The Dawson News, 1889-11-06

~ Let us advert for a moment to 'the lease bill and lease contract, and the Senate wiil pardon me a few words of history inthat connec connection. - tion. connection. He who now addresses you well remembers what transpirved when the bill which resulted in the present lease came before the Legislature, There were iu the senate & tew of us, mostly young men, siruggling to maintain the interest. honor and integrity of Georgiy; although we werein a hopeless minority. We felt that there was danger, that Georgia wasubout to be plundred iu her own house and by those who ought to be her friends. We invoked the council ot our friends. We can~ ferred with Mr. Toomhs, Mr, Hill, ! Mr. Sthephens, and others of Georgia's statesmea. They udvi»' ed us to vote for the lease bill as the best thatcould be done uader the circumstaices. By common consent and with one sccord this | line of reasoning was pursued. It was true that twenty five thousand dollars g'er month wasa small ren renta! - ta! renta! for the property, but it was be believed - lieved believed that in ordec to keep pace with the rail road progress and ! raii road developement of the | times the lessees would be cons 1 strained to make improvements and | to place betterments on the road, | which would in some measure com compensate - pensate compensate for the low rate for reutal, ! This, though a tieit, wasa much discussed and well understood cons dition of' the transuction, [t never veeurred to those statesmen and pa patriots - triots patriots that there would be a large claim for betterments preferred against the State; and we may well imagioe tha. if any earthly consid consideration - eration consideration could disturb their eternal rest it would be the thought that a | claim so unfounded and iniqui iniquitous - tous iniquitous sheuld be paid by the ' State which they loved, honored and illustrated so well. And there isnothing in the lease act to wars rant the shadow of claim for betteys ments, On the contrary, as the journals show, an eflort was made w 0 incorporate a betterments feats ure into the bill, and it wus defeats ed by an overwheiming and crush crush'ing - 'ing crush'ing majority. Indeed it is not de de'nied, - 'nied, de'nied, but it is adwitted by those ' interested in the lease, that thereis 'no legal right to support such clain, Whence then comes this claim for betterments? 'Lhere is nothing in the iease act or the lease contract to authorize it. By the acion of the Legislature it wag expressly negatived. There i 3 nothing in the law 1o suppart it. But you 'hear men speck with bated breath about the courts asit there wasdan wasdaner - er wasdaner to the State fromn that quarter. Why, the lease act and the leuse coutract constitute the luwof the case and the courts will be govern governed - ed governed by them They will consjrue and entorce that and that contract, It i 3 said, however, that while the lessees nave no legal .ight they have an equitable claim for better better'mwents - 'mwents better'mwents against the State. Butitis a fundament.l and well established rule of jurisprudence thit equity tollows thelaws; and the c%urts will recognize no equitable claim warranted by the lease act avd the lease contract. And an appeal to the generosity of the State, based upon this ground, comes without merit or torce when it is remems rememsbered - bered rememsbered that it was a tacit, if not an express,condition of the transaction that there should be nothing paid for betterments. But it 1 said again that there are some twenty miles of side track laid down by the lesices which they might remove or undertake to remove. Grant, for the sake cf argument, that they have the right te remove such ade track, worth perhaps one hundred thous thousaod - aod thousaod dollars. Better that be done than that Georgia should pay mils lious or even three quarters of a million for bettéements, But, I doubt not, that Georgia's executive will be equal to the emergency aud will protect the juterest of the state even in these tide tracke- Now, speaking as a lawyer, I am pre. pared to admiv that uoder a difler, ent lease act and lease contract the lessecs might have the right to remove side tracks which they have coustructed wbere none had already been placed. For im stance, 1t the history and character ot the lease bill and lease coutract were such as to leave the genec genecal - al genecal law governing the relations of landlord and tenant in full force aud operation, then that might be thecase. It would, however, still be a judicial rather than a leg~ islative ,uestion. Andit may be stated farther. that if the lessees could make such removal at all it would be by virtue o: alegal right, But how, I ask, can such removal be made when there is confessedly no legal rizht to_betterments? But it is urged that it is neces. sary to ascertain what the present lessecs claim in order to be able to release the property. Why 8o nec necessary? - essary? necessary? it is nct proposed to pay ove dollar of it. On the contary

