Newspaper Page Text
4E
N K
A weekly symposium of rep
resentative opinions upon in
teresting questions held within
the community of our readers,
These opinions are selected sole
ly upon the basis of their general
value or special interest, without
reference to teh editorial views
or policy of this newspaper.
1
HELD T 0 BE OF
Tax Equalization Bill Given First
~ Place by Members of Spe
cial Commission.
By 4. W. LeCRAW.
Secretary Special Tax Commission.
In answer to the question, “What
#= the most tmportant matter that
should come before the Lumsmlure‘
this summer, and why,” 1 will speak
Dot for mysetf, but as the representa
tive of nine of Georgia's most mnmi-;
ment citizens, who as members of the
Special Tax Commission for Uvurmn!
hawe made a most profound study of
eur vexatiows tax problem and have
reached the conclugion that a oon-i
stitutional amendment shounld bo‘
passed allowing classification of prop
erty for taxation
Thelr report to the Legisiature,
which #s now in the hands of the
printers smd will be out In a few
days urges this constitutional amend
ment as the most important subject
which should reseive the attention of
the Legislature and the people. The
nine members of the Tax Corminission
who have signed these recommanda-
Wions for a eonstftutional amendment
~are: Governor Hugh M. Dorsey, ex
offielo chalrman; Senators H. R. De
m and R. A. Demmy, Repre
- sontatives . R. Akin and Zach Ar
l-ifl. Judge Enoch H. Callaway, Dr.
& H 'L-fi:m. Dr. Edgar H.
Johnson “Commissioner H. .
Fulibright.
B would be tmpossible to give the
- reasons for this proposed amendment
"#n an article of this length, and I
would respectfully urge that anyone
sufficiently interested write or mll‘
at the Tax Commissioner's office,
room 133 State Capitol, and get n
copy of the report and read it. Some
fifty-odd pages are devoted to giving
reasons alone for recommending this
proposed amendment. Some of these
reasons, in mere outline, are as fol
« Yows:
1. The present system, with an
wvalorem tax on all property alike, is
grossly unjust to some classes of
property. Statistics are given to show
that the complete income from some
classes of property, for instance, bu:k]
deposits, wouid be confiscated if the
Present tax wates were enforoed on
&l classea |
2. The present system ts meapable
of enforcement, because !nun“tlblo‘
property goes into hiding rather than
submit to the present unjust rates,
and a publie opinjon has grown up:
WALTER ANDREWS NAMES ‘
HIGHWAY LEGISLATION
8 +
“And Discusses Proposed Consti
.
tutional Amendment as Best
pz; .
B Form Available.
- )
By STATE SENATOR WALTER P.
i ANDREWS,
. lam firmly of the opinion that the
_great and overwhelming majority of
eur people earnestly belleve that
~ proper and adequate highway legisia
glon is the paramount question to be
_ gonsidered by the approaching session
of our General Assembly,
At this time I am a member of the
legislative commiittee charged wuhl
{“ duty of proposing legislation to
-the next session of our lamnmmn.l
. and to that end I have prepared a
" Bill which embodies my views, 1 am
pot offering this measure as a minor-
Sty report, but as an additional
. thought upon the subject, for the con. |
gideration of the representatives of
‘ the people, who certainly will be ex
. pected to pass a highway bill this
summer. The other four members of
this commission have prepared five
Dbills, which constiute what they term
thelr “program of legislation.” 1 deo
. pot agree with them in all particu
. lars, although 1 recognize a great deal |
" of merit in their program, and [ per- |
“gonally know that these gentlemen |
‘ ’mo devoted a great deal of thought |
L and coosideratiorr to the matters
committed to our charge. But I think |
" 2hat every person in or out of the
Genern! Assembly should be ready|
. and willing to contribute his thought |
and influence to this subject, and at
" the same time yield any personal|
, ,ps:nlon that he may have as to mmh-!
