The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1889-03-07

of the democratic party, he did not fear
1t, did not believe it was coming Any
how, no one was scared. He charged that
these petitions for the bill we're printed,
stereotyped affairs, circulated from Austin
or some central point, and poured into
every Alliance of the state. Some of
these petitions had been signed, and
by good men, and returned to
the senate. He thought the majority
of the farmers who had signed these petit
tions had been influenced to do so by poll
ticians. AS to Determinations it was all
right for the legislature to fix definite and
certain rates, but he did not believe in
delegating this power to commission
however good it might be. 1t mattered
not to him how many demands were made
by the people for the bill, he regarded the
requirements of the Constitution as above
any such demands, and he could not break
his oath to support that Constitution
which he thought plainly forbade the pas
sage of such bill. He spoke for a half
hour, combining his remarks mainly to re-
plying to some OF the points made by
Senator Claiborne.
Senator Maetze began his argument at
5 o'clock. He said the constitutional
feature and the expediency of the measure
had been ably argued. There was diff
ference of opinion on these subjects. AS
to the purity of commission he thought
there would be no trouble in getting good
men to act. The railroads had been amply
endowed by the state and they should be
regulated strictly by law. Nine-tenths
the farmers of the state favored the bill,
while possibly four-ifths of the merchants
opposed it. Those who favored such
bill had been called demagogues. He was
proud of it to be numbered among such.
He was and always would be one. He was
one when a student in the German
university; he was one when
in the German parliament in
184S; he fought the claim
of the crown heads to Cypress the people.
he was one to-day, when he ght the
railroads, that oppressed the people even
more cruelty than was done by the crown
heads of Europe. What did demagogue
mean? 1t meant zone who leads the peo-
ple." He was proud of such distinction.
de was not welded either to the johnson
or the house bill; he would vote for either
OF them or for the Lane bill. What he
wanted was to see the railroads regulated
and their expressions of the people stop
ped.
de spoke for quarter of an hour.
senator Armistead will speak against the
bill this afternoon. The senate adjourned
at 5:15 to 10 O'Clock to-day.
From Wednesdays Daily.l
Senate called to order at 10 O'Clock.
LieutenaDt-governor Wheeler in the chair,
and quorum present. Prayer by the
chaplain, Doctor Smoot.
Senator Abercrombie excused until next
Monday.
PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS,
Petitions against commission bill-Bv
Senator Atlee, from citizens OF Nueces
county; by Senator Jarvis, from citizens
OF Jack county; by Senator Glassoock.
from citizens ofAustin; four petitions nv
senator himbrough, from a lumber deal
ing hrm of Dallas, from merchants of
hockwall, from thirty citizens of Elmo,
Kaufman county, from thirty citizens of
Dailas; by Senator Maetze, from fftv
citizens of Washington county; bv Sena.
tor Mcdonald, from five citizens of Fan
MIN county; by Senator Ingram. from
c GU OF Nacogdoches county; by Sene-
tor otePhens, from citizens of Archer
county; by Senator Scale, two petitions,
from seventeen citizens of Tyler county
from eighteen citizens of Hardin county
Petitions favoring commission bill
by Senator Lane, from citizens of Paige.
bastrop county; by Senator Glassooek'
rom citizens of Burnet county; two peti.
ions from Senator Mcdonald from forty,