Senater C. B. Wooten's Speech. As the claim of the lessees of the Western and Atlantic road is pow engaging the attention of the leg legislature, - islature, legislature, and interesting the peo people - ple people of Georgia, the NEws prints bes low Senatar C. B. Wootev's speech on that important questicn, Mr. Wooten eaid: Mr. President: After mature consideration I find myself unable to agree to the report of the com comnittee - nittee comnittee of conterence, What is the character, and what 18 -he object of that report? It proposes the appeintment of a joint committee whose duty it shall be "to conter with the lessees of the Western and Atlantic railroad comrany and ass certain from said lessees what claims they make against the state ag such lessees, and the bgsis theres of. and how and in what manner they ask for a settlement ot the same," and farther to ''obtain from said lessees a of the personal preperty received from the state which the lessees can aud 1 will deliver to the state at the ex | piration of the present lease. Such are suhstantially the objects of the resolution reported by the commit- 1' tee of conference, while upon the tace of the report appears the des claration that '"'neither the validity of such elaime, nor the duty of the | state to allow the same, or make any settlement thereof, is admitt~ ed" B | Now, 'sir, this is an essentially | different document from the Hall resolution, which was adopted by the senate scme time ago, and which gave rise to the conference \commiuee. "That resolution did make inquiries as to to the claims ot the lessees, but it contained, in no uncertain terms, an express and emphatic denial of the liability of the state for any such claims;whilst it went further ana sought to as ascertain - certain ascertain #he true condition of the road rnd what property; if any, now cornnected with the road might be reserve?! or withheld by the state in a future contract ot lease. These are legitimate objects ot ins quiry and are calculated for good to the state. But the report un- ' der consideration ignores these jms portant objects and iu substance addresses itself exclusively to the claims of the lessess. Whepn re reduced - duced reduced to its fipal analysis it is, in the main, an inquiry asto the claim of the Jessees for betfepments. Now it is due to some of the members of the conference commi'- tee, and #o far as [ know toall of them, to say that they are decid decidedly - edly decidedly oppoged to the payment of any sgm whatever for betterments; and in what I may say I intend no reflection on them. They ure honorable gentlemen, all; and they { have my confidence and esteem. But I must be permitted to state | that, in my judgment, the tenden~ cy of this report is in the wrong direction. It is fraught with dan danger - ger danger to the state. What is there in the premises to demand or even to warrant snch an overture to the lessees as the report contemplates? "we are not eveu confronted with apy authoritative statement of a claim for betterments, No ruch claim has been presented to the legislature, and we are so ready to give shape and substance to imag imaginary - inary imaginary :ud pretended cluims against the siate as that we, upon mereru mors that float in the air, shall go out to institute inquiry into eych claims and thereby dignify them, it may be.into respectability? But gentlemen seem to assume that there is such a claim lurking in sccret and boding danger to the public, and that it is of & charac character - ter character so serious as to challenge the investigation of the legislature. . Lake the ghost Banquo. it rises up to haunt them and will not down at the bidding. Let us not be needlessly alarmed. There is no {:eril to the state from that source. seorgia will be able to meet the exigencies of the case and take care of herselt even against the claim of the lessees. I would not be underttood as advocatin'? the doctrine that the state should ine trench herself in her sovereignty to resist or 1o avoid the ;lmyment of any meczitorivus claim. The state i cannot afford to be unjust; and it l even the claim of the lessees should be found to be legal, ljusund mer meritorious, - itorious, meritorious, Georgia, apprehend, would vot hesitate to honor it, But I undertake to say lhq%gha Frops osition, capaple of clear demotis |su~mion. thati there is no foundas tion in lod equity or jusice for lany clab¥ftir bettermens. 1 speak sirictly of betterments us such,and ,Nigve wo reference to rolling stock ;0 Pumdpropny.

