St. Paul daily globe., 1889-02-09
Agitate the Members Of the
House of Representatives
in Debate
Jared Benson Eulogizes Rail-
roads as Birds Laying
Golden Eggs.
John Day Smith Asserts That
They Feed Upon Pocket
books
The Sevatson Investigating
Res olution Amended and
Passed.

''Have I claimed that the railroads
were charitable institutions"
''Have l?''
Jared Benson waved his hand with
roar with laughter.
1.-The gentleman from Hennepin
(Smith) certainly has magnificently
fertile Imagination when he accused me-
of rthis. lie should take up novel
writing"
Mr.. Benson accompanied these re-
marks with profound how in the dlrec-
ton of the crushed Mr.. Smith.
"He daresn't say word in favor OF
the railroads"
81 dare"
s'How has Jim Hill been represented
in this house? AS standing with a prize
boar and hornless bull in one hand
and cow and a bag Of No. wheat in
the other"
"Whatever may be said of Jim Hill,
he is certainly brOad-gauged."
I'm no pet of Jim Hills. [Laughter.l
He never gave me a pig. nor q bull, nor
an ass.
81 amt built that way"
The grangers had control of the house
that the speaker should appoint
special committee of seven to inquire
into the approximate cost of the con-
struction of the several railroads in this
state and their present value. The OBJ
jectionable part of the resolution was
that which authorized the committee to
employ clerk, said clerk to be selected
by the chairman of the committee, and
to be an expert in railroad construction
and to receive the same pay as is re-
ceived by the assistant sergeant-at-
arms. Mr.. CroSSfield introduced sub
stitute for this, providing that the reg
ular railroad committee of the house
should do this. Mr.. Capser amended
by referring. that the board of railroad
commissioners should ascertain what
to take the floor in opposition to the
resolution. His text is well expressed
in that chaSte poem:
A hen may lay bnslel of eggs
And may lay and lay and lay,
But she can thatch out without mate
, Because she amt built that way.
Minnesota vast the hen, but withous
her mate-railroads-- would never
have grown to her present proportions.
From the first the railroads had put be-
hind the marvellous growth of the state,
Drawn and capital absolutely needed
for her advancement.
"They were the goose that laid the
golden eggs"
Mr.. BenSOn's tribute to the railroads,
his pride in their enterprise, his opposi-
tion to resolution seemingly designed
for inyidiOuS purposes, was most elO-
quent. Mr.. Underwood opposed the
resolution.
Representative Lane-The gentleman
is cunning; very cunning, indeed.
Representative HarringtOn-The peo-
pie of the state are now paying for and
bearing the burden of watered stock.
That is the golden egg laid by the
goose.
Mr.. Underwood saw in that part of
the resolution authorizing the
chairman OF the special COM
mIttee to select an expert
on railroad questions for clerk, an at
tempt to get fat 'Sit' for Eric Olson,
clerk of a similar committee two years
ago. He said
'sThiS Olson is not considered to be a
railroad expert by any railroad man.
He knows nothing about it. This is
just matter of giving a job to some
particular pet"
Representative Smith-"The gentle
man from Anoka (BenSon) refers to an
imaginary goose. Do you know what
that goose has fed upon? 1t has fed
upon the contents of our pocketbooks,"
waving al0ft his own to illustrate the
point. Their Mr.. Benson got the floor
again and made the reply which intro
duceS this article.
Representative Jacobson, his hair on
end and face nearly purple, shouted at
the top of his voice:
"Where would the railroads be with
out the people?"
Does the gentleman from Anoka
know it all?"
Representative Smith-We do not owe
our prosperity as a state to the rail-
roads.
The result of this cross fire was that
Representatives H.F. Stevens and Lane
secured the passage OF the resolution IN
the following form:
Resolved, That the speaker shall ap-
point special committee of seven to
inquire into and report statement OF
the approximate cost of the construction
of the several railroads of this state and
their present value. Said committee
shall have authority to send for papers
aud perSouS, administer oaths; also to
inquire into whether or not any railroad
company in the state has violated the
law in regard to issuing watered stock.
And that the board of railroad commits
sioners shall furnish the committee
with such data as they may have in
their possession on this subject.
The roll was called OH the passage OF
this with the following result: