Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-10-20
THE GAZETTE FORT WORTH TEXAS WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20

gress, at It's next session, will pass a
bill to control and regulate and govern
the railroads In regard TO Interstate COM
merce, This has all been accomplished
through the Efforts OF Democrats
Texas Democrat. An interstate com.
merce bill, have SAID, will be passed at
the next session OF congress; but that
does not affect the commerce confined 10
the several states, over which congress
has no jurisdiction. say to
you, as citizen of Texas, that
there should be bin passed by the legis-
lature Of Texas erecting an authority to
stand between the people Of Texas and
the absolutism ofrailroads as now organ
lied into power which strangIes and
de1es competition | hope to see the
legislature pass such law. Such law
ought to be passed. Such a law is in
force in New York, in Massachusetts, IN
Mississippi, in Georgia; two-thirds OF the
states Of this country have laws creating
railroad commissions TO stand between
the people and the railroads and see 10 II
that exhorbitant chsrges are NOT exacted
from them All these states have nnyigR-
bic streams, which are admitted to be the
great regulators OF railroad traffic, be-
cause they give competition that cannot
be pooled--pooled out of existence; but
Texas has no river navigation. II II has
been found wise to institute railroad
commissions in the states have named,
for still better reasons Texas ought to
have railroad commission to pro-
tect our people from railroad
combinations. would make no
war upon the railroads. Far from it. We
are a long way beyond the time for OK
carts. We could not raise the animals
that would be necessary to transport our
products. They would eat them all up,
We are compelled to have railroads. |
would invite the investment of railroad
capital in this state; but l would ask aud
| do ask that the conservatism, the intel
ligence and the best judgment of the men
who build our cities, who own our farms
and who till our fields, who create the
commerce of this country, shall be invoked
TO the settlement OF this great question.
The railroad agitation will continue, and
| tell you 1t ought to continue until there
has been established tribunal which will
stand as an arbitrator between the people
and the common carriers. 1t takes two
to make contract-always did until
now when all the railroads are pooled,
and the fat of the pool commits
sioners as to what proportion of
the products of the country they will
take for moving the balance is
absolute. As long as am a citizen of
Texas | will never cease to cry aloud aud
spare not while there is power in this
state above the power OF the govern
ment. No, my fellow citizens, see that
your representatives represent you upon
this question; not in an unreasoning
onslaught upon railroads, but in a Just
and judicious and liberal law which
WILL PROTECT TEE PEOPLE,
and will invite the investment of railroad
capital in our state, which cannot do
without railroads. Now, my fellow citi-
zens, there is another phase of this oues-
ton. You know a senator is presumed
to be man who has some influence
whether he has or not. Sometimes
senator's have great influence with
the president in debating the appoint.
ment of judges of the federal courts, of
the supreme, circuit and district courts
of the United States. These Judges,
when they get on the bench, would not
be human If they did not feel under
obligations to their senatorial friends
who have elevated them to the bench.
The consequences have been that when
ever you find people with large interests
before the courts, they are always smart
aud know how to exercise and create all
the influence that can be developed in their
favor, and therefore it is that they fire.
quently employ influential senators who
have had great deal to do with the ap
| pointment Of the judges, and give them
large retainers in their cases. They say
this about railroad corporations. | have
had no personal experience on the sub
lect, but on the first day of June last, Mr.
Beck, s Democratic senator, hoping to
N M N an To 10 Aal 10, 1
a scandal, introduced a bill providing
that thereafter it should be unlawful for
any member of either house Of congress
to accept such employment from railroad
corporations, and providing severe
penalties for the infringement Of
the law. When that bill was in
troduced, the Republicans were taken by
surprise. motion was made to refer Il
to committee, but that motion was de-
feated and the bill nut on its passage, and
1t passed with the Republicans voting for
1t. My friend Beck was sitting behind
me, and leaning over, he whispered TO
me
al took them by surprise. They will
move to reconsider 1t tomorrow"
| Sure enough, here comes Mr.. Hswley,
the Republican senator from Connecticut,
and moved the reconsideration of the bill,
EveryRepublican except one, voted for its
reconsideration, and every Democrat ex-
eept one voted against 1t. After the bill
was reconsidered, IL was referred to the
judiciary committee, OF which had the
honor to be member, and there the bill
was loaded down by senators with great
lot of ridiculous amendments, for the
purpose of killing it. OF course, the
Democrats voted against those amend
ments, and one Republican voted with us;
but we were out-voted, for the committees
were all organized in the interest OF the
Republicans, and that bin was reported.
loaded down with amendments Intended
TO secure its defeat; but | was author
lied TO report back the original bill and
to insist upon its passage, which | did:
and that bill is set, think, for December
2 next, aud every Democrat in the senate
and house will vote for it. The majority
OF the Republicans will vote against IT,
because they voted its reconsideration
after they had already passed 1t,
| Now, there Is another part of the Demo-
cratic record on the railroad question.
DO you think there is any Anti-Monopo-
list party needed about that2 Any Anti
Monopolst party needed to secure the
passage OF the Interstate commerce billp
Any Anti Monopolst party ne ded to
protect the interests OF the people with
regard to the public lands that are being
| forfeited by the Democratse
Again, nv felloW.c itizana I destra 90