The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-02-14

iAN bo5 % Eng ala noS DefseFs ID cDnmsss0n
And<ssor 81 Mason utterly repudsased the in
Gunatson s11t be h1d ever favored xry rayt OF
the Fellows bill There Il no question 80
vitality affecting the material 3nterkgss Of the
state ~ railroads and railroad iezsslatiou- This
Fellows bin is modelled after the Potter law OF
Wisconsin II this state did not present .
ely Of contrasting conditions. with IT. great
mineral wealth and lumber rescurc<s, aud all its
enormous commercial Interests, perhaps rail-
tbs mind Of MY. Fellows. / call your
attention 70 the fact that the WIsc1n-
YEAR, .r so as %
take can be made than TO FIX freight rates On .
mileage basis IL costs two and q half tines
more 10 haul freight from North Yakima TO T&~
coma than on the level stretch. I can show that
the direct effect OF this bill win be TO divert
tYaffsc from Puget sourd 20 Portland. II costs
~ 70 nssi Gag ovsr tfs mountains 1ssc and
Under this bill what are you going
to do about scatter There IL differ
enslsl against ssstsIe Of g per ear It's all right
north OF seattle Grain il certain 20 take the
easiest route. Jim Hill IL knocking at our doors.
He is 9 snoncsnnniac on low grades Low grades
mean low fafcz, and low fates are the solution
you wasn't. The great psnacea 10 competition.
Anderson read from the railroad commission.
era report IN Iowa. hardened with railroad
Laws. showing that - niles q road we're D.siit
there isst ycar, and railroads are altogether
In bad shape.
..Sow We ask ron not to fufld around this
state 4 Chinese wall more difficult u penetrate
than the natural barriers OF mountains. The
speaker continued at some length TO protest
against the bill.
said the great Chinese wall Of this state - the
Cascade mountains. "We ask such laws ~ Will
enable Us 10 penetrate this wall end 70 trade
no state In the Union with rates 70 high as
Washington There Is nothing In tne minority
bill that will allow the commissioners 70 do
anything bat draw their salaries.
Walker OF kirg-RaIlroad commissions are
fraud. The histoey OF California shows II.
They have commission there, and the railroad
companies buy two Of them and the oshe. fellow
gets soup. / am opposed To q commission
unless ! can be one OF the commissioners.
Hutchinson read from the report Of 1owa's
governor In IsSs. showing that ~ miles OF road
hsd been built the previous year under railroad
laws.
Garrst.son of Pierce somewhat surprised tho
House by taking positive stsuG for railroad
legislation OF an effective nature, and he made
strong argument egsinst the Tyler bill. Iowa
is controlled by railroad commission. and we
don't want that" He further made this state
mefit. II know that at the time the farmers Of
Eastern Washington were crying for cars 70
transport their wheat the Northern Pacific yards
In Tacoma were filled with empty cars. They
claimed TO not have sufficient motive power.
That may be true"
Miller II Ehaseogn-we have been told that
bul. Ia miles Of railroad were built IN Iowa
last year. In my opinion that was f-y5 miles too
much. You cannot place your finger On a spot
in that state forty five miles from q railroad
PIuEmsr expressed himself as opposed 70
commission bill st thss tiTIe, but he was In
favor Of commission after freights and fares
have been established.
Tyler Of Pierre. champion OF the minority
bill, called attention TO the provisions OF his
n1easuSe, which provides for full powers OF in
QUESTION into the Affairs OF railroads, end upon
Information thus acquired intelligent iegisla-
IT, =
witt, the woes and scrrows Of the farmers Of
Eastern Washington, but syTnpathizc also with
the widows and orphans, and all persons who
this this state" Iyisr made personal explanation
Of his former connection with the Tacoma Land
Company. lie made an extended argument for
his BILL sayi s among o.ss s Se ,,eh hs
forteIls the coming power OF the Farmers Aili-
sncc. but tell you that such legislation as you
expect 70 enact viii have no effect in ayerting
Farmers Alliance. But l will never stuitify
myself 70 curry favor With the coming political
power. Iprefer TO go down with my coiors fy
Ing, with one supporter at my side, feeling that
II should like to amend the title of the Eel
lows bill to read An act TO divert traffic from
Puget sound to Portland III were q repre-
sentative OF the Northern Pacific. don't know
but would heartily support this Fellows bill.
