Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-02-26
Twenty-First Legislature.


THE SENATE.
Special to the Gazette.
AUSTIN, TEX, Feb. Lieutenant
Governor Wheeler called the senate to
order at 10 o'clock.
Roll call and quorum present.
Prayer by DR.. Smoot, the chaplain.
Mr.. Woodward was excused for the
day.
Petitions and Petitions
against the railroad commission bill,
from thirty citizens OF San Antonio: Mr.
Allen, from citizens of Collin county;
Mr. Crawford. from 10 citizens of Green
Vile, Hunt county; Mr.. Mcdonald,
from forty-one merchants and farmers of
Blossom Prairie, Lamar county; Mr.
Jarvis, from seventy-one citizens of Parke
county; Mr. Crawford from citizens of
Roberts, Hunt county; Mr.. KimbroHgh
from fifty-two citizens of Kaufman
county; Mr.. Ingram from citizens of
San Augustine county; Mr.. Field from
thirty-two citizens of Calvert county;
Nj. Tyler from eighteen merchants and
others of Hamilton county.
Petitions favoring the railroad COM
mission bill: Mr.. Upshaw from citizens
of Ellis county; Mr.. Kimbrough, resolu-
tons of the board of managers of the
state Farmers alliance exchange; Mr..
Burney from forty-four voters of Bexar
county; Mr. Crawford from citizens of
Delta county.
Petitions for the purchase and dis
tribution by the state of Sayles s. Will
son IS Civil and Criminal Digest: By Mr..
Stephens from county officers of Wichita
county, also by Mr.. Stephens from
county officers of Potter county, and Mr..
Glasscock from state, county and pre-
cinct officers of Williamson county.
Reports of standing committees: Mr..
Sims, for cbmmittee on judicial districts,
favorably the bill fixing the time for
holding court in the Eighth judicial dis
trict.
Mr. Upshaw, for the committee on in
ternal improvements that the house
railroad and other bills for regulating
railroads be considered i'll connection with
Mr.. johnson 5 commission bill.
Mr. Abercrombie, for the judiciary
No 2, favorably the Sunday law closing
business houses from 9 a. m. to p. IN.
on Sunday.
Unfavorably the bill preventing nui-
sances and leaving carcasses of dead ami
mails near the public roads.
Favorably the bill permitting persons
convicted of felony TO withdraw their APP
peals.
Unfavorable the bill filming persons who
may fail to pay their occupation taxes.
Bills and resolutions: Mr.. Abercom-
bie-Permitting judges in certain classes
of felony cases TO employ stenographers
Mr.. Stephens = Regulating railroads
and express companies.
Mr.. Mcdonald called up Mr.. Glass
cock s resolution calling for afternoon
sessions of the senate on and after Feb
Iuary %.
Mr.. Mcdonald amended by fixing the
time of afternoon sessions at $50 and the
resolution was adopted
The joint resolution fixing the legal
rate of interest at 8 per cent. was made
the special order for Friday
The special order, Mr. johnson s COM
mission bill and other railroad bills to
be considered herewith, was taken up.
Mr.. Johnson moved to substitute the
house commission bill for his bill, and
then proceeded to argue the house bill.
His argument was full and able. He
wanted to know why the mover of such
bill should be called a demagogue
This legislation is not the result of an
hour of the work of demagogues Why not
tax demagOgueTy upon the Dallas con-
vention as plank il the platform COM
ing from that convention is the founda-
tion of the present movement. He re-
gaEded the speech of Mr.. f. G.. Brown
in the house the ablest argument
against q commission bill that has been
heard. He affirmed that it was a sound
principle that the charter of railroad
company is not such a contract
with the state that the state
cannot regulate freights even if such ex-
press mention of the states rights thus to
TO do shall be contained in such charter.
He dwelt long on the constitutional |
question involved, reading from the |
Georgia constitution and those of other |
states where a commission is in force. |
He cited city after city and instance after |
instance of rank discrimination in /
freight charges and pontedIy |
showed the need of railroad |
regulation and correction. He |
declared that the Lane bill classifying |
freightS would double the burdens on the |
people, illustrating that bale of cotton
from Tyler to Galveston would be about |
So, while at present 1t costs only So 80. /
He did not believe in q sweeping maxi
mum for I60 mills; he wanted /
skilled men to devise a specific
schedule Of rates that will /
be just to the people; the
legislature in its limited session cannot
possibly do it. He did not like the idea
of boards and such like bodies, but he
had studied this question carefully, and
he could see no other way of arriving at
n correct solution of the question. The
bill was doubtless defective and
would not accomplish all intended
by it, but its tendency was
good, and it was in the right direction
1t had been tried in other states and
found to work admirably. Texas needed
it, and he was anxious to vote for it. The
platform of the dominant party of the
state demanded it. Mr.. johnson talked
two hours and ten minutes.
Upon motion of MIR. Burgess the senate
adjourned until 2:30 o O'clock.
AFTERNOON SESSION.
The seeate was called to order at 2:30
p. m; quorum present.
Petition by Mr.. Claiborne from farm
ers of Galveston county favoring rail-
road commission BILL
Mr.. Mcdonald took the floor on the
bin. He opened his argu-
nent by stating the most marvellous
thing in this part of the nineteenth GEN.
fury was the growth of corporate enter
prlSes. How much of good was
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