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

lie declared he was III the Dallas cOnyeu-
| ton and had heard nothing about COM
mission. That plank does not mean a
| commission. It means only and abso-
lutely this fair play Fair play for
| the railways and the people. On that
declaration the people and the railroads
| can safely lean. He read at great length
| from the statutes, showing ample legisla-
! ton forbidding discrimination and extor-
ton in freight charges. He claimed there
was sufficient law on these subjects if
/ properly enforced. We had better try
/ the laws now on the books rather than
branch out in new directions As to
all classes of defects in railroad construc-
! ton, the keeping Of tracks and rolling
stock in repair, as to all delays and OBJ
struetions in hauling freight, there was
/ full and complete legislation. Any citi-
zen, however humble, could appeal to the
attorney general whose duty then was 10
see that such defects and wrongs COM
/ planned of were at once corrected. He
! wentvery fully into the history of the
railroad legislation of the state, showing
how fully the whole subject had been
covered He believed we needed no new
laws. If present penalties were not large
| enough, increase them, but we want no
/ experime entail legislation in this subject.
| Her read at length from Judge Terrell $
| answer to ex-Governor Brown, and as he
read answered the points made in their
order and he showed there was no need of
/ the extra legislation demanded by Judge
! Terrell He referred to the Office of the
attorney general and his duties, deelar-
| ing that such an office was worth more to
the state than 1000 commissions.
As at present constituted, the
| attorney general and his corps
of helpers were not men who had shrunk
from before the bristling front of corpo-
rate power. They would push the rail-
roads as far as it was necessary. He
read from the report of the attorney-Gen-
eral showing what had been done
by that department to correct railroad
abuses. With such an example of eff
cient services, he asked, what need of
some other agency to do the
same work? What necessity
for commission? He read from Spot
ford s Almanac, showing that the aver
age cost of railroads of the United States
was S54 600 a mile, and the average
bonded debt S29 900 a mile. As to pay
ment of dividends, the conditions here in
Texas are not such as to warrant them.
Too sparsely settled, too little tonnage,
and too vast area. It
means that and nothing more.
Upon the constitutional question he de-
clared the phraseology, 1.-the legislature
shall from time to time, cuts out all
possibility of establishing a commission.
Once create commission, and it would
then make it impossible for the legisla-
ture from time to time to fix the
maximum of freight charges. It would
then be the work of the commits
sion, and not of the legislature.
The words reasonable rates.
meant reasonable to the leg
islature, not to some commissioner, and
the legislature could not grant that right
to decide the reasonableness of rates to
any other tribunal than itself. A rail-
road as a common carrier is not depen-
dent alone upon its charter for the right
to collect fares. 1t has such
right as an inalienable right
from the very nature and char
acter of its work. Such a right
has been recognized for five
centuries unaffected by constitutions and
laws. He paid an eloquent and most
polished tribute to the name of Hon. O.
NJ. Roberts, and quoted his opinion as
being directly opposite to the constitu-
tional power of the legislature to estab-
fish. a railway commission He read
purpose. He characterized the house
commission bill as a remarkable
document, and he hoped, when every
vestage of our civilization is swept away,
that that bill would remain as an evil
dence to those new races of what manner
of people we were. He handled the bill
without gloves, piling upon all the ridicule
possible to be imagined by the most
versatile genius. His arraignmeut of it
was most scathing. He pointed out the
sparse population of Texas and our need
for more people and more railroads.
The people are aroused, and petitions are
rolling in from all quarters protesting
against the commission bill. The
people want an era of peace.
He wanted the people and the railroads
TO shake hands and push forward to
prosperity. He spoke for two hours and
three-quarters most logically, lucidly,
convineingly and eloquently, and held
the individual attention Of the senate
from the start to the close.
Mr. Davis sent up the report of the
penltentiary investigating committee.
The senate at 5:15 o'clock adjourned |
to 10 o clock tomorrow.
THE HOUSE.
Special to the Gazette.
AUSTIN, Ten, Feb. 25.-The house |
met at 10 O'Clock, with Speaker Alex |
ander and a quorum present.
Petitions were sent up from the re-
spectIve counties by Childress, King |
Dunlap and Tolar, all asking
the state to purchase Sayles and Nelson's
digest.
Mr. Ellison from citizens of Guadalupe
county asking changes in the laws refer
ring to the teacher certificates.
Mr.. Faubion, from citizens of William
son county, asking that the pay OF county
be increased.
Mr.. Parker, of Tarrant, from citizens
of Fort Worth, relative to telephone
charges.
Mr.. 0wesley presented house bill $40, |
providing for the sale and disposition of
public free school lands in Greer county,
and for designating and disposing of the
land heretofore set apart for payment of
the public debt.
At the request of Mr.. Stevenson of FL
Paso, Mr.. Hamblen called up house bill
granting new charter to El Paso, and
the bill passed.
Mr.. Rhodes sent up petition from cit
liens of La Sale county asking for the
removal of the civil and criminal juris-