believe II places club in the hands OF that
railroad that will enable IL to drive out every
infant railroad that wants TO come in the
state"
At the conclusion Of Tyler's speech the House
When the House assembled In the afternoon
the argument was resumed by snively. He
quoted the constitution wherein il is required
that the legislature shall pass maximum rate
laws, and wherein il is further provided that q
railroad aud transportation commission may be
created The first provision Is mandatory; the
lasure." said sniveiy, "cannos afford to throttle
the Fellows Dill, which sims 10 do what the leg
islature 10 bound to do logically. Every man
who votes for this report is guilty OF voting
against the establishment of such rates. The
Tyler bill Is simply bill for the collection of
statistics, the real object Of which is to stifie
railroad legislation" snively adorned his srgu-
ment with the story Of the honest man who
went into store, stole g Goldfish, stuck it under
his coat and allowed its tail to stick out, thus
being discovered BY the proprietor, who advised
him TO wear u longer coat or steal shorter cod
fish. He said this story had no reference TO Dir.
Tyler, who had been at such pains TO explain
that he was not . railroad mar.
Goldman claimed that the supporters OF the
minority bill had not attempted TO show its
merits, IL II had any. The main feature was the
$1,000 salary. The speaker claimed that the bill
was very faulty, in that it was indefinite. The
railroad commission has no powers except to
examine books and hire a clerk to examine and
pass upon complaints Of discrimination. II am
not in favor OF railroad commission. / AN
against this system OF numerous and innumer-
able commissions OF all sorts. / have observed
that the policy OF legislation during the past
corporations, and il has Become standing bye
wcrd that this country is controlled by the
corporations. Ii the Farmers Alliance is the
panacea for this evil, God hasten the day when
the Farmers Alliance overthrows the old
parties" Applause.
Tyler apoiogized for not being . constitu-
tionai lawyer like Messrs snirely and Goldman,
but /, seemed to him that this legislature was
not compelled 70 pass railroad laws any more
than was the first or the third. Tyler spoke at
some length, and said he was quite willing TO
all xr rod nj rqr& ha a n.
pcaled to the legislature not to go into this mat
ter blindly and ignorantly.
Candy protested against the minority report,
adoption OF the report The motion was lost
yeas, ca nays. Tyler and Anderson OF Mason only
voting aye. The motion then required on the
adoption of the minority report
PIummer objected TO the Fellows bill because
II does not regulate fares. He desired TO pro-
pose amendments, and moved TO go into COM
mittee OF the whole 70, that purpose; The mo:
into committee OF the whole, Megler in the
chair.
Piummer offered an amendment to section ],
providing that II should Include all railroad
and transportation companies for the purpose of
regulating passenger fares; carried
Piummer offered further amendment that
passenger rates shall be uniform, aud that no
greater rate shall be charged by any transpor
tation company for going in one direction than
in another The amendment was lost, "a ayes,
81 hays.
Walker moved to raise the rate of fare from
TO cents carried.
Snisely moved to reconsider the motion by
which Flummer's motion TO include all nassen-
ger companies, was carried. After debate the
motion 10 reconsider was carried
Csughran offered substitute, constituting
the governor. secretary of state and state auditor
commission to classify railroads into three
classes fos the purposes OF fixing fares for each.
allowing cents for the first, cents for the Sec
ond and cents for the third. Caughran spoke
forcihly on his amendment, declaring that the
propoxltou TO scale the fares and freighfs by the