c@s of procedure in the formulation|
- of legislation. ’
‘ Bpeaking personally, my conviction |
is very mtrong that this legislation
ought to take the form of a clear- |
eut comprehensive constitptional |
amendment, creating a highway de
gtnmt. and providing the means
for its operations. | Ao not think that
_ this Aepartment, which will spend in
fire years about $50,000000, cught to
. be compe” A of only three men, of
‘& whom two would be the controling
" majority, bt that a member from
sach congressionnl detrict, represent.
avery section of the State, to be
inted by the Governor, would M‘
r and more logical, with an ex
h elected by r people
AR BBt Rt PLR I Zvz T a 2 . L A e A Ae A LA A s T s S A v s
A : 2 V . = 7 . ///f}/{'f//)//f//g Z
a 8 o ~ 7 _ 2 ____ A 7
.T 22.2 > Z Z ~ Z
~_ _ : 7 _ ;;; C ____ ~ ~ ~ ‘
g Z b y 7 Z 2 i Z it A
d 7 7 % 7 % ~7%4 Z Z //;/2’27/7;44;’ o ] ~ Z Z
s4-'“¢zo ___ , ’ : 7
; G 7 g > Z //%{///// ////% ;// 2
> 7 S % Z. %’/l . 7 2 2 :
"> > I R s L A . A 2 A P A s e
What Is the Most Important Matter That Should
Come Before the Next Legislature?
iSUFFRAGE AMENDMENT FIRST;
THEN MUNICIPAL OWNERSHIP
SHOULD COME UP, SAYS MAYOR
By MAYOR JAS. L. KEY. 1
In my opinion, the first thing that
the mecoming legislature should do
is to ratify the Federal Woman's Suf
frage Amendment,
Not only is a question involving the
Constitution of the United States
necessarily a supreme one before any
State body, but right action upon the
particular question here presented
would be of incalculable value to both
State and Nation |
Beyond the duty of doing simple
justice to our women and bringing
'thctr splendid influence to bear upon
publie affairs, the State of Geoigia
hLas here an opportunity to go down
in histary as taking a glorious lead
in the nation. Ratification of that
amendment by a state which has not,
heretofore, given the vote to worthen,
would do much to remove the stigma
of being somewhat laggard tn reform
which has attached to Georgla. Like
wise, s moral effect would be a
death-blow to opposition. The State
!0( Georgia might almost be said to
‘b«, in a position to set American
‘womanhood free! |
One other matter of equal impor
tance may or may not take the form
of some definite action by the in
coming legislature, but undoubtedly
it should, It is time for the State of
Georgia to bring about municipal
ownership of public utilities.
What the whole world needs today
is increased production, lower costs,
and weaithier publie treasuries buiit
up from other sources than the over
taxed pocket-books of the greal mass
of the people.
In the northern part of this SM‘
there are two milllon of undeveloped.
horsepower. These resources are
likely to remain undeweloped so long
as private owners are empowered to
keep them lmited for the sake of
being able to charge exhorbitant
prices for a distribution of the nat
which condones the hiding of such
property and makes such practice al
most undversal. Statistics are given
to show that intangible property was
bearing 14 p;"camn%t the bundenh::l
taxation in 5, & the ratlo
been steadily M until o
1918 it was bearing only 6 per eunl
of the burden.
3. The “tax ferret” method, orl
er administration, would not
solve this problem, becanse the ex
perience of other States which have
tried such methods shows the utter
impossibility of forcing Wmtangible
property on the tax books In this
WY when the rates are unjust.
The results of classification in
the twenty-odd States that have
adopted it have been remarkably suc
cessful. These statistios are very in
teresting and throw great light on
the results which can be expeocted
when Georgla passes a similar ocon
stitutional amendiment, |
from the State at large, who should
be a civil engineer of at least five
years' practical experience, versed in
highway and bridge construction, who
would be the chalrman of the board
jand the executive head of the de
vartment,
I furthermose bolleve that a bond
‘crue of $30,000,000, payable in twen
-1)’ years, should be and ought to be
hased upon special taxes upon mo
tor vehicies. This would involve rais.
