River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1873-03-21
Madison March 18th, 1873.

"The contest deepens." Yesterday
the Assembly ordered our bill to a
third reading by vote of nearly three
to one. Pending the discussion the
Assembly Chamber was crowded to its
utmost capacity. Er. Barron came
down from the Speakers chair and led
the opposition, under the special gui-
dance of Mr.. Baldwin's friends. They
seemed to have considerable strength
at FIRST, but when Mr.. Barron offered to
amend our bill by striking out all after
the enacting clause and inserting the
North Wis. bill, ",cith the AIR Lime at
tached," he struck death blow to his
own bill, and the reaction caused ours
to bound to vote entirely unexpected
| by its warmest friends.
Mr.. Barron was quite ably supported
by Messrs. Gibbs and Patterson, but
they were swept away as if by hurri-
cane, by the shrewd management and
able arguments Of Messrs. H. i. Pal
mer, \. Clark, ID. G. Fulton and quite
as many more of the ablest men in the
House.
March 13.--To-day again the con-
test deepens. In the Senate Mr.. Davis,
of Dane county, made motion to in
definitely postpone the North WIS. bill,
and supported his motion in speech
of more than an hour. The motion
was opposed by Senator Irish in we'll
prepared speech which consisted mainly
in personal explanation. He vir-
tually conceded that he was not now
supported by his constituency, though
he was at an earlier stage of this con-
troversy. At that time, and even be.
fore he was nominated for the Office of
Senator, he made pledges to men who
afterwards organized the North Wis.
Co., and by those pledges he was bound;
he could not 90 back on his word;
he could not 90 back on his friends.
But, under existing circumstances,
while he should vote against the in
definite postponement of his own bill,
if that motion prevailed, he should GER
tainly vote to concur in the Milwaukee
& st. Paul bill which passed the House
yesterday.
He was followed by Senator Thorpe,
who said he deeply sympathized with
the Senator from the Oath, knowing
as he, and every other Senator in that
body well did, that the Senator must
return to an outraged constituency.
This was doubtless the "unkindest
cut of ALL" though the Senator from
the Both presented an array of facts
and figures which utterly annihilated the
Senator from the oath. He gave the
number of voters in Pierce, st. Croix
and other counties interested, and show
ed conclusively that not less than three
fourths Of the voters in the oath Sena-
torial district, were in favor of the Mil.
& st. Paul Co.
Other Senator'S followed, among
whom was O'Rourk, from the 1st. He
roared like male calf for the Kelsey
bill, which provides that the State should
build the road and sell the lands to
pay for the same, scheme utterly
impracticable.
Finally Senator Burchard from the
4th, arose to personal explanation"
saying that he should not only not put
himself on the record as being in favor
Of locking the two houses by an attempt
to pass the North Wis. bill at this late
day, but that he should now vote to In
definitely postpone it, thus clearing the
way for the bill that passed the other
house yesterday by majority which in.
dicated in unmistakable terms that the
Assembly would under no circumstances
recede This was an important measure;
the main fight over it had been in the
other house; the entire strength Of the
lobby on both sides had been spent