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About The independent. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907 | View Entire Issue (May 17, 1906)
Tho KcbrasSta Independent THE PRESIDENT TRAPPED Sarcastic Remarks of Senator Ray nor on President's Inconsisten cies and Final Surrender. Washington, May 11. The demo crats began their expose on the sur render of the administration and friends of the Hepburn bill to Aid rich and the railroads in the senate Yhls afternoon. Senators Rayner and Bailey were the leaders in a highly entertaining attack against the repub licans. Aldrich, Allison, Dolliver and Long defended the majority side. "I do not say that anyone has set a trap for the president of the United States. I would not make a declara tion of that kind upon this floor, but I do say, and I say it again, ' with the greatest respect and deference to the president, that he unfortunately is so constituted that he can not look at a trap without fooling with the spring." This piece de resistance in the first section of Hayner's attack he will get in a second section with a fifteen minute speech tomorrow obtained a -Isnph sn.-l iri.-Sfrstis.-? tfc v -'"-' f nib- by which the democrats expect to make political capital out of the sit uation. Court Review is Up. The court review question, which for three months has former the crux of the whole subject of rate regula tion, was at last before the senate for consideration. Senator Rayner had jumped his narrow court review amendment, based on the original Long amendment, ahead of the sec tion in the bill into which the Allison court review amended it to be in serted, in order to give himself an opportunity to speak twice on the sub ject. His amendment was rejected practically by a party vote. La Fol lette alone voted against his party. McEnry, Pettus, Foster, Morgan and Clark of Montana voted with the re publicans. Tomorrow the Allison amendment will come up, and the vote by which it will be adopted will show about the same personnel of the op posing sides as that, today. The important affirmative action of the day was the striking out of the words "and fairly remunerative" from the section granting rate-making au thority, to the interstate commerce commission. The original draft pro vided for a rate that should be just and reasonable and fairly remuner ative A unanimous vote struck out the words specified. Another part of the Allison com promise providing that orders of the commission shall go into effect within such reasonable time as the commis sion may prescribe, instead of thirty days, was adopted. This amendment was modified by a provision that no order should take effect earlier than thirty days after notice. Bailey Amendment Lost. Senator Bailey's amendment to pre vent the suspension of orders of the commission by preliminary injunction or interlocutory decree, which along with court review has commanded the attention of the great constitutional lawyers of the senate throughout the winter and spring, was defeated by a vote of -23 to 54. La.Follette, Hale and Burett republicans-r-voted for it. Eight democrats Bacon, Clark of Montana, Culberson, Daniels, Morgan, Newlands, Pettus and Taliaferro voted against it. - In his attack on the Allison court review plan, Senator Rayner said he wished President Roosevelt had not interferred in this legislation and had permitted the case to be settled in the senate, where the responsibility de volves. "Last week," said the Maryland sen-j a tor , "after the president was caught in this trap for a day or so in some way or another, he worked his way out of it and then he kept on looking at it and walking in and out of It until he was caught beyond all hope of es cape. Now his party friends and his party enemies are vying with each other as to which one of them can get in first and participate with him in his gratuitous captivity. Acts' Held Inconsistent. "A few weeks ago four or five or six weeks ago he sent to us as his envoy extraordinary the senator from Kansas (Mr. Long), and he intrusted to him the mission of a constitutional review. Last Friday, without notify ing the senator from Kansas that his credentials had been revoked, he ap pointed in his place as minister pleni potentiary the distinguished senator from Iowa (Mr. Allison) with the mis sion of a broad statutory review. Now, I understand perfectly well that the senator from Iowa did not seek this apointment. ' I am informed that he was peacefully reposing in nocturnal innocence when his appointment was made, and when these mighty honors and this distinguished servitude were thrust upon him. At any rate, we have two reviews sent here by the president the one in the hands of the senator from Kansas, and the oth er in' the hands of the senator from Iowa, and both of them in deadly con flict with each other. "I say here in passing that both of these ministers are equally well ac credited The certificates of the sen ator from Kansas has the impress of the royal authority, and the testimon ials of the distinguished senator from Iowa not only bear the imperial seal, but they are authenticated in a man ner that ought to give them absolute authenticity by the coat of arms of the state of Rhode Island." "We understand what all this means here," continued Mr. Rayner, "but the people do not understand it. We un derstand that the president is no long er caressing the junior senator from Iowa (Mr. , Dolliver) and the senator from Kansas (Mr. Long), but he has transferred his" affections and is now clasping to his bosom with the fond est and most fervent devotion the sen ior senator from Rhode Island. "The president tells us that these two reviews which he has sent in are one and the same thing, but they are as widely different as it is possibly for two divergent propositions to be. The one is the review under the con stitution which you can not eliminate without invalidating your law; ihe other is the broad statutory review which permits the courts to try the cases de novo, and in the same man ner as if no such body as the inter state commerce commission had ever existed upon the face of the earth. "This is an absolute surrender upon this entire subject, and I want to con gratulate the senators who are in