ing the amount of taxation upon these
vehicles to what 1 would estimate ta
be an average of about S2O each. Upon
this basis I have figured out an ap
lpmxlmulon of income and expendi
'lun for each year during the period
of twenty years, from which I think
tha conchusion can be absolutely re
lted upon that the $30,000,000 of bonds
would be retired, prineipal and lnter-l
est, and a surplusage fund would be
| ereated therefrom, during said period
of time, amounting to another $30,-
000,000 more,
A brief constitutional amendment,
which I have prepared along this line,
would furnish the quickest, surest and
most efficient method of getting hard
| surfaced highways built all over the
State of Georgla, giving all of the
| counties of the State and all sections
{of the State a perfectly fair and
| equitable proportion in the division of
| all road funds, State of Federal No
| delay "would be occasioned by this
| plan The rights of every county
wowld be safceguarded in the constitu.
| tion, and the whole matter would be
{ thus protected from amendment year
{after year by the Legislature.
' 1 do think that it is fair and Just
to provide the State funds for the
| bullding of State roads through these
taxes on motor vehicles, and 1 do not
lb«ih-\'v the owners of motor vehicles
‘w.ll object to this method of raising
| this money when they know that a
| real, efMicient and constructive high
way department s spending it for the
| purpose of giving every section In
| Georgla first-class hard-surfaced
| Yoads,
» F'or instanee, If a person with a
1 motor vehicle should make a trlg
|out from Atlanta to Savannah wit
the roads In their present condition
it would eost him two or three times
{more to do se than a motor license’
| for & whole year would be when com
pared tv the cost of such a trip with
~ fine, hird -surfaced roads all the way.
* - . 2
ral wealth that rightfully belongs to
the people at large.
~ Some men are born to financial
puccess. If the genius of these men
‘were forced to exert itself in origi
nally productive enterprises, instead
of manipulating to their own profit
public utllities, the income of which
should rightfully return to the peo
|ple. the increase in much-needed pro
duction would be such as to make
ft more than profit the State to de
velop natural resources which are to
day deliberately held below even the
present demand,
| In the province of Ontario, Canada,
the State furnishes power at cost to
226 municipalities, who, in turn, fur
nish it at cost to their citizens. The
legislature could do nothing better
for the State of Georgia than to bring
about such a situation here.
| OH! BUT WILL THEY? |
R s eGt oI e il
P eg e el
x- ff/ &‘);- A/w//, MG fiq::;?%?--fi-‘;zr.‘ _._-.»'-r?.‘--':f %%%03:?%,;}.%;%{;%*%“
A Bo e eT, egPG A eSR BEHTH 0 ] e s S sL s S
i ‘éfi?}}’j‘"} SwflL‘.*E-’*“SG“ll*sélfif’\‘E@l&y:“‘;%%&&l3.','?3-"
=1 [} COUPLE OF BARBECUES —
—_— _ : . AN' WALK RIIGHTOUT A
T AGAIN!
r - — N ///./// 2 ’ s 3
-7 : %f/ : —
— A E 111 e Z
\\‘L€W 2 ’ g .
1P | e
N~ F O %
: /B N W g e
A 7) A —
NG 1 Pl
‘\‘.' A Q-~ 4 / / - IS
AR ;”o S . % 4 A
il == \o/11534 e | ——
ayl \ VST OSS |
\\\. - - % ’ \f\‘ N\ - ;
\ N, = |
, 1; 2 7 |
v Y/ 777/])
%Q\r/\4 ' % A //////// 2 i'z
4y77 ¢ I : |
llisen\ % oY) )Sl il
. I "' 7 f’ /// / ”15" T N o, & ! ’r'
2 EDig NSy T ///% TS % 74R (il
|\ ~ = N |
G ‘ ’,/"//'; QLU -, 2l Id : 9\\\ ;
i <AI
WL PR e
Ul | gom, 6",7{ |
= Q, |
V= \eags s [CoM 1 |
— ‘ &) |
DP N ~
(/(///M/FF/ -~
Many a word said in jest—is a jest and nothing more. If you've an idea that the cartoonist is doing anything but joking, then ask any
hard-working Georgia solon what he thinks of the suggested opulence of Senators and Representatives, . .
