Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1897-02-27
BRowN-wEILEP FACTION FOUGHT
HARD, But USAyAILINGLY.
Denounce Their PopuIist Brethren for
DESERVING Their Maximum Freight
Rate PrIncipIes-House still
Considering the Sub
stItute Bill. =a.rf I

when a motion was made to substitute the
Harris bill for the house bill. This drew
out spirited debate. but the motion carr
ried by a big majority. The house then
= went into committee OF the whole to con-
slider the Harris BILL
r. When section IS was reached a bitter
fight arose. which lasted for two hours and
was still on when the session closed. 1t
: viii be renewed Monday afternoon. when
- the bill will come up for consideration
.again.
= The fight was caused by the Brown
1fNyeilep faction of the Populist majority.
who attempted TO inject an amendment
giving the state board of railroad COM
lnissioners authority to fix a maximum
,..1reight rate and arrange classification.
~ The caIiber of the men who constitute
.itilemseives the leaders on the Populist side
of the house was exhibited by their mani
fest jealousy OF the senate and their desire
TO get the credit of any legislation affect
Ling railroads that might be accomplished
this session. In their extreme anxiety
lFelong this line they impugned the motives
-tof Senator Harris and other Pop senators
as well as the Republicans of both
branches.
-. Representative Weilep of Cherokee, the
.-Party ''whipper-in,'' in his desperation
caused by the fact that about half OF the
Populist members of the house saw fit to
vote with the Republicans of the house and
The Populist senate for the Harris bih
boldly proclaimed IT AS the only wise and
s.safe policy for his party to be against any
Thing the Republicans were for. This
measure of statesnanship did not meet the
-approvai OF the Populist members who re-
Serve the right TO do some thinking for
themselves and. Notwithstanding his des-
perate application of the party lash,
Ltwenty-nine Populist members voted to
substitute the Harris bill Representative
TQh Qf 1fa tuhE G nnf O.
publican who voted against the substitute.
- When the time arrived for taking up the
Erailroad bill for consideration this after
noon. Brown. of Cowley. moved to substi-
tute the Harris senate bill for the Brown
house bill IN roll call was ordered and the
motion carrSd by a vote of 20 to 49, Those
voting In the affirmative were: Aker, Arm
.strong. Bacon, Barker, BasgalI, Botkin,
Bennett. Brooke. Bradley, Brown. of Cow
ley; Brown, of Greeley; Buell.. Burkholder.
Rurfis, Conger. Crosby, Cubbison. Dalton.
Dewitt. Doyle. Ernst. Feighner Fitzger-
aid, Fouts,, Gates Geissler, Gillespie, Good
no. Graves. Grimes, z Hackney Harvey
haywood Hickman, sfIemtnger;; Henieys$
Holeinbeak, irwin. Jaeksont of Ennlanctes
jackson. of Harvey; johnson. OF Chase:
Jones. Reddie, keefer. Lambert, of Lyon,
Larimer. Lawson Lobdeif, Ldngiey.
Marks. Mccarthy. McKeevers MooFesn Pa-
sSlensltes Perry Poison; fterd5 SEatons sSetrv-i
or, Shouse. Simmons. Singleton. Smith. of
Sherman; Smith. of Brown; Stuart, Tap
scctt. Taylor. Turner. Try. Vogelgesang.
Wallace. Walters and Williams. -
Those voting I'm the negative were: Bark
ley, Bean. Brown of Pratt; Carr. cassin,
Clark. Davis. Dineuss Epperson, Fairchild,
Farrell, Fell, Foley, Fulton, Gray. Har-
baugh. Hibners ingle. Jameson. Jaquins.
johnson. of Nemaha. Kelson. Lambert. of
Lincoln; Lewls I,oomis. Ma!in, Marty,
McGrath. Merrill Mott. Muenzenriiayer.
outcalt. Patton Rayenscraft, Richards,
Rothweiler,-..i2 Russell Rutledge. Stevens.
stener, Truebiood ward Wchrle. Weiiep.
Wright Speaker Street
The ahsentees were: Finney, Hack
busch, Johnson.of Labette: Maxwell, Metz
iersand MentEemery.,-@ - -.
Several Pcruilsts felt called upon to ex-
plain their votes. Some of them wanted
to shew cause why they had deserted the
maximum freight rate splan. In every In
stance they declared that they favored n
maxinnurn rate but they felt positive such
bill would not pass the senate and that
the Harris bill was heiter than nothing.
Others made explanations with. the hope
of bolstering sup -some Eeakkneed members.
weiiep declared that -a, judge. of the SUI
prerne court had told him that the Harris
bill was not as good as7 the present law.
lie did not want 70 surrender to The senate
apsiYflerbefore surrendeflBe.-~He declared
that 10 Substitute the Harris bill was Il
coward1y trick and that the Popuists who
voted for IT could not go home and look
their constituents sdIarely in the face. As
soon as the result -was announced; the
house went into committee of the whole
andyook uptthe Iiarris- bill for consider
ation.
THE first seyeIiteeu sections were adopted
without amendment. Representative Tay-
Iur. of wyandotte. then offered an amend
rnent which he wanted to be made section
is. giving the railroad board authority 10
fix a maximum schedule. This was voted
down. Then Hackney, of Sumner, offered
an amendment much more stringent than
the Taylor amendment. but on the same
line II provided that the schedule should
be made within sixty days" Then the fun
began.
Ing 10 the Popufsts.. among otiferN-thines
said: ''The time has come when you can
do one of two things: Insert this amend
reject Il. and your bill is- worthless THE
railroad commissioners should be Eiver
power to do something. instead of sitting
like a-bamp on a log. drawing big sal
aries r-.s-..-- ---zr,- - t--ss
was sadding about over the state condemn
ing the Republican, for voting down the
maximum freight rate bid, and to-day h'
was sitting in the senate voting Just tho
way the Republicans did which had called
forth his condemnation, SroTn then reaC
the platforms of the Popuiist PARTY evel
since its existence. 1
.'There are three men In the senate whC
were candidates for governor at the Ghi
Iene convention" said he, land agreed Il
stand OH a maximum freight bill platform
~ nominated and elected. and here they ar,
now voting against srcii Il measure. Tn.
senate passed a bill prepared sbS~tlie rail
roads The senate hill is nothing but
skull and crossbones. There is no heart II
ft--1f now remains for lls TO give -it Nfe
-1-olI had better insert this amendment,s o
IL will. rise as u political skull and cross
homes to stare more than one of YOU Popu
list Legislators in the face In the future
He took occasion TO roast Representativ
Turner, Populist of Phillips, for DESERVING
the principles of the party and selling spu
his constituency ... -
= Turner. smarting under the charge. .aske
Brown II Bryan made his race on a maxi
mum freight rate platform.
Bryan was not running for the legisla
ture in Kansas, was the reply.
Atchison. talked against The amendment
he gave a brief history of railroad buidfn
in Kansas and declared the developnien
OF Kansas was due almost wholly to tn
~oads He considered the complaints O
che po~..ttssts against railroads were base
on imaginary, not real causes. He de
nounced this eternal fight being wage
against railroads" and said that IL shoul
stop: that the railroads should be treate
fairly. - - 'ss-s s-'7-
representative Hackney of Sumner
spoke In favor of his amendment, elaimin
that the s,eople demanded 1t. s3ue-st