The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1898-03-05
Honorable George z. Lee of Carter
County Gives Us Some Light.

County Gives Us Some Light.
In the Current River Local" Of
February 24th. Hon. George 7. Lee of
Carter County. in relentless manner
exposes the corruption of the last
Democratic State Senate and directly
charges our democratic Senator Drum
! of BOllin@er county with being under
/ the influence of the railroads and
corrupt lobby. We have for some
/ time suspected that Senator Drum was
under the domination Of the big rail
roads of the state and Il TOOL of the
I lobby. but Hon. Geo. T. Lee now
makes the direct charge 10 that eject
and Senator Drum ought to vinGicate
himself by bringing a suit FOR slardcr.
or ne will stand forever branded as
having sold out the proud Democracy
of this district. district once repre-
! sented by such men a. Hon. Il. 3.
oliver. Judge Ranney and others. We
are anxious to hear from senator
D.um nov. Hear what Lee says. and
il j. y.0.th reading:
1T is true this lobby effected moth
ing III the House. but it was 4 we'll
known fact il had complete control OF
a working majority in the Senate. In
my position as chairman of the com
mittee on internal improvements. !
could not fail to see this. Mr.. Farl'iS
and nyself. along with others, had
bills that passed the House almost
unanimously, and yet the Senate com
mittcc on internal improvements could
hardly be induced to act upon them at
all. And when they did finally dcign
10 set time to hear us Mr.. Hall of
Saline and myself went before them to
present arguments in favor of our
several measures. Speaker Farris.
having heard how the Senate COM
mittee was dominated by the lobby.
refused to go down and hc insulted
by them" And he was the wiscst man
of the lot as shown by the sequel.
| think the most disgraceful sight
that was ever the fortune of man to
behold since the days of the inquisi
ton was enacted that evening. When
We reached the committee room, Car
roll, the big lobbyist, had the chair
mans place st the head of the table.
William Phelps was seated At the foot
aud the members of thecommittee were
scattered promiscuously about the
room, in an attitude of after inatten-
tion. Finally Senator Miller, Chair
man, said: Mr.. Lee va will hear you
and the other gentlemen who came
down gith you. Bet as soon as we
begun Mr.. Carroll, lobbyist, said in a
very low voice from the head of the
table, That is not So" and Mr..
Phelps in very soft low voice from
the other en1 of the table would echo,
"'NO it is not.
During this scene the chairman was
standing in the corner of the room,
and at no time offered to protect US
fTom the insults of these lobbyists who
we're running his committee AT the
same time the small fry of the lobby
{St brigade w-Is talking in an under
zone to the 1t of the committee and
] passing ins Ling remarks about us
( The Chairn n of that cOmmittec. the
senator fro Kansas City, the senator
d, from Marion county. and the senator
/ from B0lling@r county We're as com
/ pletely in the meshes as was ever Il
/ fish in a net The result. of couse.
was that our bills We're never report
ed, notwithstanding. they were con-
sidered the most important measure
that passed the House during the last
session.
Speaker Farris bill cut rates on
cattle and grain in carload lots p
per cent. My bills simply equalized
freight over the state, grade being con
sidered, or in other words it made "A
railroad carry a carOr a ton of freight
III soOuJ2Ic<tSL MIS-
souri, where there is no competition
for the same price it carries a like
amount in North Missouri, where there
is competition. Myers, of Bollinger,
had a bill reducing express rates
on berries and stock which would have
been of immense value to his county
in shipping Strawberries. Still, the
Senator from that county was against
it.
There has been but few barrOom
rows as disgraceful as the scenes |
have witnessed during the sitting of
that senate committee on internal
improvements. | never heard any lob
byist call man a liar, butthey would
say, That isnot so, ""Thatis false.
and in every conceivable way annoy
and insult members of the House who
went before that committee to argue
bills of Importance to their constitu
ency."
Senator Drum and the Democracy
6 IL,