As a matter of fact, few more sterling services are rendered the State of Georgih than those of the earnest lawyers, business men and
farmers who, for a pitiful remuneration, spend the hot m?o:h:l ofc:u:\v::;; ‘.‘:'é.’;%?.’."i_'.’,’?.fi'.fi?.:'..'"""' fighting tooth and nail against the
- “Pr'h.';'dn:-?r:o:::’;’.ngnrh'33..:}'. kl‘otre"eo:m'ctqr?:::'iv:hlogml::(u:n tha: they will have this summer; and it's a good bet that Georgia will grate
fully remember the next Legisiature, even if a sow barbecues will have to go into the discard for the sake of accomplishment.
MOORE SAYS TAX REFORM
IS THE MOST IMPORTANT
By VIRLYN B. MOORE, +
Representative From Fulton. %
In my opinion, the one all-impors. |
tant question which the _umnuturalw
of 1819 will be called upon to con-!
sider is the question of taxation If!
laws can be enacted whereby the
Kreat wealth and resources of Geors)
gia can be fairly, justly and equally |
luxod 80 that thw revenue of the State |
will be sufficiently large to take care
of its financial needs, the Legisla-|:
ture will have accomplished the great. |
est good possible.
To my mind, the two questions
which are next important to the ques
tion of taxation and vhl’ are ;nn- *
HEARST'S SUNDAY AMERICAN — A Newspaper for People Who Think — SUNDAY, JUNE 15, 1919.
TWO IMPORTANT oCHOOL
- BILLS TO BE TAKEN UP
By M. L. BRITTAIN. \
State ‘uporinmdom of Schools.
In reply to your question permit
‘me to say that in my opinion the most
Aimportant matter before the next
Genera' Assembly is legislation pro
viding for the adequate training of
the future citizens of this common
wealth,
In former years th:s might, per
haps, have been left g 0 private or
individual choice. Today, however,
guch a position is not tenable and is
maintained by a constantly diminish
ing minority. From the staadpoint of
insurance for public safety and wel
fare, alone, the statement that the
c¢'tizens of Georgia must hav. proper
training for their duties in life is sclf
evident. We must get away from
the old-time idea in this State that
we can properly educate our children
with what the church people would
vall “a silver offering.” We must fol
jow the example of the most pre
ly allled with It, are the questions
of providing = thoda of raising suf
ficient funds «or our educational in
terests and for the building of per
manent roads throughout the State
It is admitted by all that at present
the income of the State is not suffi
\Nonl to take care of these needs and|
the Legislator who can devise a law
out of the mln‘ plans and systems
of taxation which are now being dis
cussed and suggested, that will take
care of the financial needs of the
State, will indeed have rendered a
great service and will have solved the
most impostant problem now con
fronting our people.
ressive educational sections of this
country and arrange the laws and fi
nances to this end.
Two measures have been prepared
to do this and will be presented to
the Legislature at i's approaching
session. They are (1) the revised
school code which straightens out
the tangles in the school laws—so
far as the old Constitutional restric-,
tions of 1877 permit—and (2) the El
ders’ bill of last year, which will re
quire every town and county in Geor-(
gia to levy at least some tax for the‘
iccal schools. In other words, for
each community to arrange to do.
something itself to secure local inzer-‘
est and support and not depend on
the State Treasury alone for what
would confessedly be insufficient
maintenance. This is the sincere be
lief of one who believes that the we!-
fare of the schools is the leading pub
lic question before the Georgia Leg
islature today.
HENDRIX IS STRONG FOR
GOOD ROAD LEGISLATION
By WALTER C. HENDRIX. -
Representative From Fulton. l
No more important matter could
come before this session of the Oon-l
eral Assembly than that of the de-|
velopment of the highways of the
State. The chroniclers of the events
’of the Civil Wage lald stress upon the
tact that the roads of the State of
Georgia were fairly good in summer
and fall; well-nigh impassable with
mud in the winter and spring. To
day, after more than one-half cen
tury since that conflict, with but few
exceptions, the same may be said
of the roads of thiy State.