your report says, in terms, that you do ot admit the validity of the claim, What then is theuse of the ciaim. What then is the use of the [investigation ? Why consume time and spend the peques monez in pro prosecuting - secuting prosecuting an inquiry which must result in nothing if, as you declare in advance, you do not admit the | validityofthe claim and will not pay it? The people would hold us to a Jjust responsibility tor such trivoli - ' ty. : And ifit is proposed to gnarans tee or warrant the future lessees against all claims for betterments in order to lease the property to the best advantagze, then can be done as well without ascertain ascertaining - ing ascertaining the amountof the pretended claim, Therefore, there is absolutely no necessity for the adoption of this report Not only is it unnecessary, byt it is not sustained by precedent, It i geaerally, it not universally, true that persons having claime against goverment, State or Nas tional, have to present the same to the Legislature or to Congress as the case may be. And, so care carefully - fully carefully is the public treasury guard guarded - ed guarded that even just claims often meet wivh the dslay incident to deliberatefand thorough investigas tion, and are collected only after urgent ard protracted suit. But this report seeks to reverss the order of things and to eend forth the Legislature in search of a ! phantom claim against the State as Jagson went in pursuit of the gols den fleece. What is there in the character of this claim or of those who make it, to call for such exira exiraordinary - ordinary exiraordinary proceedings? Is the Legs | islature prepared for such a mis mission? - sion? mission? Is 1t ready to bow at the toot tootstool - stool tootstool of this lease and ask in def defforential - forential defforential t rms what amount of mouey it is the pleasure of its Highness to have from the State of Georgia? [trust not. Why then adopt this report? W hat good ean come of it? I cons fess I can fee no good, but harm rather. Such action would be un unwise - wise unwise and dangerous in its tenden-~ cies. True it is that the report does ngt admit the validity ot the claim for bettermen ts, But it looks to negotiatien and that mizht lead us to gjpuintwhere we would wiave that sote negation and begin to compromise with wrong. Let us avoid this result by disagreeing to this report and thus retusing to t:ke the first step in a wrong direca tion.

Such is the weaknessgof poorfrail humanity that ic isalways unsofe to da'ly with wrong whether it be in the ehape of & wrovg cluim or wrong in any other of its fmteau forms. The poet happily illustrates this tendeucy in the trite but apt quos tation: "Vice is a monster of so frightful mien As to be hated, needs but to be seen; Yet seen too oft, familar with her face, We first eadure, then pity, then embrace." Now I desireto say that T mean no persoval disparagement to the present lessces. They are gentlemen of high character and respectability, but I must be permitted to remark that if the accepted history of the matter and statistics are to be credited, they have made quite enou h out of the State, Surelf' a margin of ten thous. and dollars per month on the ren renta) - ta) renta) oughtto be sufficient to give satiety even to avarice. Desola Desolated - ted Desolated uud impoverished by the wae as Georgia was, she still was forced by stress ot eircumstances to bare her shoulders to that burden. We learn from sacred bistory that the Isrealities were permitted to despoil the Ezyptians, but there was a limit even to the privi!egt3l of plundering the enemy. And in all conscience, shall there not be an end to the spoliation of Geors gia l't is hoped that the lessces will not press any claim for better betterments, - ments, betterments, but if they see prufcr to do 8o it will be fer_tge Legislature to set bounds toit and to =ay in the language of authorii; ''thus far shalu thou come and o farther.' Ithink I know the « ntiment of the puiple ot Georgia on this sub. Ject. 1f there be any one matter against which they are unanimouss ly fixed and principled it is that of paying for betterments. They thundered the mandate from the polls last Qctober and woe betide the public servant who heeds it not, Sir, it may be well to remember that there was a time in the early bistory of Georgia when an out outraged - raged outraged and indignant people came together and destroyed trom the faze of the earth the records ot a great wrong that had been done them. Without cowmparing this matter to the Yazoo fraud, I yet venture to suggest that it the legs islature, in an unguarded moment, were to provide fcr the paymant ot

