Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1897-02-05
MIR. Powers of Vermont

]
/ floor of the House of Representatives last
Friday between Judge Powers of the First
/ Vermont district and w. 4. Barrett of the
Seventh Massachusetts district, and ac-
cordng to the report of the debate Mr..
Barrett did not come off second in the en-
counter. The subject under discussion
was a bill for the reorganization of the
Atlantic and Pacific railroad company to
enable its purchasers to complete its line
running from Springfield, Mo-, to the Pa
cfic coast. The bill was in charge of
Judge Powers, chairman of the committee
on Pacific railroads, who made the ma in
argument for it and who was supported by
Gen Grout. Mr.. Barrett, who aroused
the wrath of Judge Powers by frequent
Interruptions, is well remembered in Yer
mont, having begun his active career as
assistant editor of the st. Albans Messen-
ger, where he learned the ins and outs of
Vermont politics and Vermont railroad
management. From st. Adams he went
to Boston and soon became the editor and
chief proprietor of the Boston Advertiser
nent in Massachusetts politics, and was a
member of the house on Beacon hill for
six terms and speaker for five of those
terms. He is now serving his second term
in Congress.
As the debate progressed last Friday
Judge Powers finally "pcked up Mr..
Barrett and warned the House mot to be
carried off its feet by the clAmor of the
gentleman from Massachusetts,, who, |
suppose, represents some of the security
holders in some enterprise antagonistic to
the rights of the Atlantic and Pacific pur-
chasers." Judge Powers intimated that
'if anybody has come here representing
any secret interest, if any Massachusetts,
interests are involved in this matter, they
are not involved in the direction of the
public good" and he then turned his sar-
casm on Mr.. Barrett in this fashion:
LAS was suggested by the gentleman from
Oklahoma allthe iniquity that has ever been
practiced on the line of the Atlantic and
Pacific railroad dates from the city of Bos-
ton and its immediate environment. There
is where the men live who wreck railroads.
creates all the rascality that th egentleman
is scolding about And, sir, it has been
said many and many times that 1T is
dirty bird that fouls its own nest" Laugh
ter and applause.)
"Now, Mr. Speaker, do not stand here
to criticise the action of Massachusetts,.
Massachusetts, has furnished too much tai
ent, too much respectability, too much
honor to the great republic under which
we live for me to undertake anything of
that kind. She furnished two presidents,
the older and the younger Adams But,
Mr. Speaker, we are forced to admit that
they are both dead. (Laughter.) She fur
nished to us the greatest lawyer, the great
est statesman, the most magnificent eX-
FOUNDER of our organic law that ever lived
Daniel Webster But, sad as it may
seem, Daniel Webster is dead. (Laughter.)
She furnished us the most classic, the most
learned and erudite statesman that ever sat
in the halls of Congress-Charles Sumner.
But, alas Charles Sumner is dead.
CLaughter.) And we are today left only
to bask in the sunshine of the gentleman
from Massachusetts, who has come here to
Congress recently by strong vote of his
constituents to learn how to do right and
practice righteousness in the ways of leg
and try to accomplish something for the
public good; but he stands here as a censor
upon the doings of this body. The trouble
with him is he assumes that there is moth
ing on this floor that is worth respecting.
He came here to shed light. He knew
that this was chaos of darkness when he
came. He was born, Mr.. Speaker, to be a
rose, with the destiny of blooming and
blushng upon this floor, but his fate has
been to wither and waste his beauty on a
desert air daughter and applause.)"
We quote from the official report the re-
ply made by Mr.. Barrett and the remarks
| by Gen. Grout:
The gentleman from Vermont, who has occu-
| pied place on the supreme court of his state,
has affected to cast rdicule on me because tried
| TO throw little light on this question. do
| not believe in personalities on the floor Of the
| House, but in view of the fact that the gentle
| man has seen proper to refer 10 me as being in
terested" in the matter propose to draw par
| ael which think the gentleman will he able TO
| understand. My friend from Vermont is chair,
man of the committee on Pacific railroads, and
| have seen that, as chairman of that committee
| no proposition, however unfavorable to the inter
! estS of the government of the United States and
| however advantageous to the railroad corpora
tions with which it has relations has failed 10 re
ceive his hearty support.
But how is it With the gentleman from Yer
mont; He alludes TO me with withering sarcasm
1
have witheTed away. ! never came here with
very much to wither, am still young man,
and had no great reputation, except the repu-
tation, if it may be called a reputation, Of
having served in my local legislature l trust |
shall never serve so long as to try to cover bad
case by an attempt at ridicule of a new member
who is trying to do his du y! My friend came
here with the record of long term of service on
the supreme bench of Vermont. What is the
record of that courts Does it justify his attack
on my state? ASK any honest man in New England
who, led by false statements and interested as
sertions invested his hard earned money in the
securities OF the Central Vermont railroad, and
who has it taken from hun by decisions which
have never been approved by any other Judicial
tribunal on EARTH what he thinks of Vermont
railroad wrecking. Today the Central Vermont
railroad, under the decisions of the supreme
court of Vermont, is a synonym for all the quin-
tessence of railroad wrecking. Let him indeed
talk to me about Massachusetts men "wreckng
/, | railroads.
Mr.. Grout-It seems to me that we had better
not have the war of the states over again.
Mr.. Barrett 1 did not inaugurate this war. The
war was made by the gentlemans colleague up
on Massachusetts men as being wreckers of rail
roads, and say that in no states in the Union
are property and the rights of the lndividu ! in
vestors so carefully guarded from being wrecked
as in the state of Massachusetts,.
Mr.. Grout-I deny the gentleman's statements
Does he not know that the supreme court OF Yer
mont sustained by the Legislature, whenever
the judges came up for reelection; and that the