Mhere ks no sort of development of
NEW SENATOR CHOOSES ROAD
LEGISLATION AS PARAMOUNT;
STATE THROWS MONEY AWAY
By STATE SENATOR-ELECT IVAN
E. ALLEN. ;
The next General Assembly will
have to wrestle with a numbe;' of
projects and problems. "The domi
nant issue will be highway legisla
tion, a comprehensive State-wide sys
tem of highways; quick, red-tapeless
workable plans that will enable Geor.
gia to begin using the $4,710,000 Fed
eral fund to Georgia's eredit in Wash
ington. The 6 per cent interest on
this fund which Georgia is now losing
is more than $22,000 a month,
In July, 1920, there will be placed
an additional credit to Georgia's roaa
fund of $2,692,000, and unless we have
a satisfaectory highway commission
¢the resources of the State that is not
'Cependent on the highways, and it
|4B cortain that much of our educa
tional problem would be solved by
easy ingress to and egress from the
|isolated sections. The development
of the highways is a matter for the
|untire State. Loca! areas should not
be left to work out their own par
| ticular schemes, except such as af
| tect oniy local ilnterests.
| For these reasons, I believe if the
next Legislature would teke up the
matter of the highways and solve
this great problem for the benefit
of our State, then if it did nothing
else it would have accomplished a
'\ wark that it could feel proud of,
functioning by then, to the $23,000
lntemsi per month that we are losing,
there will be added $13,000 more,
Georgia must be gotten out of the
mud, roads built and, most important
of all, a positive plan for maintaining
them.,
1 say highway legislation ts the
dominating issue o; the next General
Assembly because good highways are
a straight road for better schools, bet
ter churches, better homes, better
farms and large food production with
more profit, justly earned by the
grower, and yet with lower cost to
the consumer,
Bad highways drive men and wom
en, and especially the children, from
the farms, into the city, thus reducing
the number of food producers and in
creasing the number of mouths to be
fed from the steadily diminishing food
au‘pply.‘ A decreasing food supply and
an increasing population congestion
produces discortent, poverty and ulti
mately that thing we hear so much
about-—Bolshevism.
A number of years ago the Hoosier
Motor Club of Indianapolis, Ind., took
up with me, then president of the
Convention Bureau, a movement for a
great highway through the South|
similar to the Lincoln Highway, I
bécame profoundly interested in this
great subject of good roads. After a
conference with the officials of the
Hoosier Club I tgld them I thought
well of the idea of a great' highway,
but I was afraid we could not gener
ate much enthusiasm in the South
for a highway by that name, and
laughingly remarked that if they
would let me name the highway the
name I would give it would help to
build it. They were not tied to that
name Hoosier, and asked me what
name I would give it, and I christened
it “The Dixie Highway.” They en
thusiastically accepted it, and in less
‘than 60 days a meeting of Governors
‘was held Jn Chattanooga, Tenn, and
every day since interest in good roads
has multiplied.
Farmers and automobile interests
are working hand in hand and I know
of no persgn or faction that can put
forth an argument against good roads.
I have seen the spirit born with the
Dixie Highway spread all over the
South. The next General Assembly, I
think, will eapitalize and harmonize
the best thoughts and plans to date,
SUFFRAGE BILLS FIRST,
WITH MRS. MACDOUGALD
Ratification of Federal Amend
ment or Primary Suffrage Bill
Both Important.
:
By MRS. EMILY C. MACDOUGALD,
President of Equal Suffrage Party of
w.- {
The most important question that
may ooine before the next session of
the Legisiature is woman suffrage;
either the ratification of the Federal
suffrage amendment or the passage of
a primary suffrage bill, granting the
women the right to vote in Demo
cratic primaries. Either would be the
greatest history-making piece of leg
islation that could be enacted by this
body. |
Ratification of the Federal amend
ment would complete, as far as Geor
gia is concerned, the enfranchisement
of half the people of the nation of
voting age. \
By enacting primary suffrage Geor.
gia’'s Legislature would perform an
act of splendid loyalty to the women
of thelr own State, befitting this great
year of achlevement—a year marked
by liberation from every kind of au
tocratie rule—a time when the minds
of Al people have been lifted to a
higher plane of consciousness, and to
a desire to establish finer ideals of
justice in Government.
