St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-03-10
HOPPING into HO MPE.
The Donnellian Sage Returns
to the Attack With a Sec
ond Chapter.
Railroad Grants and Canal
Subsidies the Subject OF
the Assault.
History Of the Attempt to
Raise the Tax on the Iron
Companies.
Some ofthe Sage's Character
istic EpitheIs and Gay
Adjectives.


letter, disposed of Mr.. Hompe's charges
about adjournment and the election OF
unnecessary officers. | showed that he
misrepresented the facts as to the
former. and that he had himself voted
for the very officers he complained OF.
and in one case had even offered the
resolution under which one of them was
appointed; while he also voted to give
every one of the clerks SIS per day. Let
us proceed to other charges.
He charges, in his second letter, that
voted that each senator should have
SO to pay for postage stamps. Of
course | did. And l was right. My
bill for postage during that winter
amounted to nearly $50. 1t is the right
of the people to hear from their repre-
sentatiyes. There should he the freeSt
communication between them. The
pay of a senator is little enough; the
same as a doorkeeper; twice that OF the
children employed as pages. Men like
Hompe would prevent the people from
knowing what they did. The difference
between HOmpe and myself is that L
boldly advocated the appropriation as
right. while he voted no on the reSolu'
ord, and then took the $40.
| returned my railroad passes-as L
have done for years-and paid my way
to the capitol. Hompe travelled on a
railroad pass and charged the state (see
y. 50 of Journal for BAG miles, at 10
cents per mile, or $50. 90, when it had
not cost him a penny. He took that
amount out of the pockets of the hard
working taxpayers, and put it in his
own, without the slightest equivalent;
and then he complains that L received
SO for postage stamps. and spent every
cent of it and $40 more, sending letters,
newspapers and documents to my coll
stituents and others. Oh, Hompe!
HDmpe! You should get hump on
yourself and be decent.
Nicaragua Canal.
And then he makes a long attack Oh
me TOR voting against memorial to
congress. which Instructed our senators
and members to oppose the Nicaragua
canal project then pending. But, as
usual. he has not the fairness or manli-
ness TO quote (see p. 80 OF Senate Jour
nab the very proposition which made;
which was to amend ). +. No. IL, by
adding thereto the following:
..Resolved third, That it is the opinion of
She legislature of NJ innesota that the govern
ment OF the United States should, rs soon as
possible, proceed TO construct IL canal across
the IsthmuS of Darien. Panama, or through
Nicaragua, if consent can be obtained there
for by treaty with foreign govern ents, to
be forever free to the ships of alEnatOnS.
except such reasonable toll as may be neces-
sary to keep the locks and dams i'll order;
and thus break down the great monopoly Of
the Lranscontinental railroads of the United
States by free water communication, beiey
Ing that the destruction of the great railroad
combine referred to would tend to lesson the
rate of charges on all railroads in the United
States to just and reasonable figures.
All. There was the point. The canal
would strike at the railroads, and so
Hompe struck ut the canal. He voted
no on this resolution, While majority
of the Alliance senators supported it.
Who introduced this memorial against
the canal? Hon. John B. Sanborn, a st.
Paul lawyer. Who were fighting the
canal in congress? The three great Pa
cifc railroad companies. 1t is well UNI
derstood that it was the Vaccinations of
these powerful companies that de-
strOyed the credit OF De LeSSepS and
brought his iSthmuS canal project to
confusion and ruin. Why should the
state of Minnesota play into the hands
of such giant mOnOpolieS? That HOmpe,
the special pet of the Northern Pacific
transcontInental lines was very natural.
But HOmpe says it would cost lot of
money to build a canal across the 18TH
mus of Darien. Granted. But who
would pay for it? The whole people OF
the United States--Wall street IN
Guided. Who would be benefited espe-
cially by breaking up the gigantic rail-
ROAD pool" of the United States? The
people of the Pacific coast and the
producers of the Mississippi val
ley. If necessary l would have
the nation blast Il hole in that
isthmus half mile wide, so that tree
water communication would break down
Che ring which now holds the people of
the country by the throat and Dleeds
them of $259.000.000 annually to pay in
tereSt on s., 900, 600 600 of watered stock.
One hundred millions for the canal!
Why, the American nation would save
that much i'll three months by smashing
the ring. And HOmpe said we mustn't
smash it; and now he has the affronter y
to attack me because | said we should.
Mr.. HOmpe's next charge gJes back
tWenty-eight years.
Pacific Road Liens.
He complains that l voted in 1864, six
months after l took my seat, for the
first time, in congress, for an amend
ment to the act III reference to the Pa
ciic Railroad company, which made the
government lien upon the road a second
mortgage.
Let us look into this matter a little.
When the war broke out one great
danger which confronted the nation
vas the possible separation or capture,
by an enemy, of the Pacific states. Two
of the California congressman, Messrs.
Scott and Burch, issued letters, 1861, adj
VOcating a separate Pacific republic.
The Shasta Herald and other news
papers advocated Pacific Republic"
and served warning on the govern
ment that "neither North nor
South need look for aid and com
fort from the Pacific states" The con-
flict of sentiment between NorthernerS
and SouthernerS in California was es-
pecally fierce and bitter-it caused, it
will be remembered, the death of Sem
ator Broderick. Months of weary travel,
over a desert, INTERVIEWED between the
Mississippi valley and the Western
coast Of the continent. A railroad to
the Pacific was military and national
necessity. 1t WAS demanded by
every Republican national conven-
tion, including tic one which nom
mated Mr.. Lincoln in 1850 and
the one which Yenominated him in 1864.
As soon as the Republicans took full
possession of the government they
passed an act proposing to give grant
of land and a large donation oil govern
ment bonds $4,000 to $4S 900 per milc)
to company to enable them to build
the road. This was before | entered
congress. Ii was claimed that part OF
the road through the Serras would cost
&I50.000 per mile. In 1864 two Years had
elapsed, and not a mile of road had
been built The bonds and stock of the
company could not be sold to build 1900
miles of road through trackless desert
Of sage brush and mountains. The war
was raging furiouSly. 1t was a question
whether we were to have nation Or
not; whether indeed the government
bonds would be worth anything or not.
Louis Napoleon and the English gov
eminent had invaded Mexico; and Will
lam NJ. GWn, senator for Califor-
MIA, had espoused the cause Of
division, and had been created Duke