fav or of this broad review upon having achieved this signal victory, and on congratulating them of course there was room for controversy and I am not impugning the motives of anyone in favor of the broad review, but I say that the president ougnt not to have changed his ground as precipi tately as he has done; but I want to congratulate them on the signal vic tory they have gained, and I want to congratulate every railroad ' president in the United States and all his grand "retinue of counsel upon - the great triumph they have attained. "It is an unfortunate thing, that just at that very moment when po litical considerations were being elim inated and when elements in both parties were getting together to unite upon a proposition that was accep table to the people, and when the prize was within our hands that we had been struggling for for months, that the president through " executive interference could compel his party and compel us to accept a cowardly subterfuge and .. proclaim an uncon ditional surrender." GOLL BEHIND PRISON BARS Leavenworth, Kan. Henry G. Goll, former cashier of the First National bank at Milwaukee, recently found (XXXXX30COCOCOCOCX Thomas, Hayloaders, Tedders, Rake JENKINS STACKERS SWEEP RAKES ETC. Two complete up-to-date lines well Ask the leading Implement NEBR. MO LINE OOOOOOOCOOOOCXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXD guity of misapplying the funds of that institution and making false entries and sentenced to ten years in the United States penitentiary at Fort Leavenworth, has arrived at the prison. Goll appeared perfectly cool when he entered the prison gates and remarked that he was glad the trial was over. Warden McClaughry said he was assign the prisoner to do clerical work. He may work in the same department with Frank G. Big elow, former president of the First National bank, now serving ten years for his part in embezzling the funds of the bank. FIGHT FOR FREE ALCOHOL. Bill to Go to Sub-Committee Senators Favor Measure Washington Interest in the fate of the Free Alcohol bill increases daily, and there are threats of dire things to happen if the measure is smother ed in the senate sommittee on finance. The measure was considered briefly in that committee today, and it im mediately developed thta a majority of the committee favored the measure. It is, nevertheless, to be referred to a sub-committee, and fear is expressed that this will mean -the postponement of action to another session. The sub-committee to which Sena tor Aldrich will refer the bill will in clude Senators Aldrich, Allison, Spooner and Hale or Burrows, to gether with Senators Bailey, Teller! and probably Daniel. It is generally believed that Messrs. Aldrich, Hale, Burrows and Penrose are opposed to the measure, although Mr. Aldrich de clares that he is not, and no member of the committee admits his ' opposi tion. Mr. Aldrich said today that in his judgment certain safeguards should be provided before the bill becomes a law. It is admitted that the date on which it will go into effect should be somewhat deferred in order to permit the makers of wood alcohol to adjust themselves to the new conditions; also that distillation of the alcohol to be denatured should be permitted only in a uniform and specific size of still, etc. A majority of the senate wants the measure to pass, and members of the house are wild on the subject, many declaring that the enactment of this measure will produce more beneficial political effect than any other bill, be fore the present congress. The entire Illinois delegation came yesterday to the senate in a body to impress on their senators the Imperative necess ity of favorable action on the bill, and many other members of the house S and favorably known to hay raisers! dealer of your town to write us PLOW CO., Omaha. have sought to impress on their sen ators the same thing. No one will object to any safeguards adopted with sincerity and for the sole purpose of preventing fraudulent manufacture or sale of the denatured alcohol, but any attempt to load the bill with amendments with a view to delaying its enactment or crippling its efficiency will bejstoutly resisted. Some members of the senate declared that unless the committee on finance rpnnrts thp hill nnil affnrrts thp lmnpr house an opportunity to vote on it a motion to discharge the" committee from its further consideration will bev made a fight precipitated on the floor of the senate. TRICKS OF OIL TRUST. Chicago The interstate commerce commission this morning overruled a motion by the Standard attorneys to exclude testimony regarded as purely local matters, on the ground that the commission can not hear anything not touching on interstate commerce. F. S. Hibbs, former Standard agent at Peoria, testified that the Standard maintained a school for teaching dem onstrators tricks to defeat competi tors. One trick consists of stopping the holes of the burner of a lamp, burning rival oil, making the wick smoke. Another demonstration con sists in putting two lamps side by, side, burning , Standard and rival oil, the wick of the rival lamp having been secret wetted, thus preventing the wick carrying the oil properly. Another trick is that of doctoring lubricating oil. Hibbs told a story of bribing machinists to put injurious substances in lubricating oil sold by independent concerns. He said his In structor was Frank Bush, of the Pe oria office of the Standard. Evidence that promised to Involve charges of bribery of state and county officials was tendered by Special Counsel Monnett at the Standard hear ing. ..Witness Hibbs was asked if he knew of any instance of bribery of any one beside that of railroad agents and machinists. "Yes," replied Hibbs, "I know of many state and county tax officials accepting bribes to permit inadequate tax valuations to be entered." . Attorney Miller objected. "If the Standard bribed tax offic ials perhaps independent dealers have, too,' said Miller. "Some of them have been indicted and sent to prison," retorted Mon nett, "but no Standard official has ever permitted the courts to try him." The commissioner ruled that proof of bribery of tax officials could not show how the Standard destroyed competition, and ruled the evidence out.