The men of Georgia can not resist
this strong tide which s sweeping
through their hearts. They realize
that men and women together have
great services to render to the State.
This s the real privilege women have
been seeking and which they glori
ously proved during the world war,
when milllons of them entered the
service of their country and were
found efficient and dependable in lines
of work hitherto considered impossi.
ble to women,
The ballot is rather a means of de
fense against misrule than an instru
ment which shapes government,there
fore the great need of it Tor women
as & means of self-protection; espe
pially when so many of them are
forced to Mve outside the safeguards
.’/7:/,'.‘:
77
7
R LA -W W b {
7
_
24
e el
Today the views ofy
WALTER P. ANDREWS,
MRS. B. M, BOYKIN, ("
M. I. BRITTAIN. :
W. C, HENDRIX, {‘? o
JAMES L. KEY, 1.
J. W. LECRAW.
MRS. EMILY C.MACDOUGALD:
VIRLYN B, MOORE.
FEEBLE-MINDED
————
. .
Measures in Their Behalf Wil
Come Before Solons at the
. .
Incoming Session,
] —
By MRS. B. M. BOYKIL
"The bill to be presented in June fo@
an appropriation for the care of tha
feoble-minded is to my mind most i
portant, .
Georgia is one of five States which
have not recognized the importance
of caring for its feeble-minded. There
are now in Georgia ten thousand men,
women and children who need spe
cial care; both of body and soul and
mind. :
The smaller echildren should be
properly examined physically, treate
ed, fed and sent to school; the boyg
and girls who have passed the a 8
of learning in the public schools,
should be taught a vocation; the
adults should be given the propesr
equipment to carry on whatever trade
they have learned, or if they have
only been a charge on the commounit ¥
in which they lived, they should,
at this time, be taught a mm
trade,
~ Now, if Georgia should pass thiny
bill, what would it not mean to the
community in which these tnmeent:‘
reside? In a financial way, it wi
mean thousands of dollars saved the
State for the reason that somethingg
like two-thirds of the men and wome
en on the chaingang and in jail bee
long to this class. In the reforma«
tory, the majority of the children are
feeble-minded; but give them propee®
environment, education and vocationy
and conditions generally will be vasi
ly improved.
The State will be able to keep the
male and female separated and iy
that way lessen the birthrate. T¢
those who have studied the life of the
feeble-minded it is known that they,
have more children than people of in«
telligence and also that they suffef
greatly from venereal diseases for th
reason that they do not know how t&
protect themselves or to be treate
when they discover that they are afe
flicted with these diseases.
The Federation of Women's Clubs
of Georgia have been working for the
past year to give information to
every one in Georgia that she might
use her informatiah in helping to pus
through this bill, which will be pre=
sented in the June Legislature, by a
commission appointed by Governor
Dorsey.
It is absolutely mecessary for the
men, women and children of Georgia
that legislation in favor of human
welfare must take precedent over all
State issues, and the care of the fee
ble-minded is the most important
question now up before the people
for disposition,
of family. The vote of women #9
needed to redress the economic bale
ance of government because laws afe
sect the cost of living. Women are
the consumers, in the sense that they
buy 80 per cent of all goods on final
consumption, yet they hawe gone
without representation, while the pro
ducer is the voter, We believe the
taxpaying woman has as much right
to say what taxes shall be levied on
her property as the taxpaying man
has.
The example of the States whiety
have adopted equal suffrage proves
that the woman's vote concentrates
itself upon the protection of the homey
of women and children, and upon the
advancement of personal and publid
morality. No dreadful eonsequencea
as foretold by the antis have superw
vened, Human life and human relae
tionships flow on in much the samg
channels,
After suffrage for the women of
Georgia has been finally attained, ade
vocates and opponents allke will yee
Joice that a great wrong has beem
righted, and that the long and somes
times bitter struggle, waged over haif
a century, has ended itn viciory
The Next Questiong
What Do You Think of
the Proposal of the
Chamber of Commerce
Committee on Public
Recreation for a More
Open Sunday for At
lanta? .
Both sides of the
question will be well
supported in letters
from a number of At
lanta’s most prominent
men and women.