidlets is waning. He listens quite patiently; lends her an ear, but he'can’t see just why she’s com plaining. * “Why, listen here, Mother,” I)ad finally will say, “I ’member when I •was a kid. And it seems that the stunts of the youngsters today are the very same things that I did.” Americus Undertaking Co. NAT LEMASTER, Manager Fjineral Directors And Embalmera Night Phones 661 and 88 Day Phones 88 and 231 L. G. COUNCIL, President. T. E. BOLTON, Ass’t. Cashier C. M. COUNCIL, V.-P. and Cashier. J. E. KIKER, Ass’t. Cashier The Planters Bank of Americus (Incorporated) AT YOUR SERVICE Oldest and largest Stale Bank in South- Ik* west Georgia. Any i H RjfWelsifHß business entrusted to us will receive our , jj! k est attent*on ready one of our valued customers, V /e would appreciate an opportunity of serving you. The Bank With a Surplus RESOURCES OVER $1,700,000 PROMPT, CONSERVATIVE. ACCOMMODATING No Account Too Large; None Too Small THE STANDARD MEN’ WHITE MADRAS SHIRTS AT $1,25 Attached collars of excellent quality Madras, all sizes 14 1-2 to 17. here Friday and Saturday each $1.25 MEN’S WASH TIES AT 10c Special sale of wash Four-in- Hand Ties of plain pretty striped madras cloths, full length; regu larly 25c; here Friday and Satur day each 10c BUSTER BROWN SOCKS AT 25c For wear and hard service they have no equal—black, brown and full line of staple colors; sizes 9 1-2 to 11 1-2; F’riday and Saturday pair 25c MEN’S FINE GOODYEAR OXFORDS AT $5.85 Every pair made to retail at $5 and they are worth every cent of that price,- too; black or brown, flexible Goodyear welted soles, rub ble heels, all sizes; Friday and Sat urday, pair $3.95 WOMEN’S PATENT SANDALS AT $2.98 New styles just in from the manufacturer, flexible stitched down soles, cut outstyle, all sizes; Friday and Saturday, pair $2.98 MEN’S COOL UNION SUITS AT 50c Athletic style, elastic seam back, knee length and sleevless, of good grade Pajama Checks. The ma terial used in the manufacture of this garment is worth more than 50c. Friday and aturday, all sizes, per suit ’ 50c MEN’S BALGRIGGAN 2- PIECE UNDERWEAR AT 50c Shirts and drawers to match, long or short sleeve shirts, long or knee length drawers, all sizes; Fri day and Saturday, garment ....50c MEN’S ATHLETIC UNDERSHIRTS AT 35c Bleached white athletic army and navy style, very elastic, sizes 36 to 4G; regularly 50c; here. Friday and Saturday, each 35c $4. $5 and $6 BATHING SUITS AT $2.98 This takes every bathing suft in our stock for men and women, including some very fine silk and wool ones; somplete run of sizes; Friday and Saturday, choice of any suit in our stock $2.98 Standard Dry Goods Company Forsyth St. Next Bank of Commerce AMERICUS, GA.
