Evening star., 1897-02-17

sponlence with the chairman of the COM
mittee the District of Columbia in order
that it might be used on the floor Of the
Senate in an arraignment of that COM
mittee- All the senators who were on the
committee We're highly incensed against
Mr. Sands on account of the course he
had adopted.
District Committee Criticised.
But this is not the only thing that sena-
tors remember to the disadvantage of Mr..
Sands. On February 2S 1896. Mr.. Kyle
presented in the Senate an argument in
favor of Mr.. Sands bill for the incorpora-
ton of the National Capital Gaslight. Heat
and Power Company This argument Is in
the form of a paper written by Mr.. Sands
himself, in which both the District Com
missioners and the Senate committee on
the District of Columbia are severely criti-
c:sed Among other things MFR. Sands said:
The subcommittee having that bill in
charge-Senators Hunton, Mcmillan and
Faulkner-in the late days of the session
made their adverse report. consisting of
series of tabulated statements. the very
reading of which would have befogged the
Senate as to the condition of things COM
planned of by our people. 1t starts out
with the frank admission that your COM
mittee confronted with strong public
sentiment in the District in favor of affir-
NATIVE action on the part Of Congress. 1t
contains on page . an attempt to excuse
the local company and 'whitewaSh the
record to the had quality of gas sup
piled, and concludes with an expression of
opinion that the gas company could vol
UNFAIRLY reduce the price of gas. and there
fore they reported adversely on the bill.
Admittedly. therefore. that action of the
Senate committee was hostile to the inter-
ests of the people of the District. That re-
port was worth thousands of dollars to the
gas company. What do we now see? Just
the bill introduced to in
corporate the new company. which pledges
itself TO supply better Illuminating gas
than is now received by consumers, and
at the price of only - cents per one thou
sand cubic feet. see unwonted activity
among the friends of the local gas mon
Opoly evidently designed to prevent in the
interest of that monopoly the passage OF
the bill.
THE dollar gas bills are hurried in and
interviews are published to give out the
impression that the public are TO reap at
last their long-sought-for relief through
the dollar gas measures. But have the
people any reasonable grounds for such
hope? 1t will he easy to show the con-
trary to he the fact when one reads the
Hunton report upon the dollar gas bill,
which had already passed the House, and
remembers the names of those senators
who In committee agreed thereto; it is fair
and reasonable to assume that their regard
for the best interests of the people of this
District is stronger today than 1t was
when they agreed TO that report, which de-
feated the dollar gas bill.
1T is fair and reasonable to assume and
believe that their action similar meas
ures viii he controlled W the same motives
that governed them at the last Congress,
when, as between the public interests and
the so-calied rights of invested capital
they made the former subservie1t to the
latter. which they advocated throughout
every line of that report. There is TO in
tention on the part of the local company
to give better gas"
ity-1r ant Of he
mttee the District of Columbia on
the part of Mr.. Sands was made in an
argument regarding the bill to reduce the
price Of gas from s1.25 to slOO per thoI-
sand feet, which afterward was passed by
Congress.
But Mr.. Sands continued to say of the
Washington Gaslight Company:
They have protested against even that
reduction, and there senators who
have agreed with them, and up to date
they have prevented any such reduction"
Mr.. SaLdS charged in this paper that
the reduction of price by the Washington
CiasliSht Company was merely for the pur-
rose Of defeating the passage of his bill.
He claimed, however that such reduction
II II should take place. would not result in
any lessenirg of the size of the gas bills
rendered
The following ramed senator's who are
members of the present District commit
tee, We're members of the committee which
was criticised by Mr. Sands: Nessrs Me-
MILAN. Galinger. Hansbrough. Proctor.
Harris. Faulkner. Gibson and Smith The
rev members of the committee are Messrs
Pritchard, Baker, Wetmore Martin and
BACON.
Mr.. W. j. Frizzell of the Northeast
Washington Association said to a Star
reporter today:
Il know Mr.. Sands very well and am glad
that the District f.; favored with a ma
tive son for high office Mr.. Sands is n
naval hero himself and comes from a heroic
family His interests in East Washington
should induce his favora BILE consideration
there i he is free from any on
tanslements with trusts or corporations
though liberal in his consideration of them
He IL always fond of extolling his native
city and its welfare is nearest his heart
Mr.. Sands Indorsers
Private Secretary Thurber told a Star re-
porter today that Mr.. Sands had been
highly Endorsed for the District commits
slonership by many prominent people but
beyond that he diplomaticaIly declined to
go and politely but firmly refused to give
absolutely any Information as TO the out
side influences that brought about his nom
nation by the President He said that this
was the rule of the office regarding all ap-
pointments, and he did not care to depart
from II in this particular instance From
another source. however. II was ascer-
talned that leading politicians In New Jer-
sey and Pennsylvania took az active inter
est in securing his selection
Among those who said TO have in
dorsed his application are Senators SewelI
ard Smith of New Jersey, Senators QUAY
and Cameron of Pennsylvania, National
Committeeman Harrty of PENNSYLVANIA
ana other prominent politicians of the key
stone state. These alleged facts have given
rise TO the runor that the PENNSYLVANIA
Railroad Company has strong in
terest fn his confirmation At any
rate, 1t was currently reported today
,nat mat the four senators named above have
given assurance TO the friends of Mr.. Sands
that they will do all they can to secure
favorable action on his nomination bv the