the claim for betterments the peos ple might rise in the majesty ot their power and again invoke fire from heaven to destroy the evi evidence - dence evidence ot so great a wrong. THE FIEBCEST BEAST OF PREY. Man's Remorseless Cruelty Sifown in the Destruction of Harmless Animals. i No, we will not go squirrel han hanting - ting hanting this year. We have been re= flecting on the matter and have concluded that the destryction of happy innocent lives should not be regarded as sport. The little hearts that beat beneath the velvet coats of the gay and trisky denis zens of the forest arc just as sus ceptible to joy and pain and terror as those that throb within eur own breasts. They are all God's creat creatures, - ures, creatures, and have a right to life, liber liberty - ty liberty aud pursuit of happiness. How tew of us think of the tens of thou thousands - sands thousands of animals that must die dai daity - ty daity that man may live. Man, the arch devourer, the murderous and remorseless tyrant, "The whola earth labors and is in violence because of his crueliics, and from the amphitheater of sen= tient nature there soundin fancy's ear the bleat of one wide and unis versal suffering - a dreadful homs age to the power of nature's con constituted - stituted constituted lord." Man is pre-cminent among the flercest anumals of prey. Not content with satisfying his luxurious appetite, this most ferocious ingenius and implacuble of the car nivora, who revels in flesh andblood with glutionless glee also makes a sport of the distuc distuction - tion distuction of ife. When he wantsa day off - a day of pleasure and recreation - he goes forth to the woods, and ' with the fierceness of the hyena, watches for his prey. I The savage beasts of the jungle ouly destroy lite when hunger or fear drives them to it; but man, the image of his maker, kills. for sport - for the mere gratification it affords him te take life. If ani animals - mals animals have souls, as many good and wisc men believe, what must the departed spiritg of the slaughtered host think of the proud princes of creation who stalk rampant amid the blood and groans aug agony of their fellow creatures - From the Punzsutwwney (Pa) Spirit.,

Suit Yourselif, hut there is no other remedy for sick headache, dizziness, constipas tion, billivusness, or to restore a regular, healthy action to the livs er. stomach and bowels, equal to to those reliable little "'Plorsant Purgative prepared by Dr. Pierce. Ot Druggists. e4O e Complete and Permanent. In the early part of last year T had a violent attack of rheumatism, trom which I was confined to my bed for over three months, and at times was unable to turn myself in bed, or even raise the cover. A nurse had to be in coustant atten attendance - dance attendance day and nicht. I was sg feeble that what little nourishment I'took had to be given e wich 'a spoon. I wasin constant agony, 'and sleep was en irely out of the question except when I was under the influence of opiates. After ealling in the best local [-hysicans, and trying al other medicines without receiving any benefit, I was induced by {riends to try Switt's Speciflec (8. 8. 8). I discontinued all other medicines, and took a course of 5. 8,8- - thir. teen small hottles - which effocted a cowaplete and permanent cure, L. C. Brssgrr, El Dorado, Kansas, AY EATING SORE. Mr. C. B. McLemoge, a promin prominent - ent prominent and influential cit'zen of Hens derson, Texnas, writes under date of August 23, 1889, as follows: '?Foreighteen months I had an eating sore on my tongue I wag treated by the best local physiciang, but oebtained no relief, the sors gradually growin § worse, | conelud coneluded - ed coneluded finally to try S. 8. S.. and was entirely cured after using a few bottles. - You have my cheerful psrmis psrmisgion - gion psrmisgion to publish the abive statement for the benefit of those similarly afflicted." C. B. McLeyorr. ! Henderson, Tex. Treatise on Blood and Skin Diss eases mailed free, Swirt SPECIFIC ¢O., Atlanta, Ga. e e e G Sttt Johnson's Tonic 1s a splendid Tonic and Appetizer. Try it, and it not pleased with it don't pay for it. e o iie oty Don't fail to loot at Davis & Locke's elesant line ot over ¢ s,

B T 3 T <¢ CURES IN FROM (b one to five days. i:i Manuofactnred enly by T. D. Sale, m DAWBON, =+ GA. b LT Price - HsOoct s J. G. PARKS, H. 8. BELL J. G. PARKS & CO., FIRE INSURANCE AGENTS DAWSON, GA. All kinds of property msured at reasonable rates, Losses satisfacs torily adjusted and promptly paid. ('ompanies represented all strong liberal und reliable. Office over drug store of Cheat~ ham & Dean, north side of Public Bqunve oo c Bl MILITARY ANPD - AGRICULURAL COLILLEG E CUITHBERT, GEORGIA., e i Next session begins Sept. 4th. Full corps ot prafeseors. TULIION FREE. Board $9,00 per month. Send For - atalogue. To A, J. CLARK, President. R i Neuraigve £°erscies and shose troubled with nervousness resulting from oare or overwork will be relieved by taking - Brown's Iron Bitters. Ge:u'# , Fande mark sz eroused 008 25 o