The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-01-08

Amendment-FinaI Vote to Be Ia
ken Next Monday.
WASHINGTON. Jan. THE Pacific
railroad funding bsE. which is considered
the most important piece of legislation
which VIII come before congress at this
session. came up today in the house und1r
special order which allows :wo days FOR
general debate and one day for amend
meEts and debate under tie nEe-rainnte
rule, WIKI provision for a dnal vote oR
Monday next There was a great deal o.
interest IN the measure and thz memb bers
gave al the speakers very close atten-
ton A huge map Of the roads, with their
feeders, was hung on a frame erected in
the area IN front OF the SPEAKERS rosirlm.
and served % illustrate many Of the points
made. There were only four speakers to-
day, Powers OF Vermont. the chairman cf
the Pacific railroad commission, VINO
opened with an exhaustive two hours ar
gumeat In support OF the bill: Hubbard
OF Missouri. the minority member Of the
committee. who has charge og The opp 5si-
tion. and Grow Of Pennsylvania and Bell
or Texas who spoke. respectively. for and
against the measure
Powers Leads the Debate.
Powers made long speech. thoroughly
reviewing the situation from a business
point Of view. The government vas 10
take a first mortgage 20 assure the pay
ment of the bonds granted But even with
this aid granted by the act OF 1862 the pro-
prietors were unable 10 go ahead. and TO
permit them to raise Motley. congress. At
their solicitation. In 1864. allowed them TO
place first mortgage under the govern
ment's lien and Of an equal amount He
reviewed the difficulties which beset the
projectors as 20 the eastern terminus. ow
INK to the competition OF the several cities
and how IL was settled eventually BY the
construction of branch lines. The supreme
court had decided that the governments
second mortgage rested only upon that
portion OF the road actually aided. He
sketchsd the great hardshlps involved in
the c0asummation Of the work and the
bountlful fruits which flowed 10 the Amer
lean people from opening the continent 10
civilization II had strung towns along its
line like BEADS. Z made the states Of the
West II the government should lose ey
cry dollar of the debts OF these roads il
could credit itself and the American peo-
pie with ten times as much In dollars and
cents as they aggregated. Proceeding. he
explained the elements which reduced the
estimated earnings Of the roads and made
81 unlikely that they could meet the bonds
when they became due. The governments
interest In is62 was estimated az s. So. 600.
Al that time the army and navy transpor-
tation and the postal service 10 the Pa
clfic coast cost the government s7,357. 73i.
Yet. notwithstanding the vast increase in
the government transportation 20 the Pa
cifc coast. the rates Of compensation paid
by the government 10 the companies were
reduced so low that instead OF receiving
an amount double or even equal to the in
debtors annually 10 the interest account
ia large amounts.
DO you claim this bill il a judicious
and proper arrangement with those who
have done what they could TO discharge
their obligations 10 the government
asked Boatner Of Louisiana.
II do" replied Powers.
Powers proceeded 70 say that he knew
Boatner regarded the Pacific railroad pro-
tectors as a set OF rascals because they
had gotten rich. But he asserted that II
they had discharged all their obligations
10 the government. and had gotten rich
IN other ways u was nobody's business.
This. he said they had done. He then
gave a computation OF the present In
dehtedness or the roads on January /.
1897. at S53 ia ans on the Union Pacific and
Kansas Pacific and So. eSi 81. on the Cen
tral Pacific and Union Pacific The time
must act. The roads had defauited. The
government could foreelose or 1t could
seize the roads under the law. II either
Of these courses vas pursued the govern
ment would b. obliged Immediately TO pay
the outstanding first mortgage bonds.
amounting In the aggregate 70 S6i SS5, 90.
Was this advisable with the present con
dition 81 the treasury?
Terminals Hold the whip Hand.
But this was not all. he said II the
government took the roads IL would have
train could he run into Omaha The
government could not operate 20 without
terminals. IL could not sell IL 20 advantage
without terminals In case of the attempt
- sen IT, The property would he at the
mercy Of the owners ~ The terminals
The plan whlch the Pacific railway com
mission proposed. he said, was 10 exlin-
EuiSh the remaining debts Of these com
pautes by periodical payments. with In
terest upon the deferred payments AT >
per cent These debts. tha hi'l proposed
should De secured hy second mortgages
made by the companies which should
embrace not only subsidized parts of the
roads or which fbs government has now
. second Heu bat also on al their branch
es terminals. lands and equipments w
which ne 1en o. the government does
not row extend. The bjlI provides FOR the
issue q the Ccrnpsny's bonds for the gov
erpments balance of SIl2 ooo ON az per
cent. and for annual payments bv each
company on a~ro9nt of principal S1ss ea9
annually for ser wears. $50 80 for ten
years and the balance 81 the rate ~ s7ro-
o. annually II this bin was passed and
tha government should eventually ha
obsired 20 take the roads Powers sni3
q would then have a railroad - operate
ro' portion ~ 3 railroad. lie said the
hfu was chfe-ticuah1e - hath rnais anI
he dld rot know whether tbey would ac-
cspt its provisions
The Fest THAT Can he Done
~ reply 20 questions. Powers sa't the
cogu rnlttes bad caicN'ate1 an 50 asa sr an
uuafly as the vet earulagS 1f the roa3
~Wrv to yoU a1tsw per cent. cn tne
s-eck of tEe company asked Lacey Of
Iowa
-~ro tempt the ste0Shof3ers ta enter .~,o