The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-11-06
MIR. HORIZONS RECORD
THE YOUNG MAN WAS MOST ACT
I'VE WHILE IN THE LEG
STATURE
HOW TIME AND VOTES WENT

A Friend of Thomas Lowry and the |
Pullman Palace Car Company
Striking Contrast Shown in
the Record of John e. StrylSer
Something for the Voters of |
the Fourth and Seventh Wards.
A more striking or instructive con-
parties In this campaign and between
the candidates which those parties
have placed before the people for the
several offices, is not offered than that
presented in the contest for the SEN
atorShip in the Thirty sixth district
The opposing candidates are Hitler H.
Horton, the Republican, and John E.
Stryker, the Democrat.
Mr. Horton has already been a men,
Der of the Legislature. 1t would be
better for him in this contest If he had
not. He has a record. 1t is a very
bad record, indeed; such a record as
did not allow him-the following cleo
tion-to appear as a candidate for re-
election. Time has not changed nor
= erased that record. 1t is still there, a
sad illustration of the unhappy lengths
to which unfortunate personal social,
or professional associations may lead a
man who assumes to appear in public
character.
Giving him the full benefit of having
acted according to his lights, it is APP
parent from the record that his lights
are those which direct mems footsteps
in public life away from the paths
that lead toward the public veal.
Were there nothing else in that rec
ord than the bill introduced in that
legislature by Mr.. Horton, purporting
p. to be a bill for a law for the just tax
sSion Of sleeping car companies, it
would apparently condemn Mr.. Hor-
ton as unworthy not only to represent
one of the most intelligent constituent
cies in the entire community, but any
constituency however lost to the re-
. quirements of public decency. Mr..
Horton is a lawyer by profession. When
he introduced that bill he knew, of
course, what 1t was designed to do
and also what 1t would do if it became
q law. He knew that it was designed
to avoid doing what it purported to
do; and he knew that to that extent
1t was fraud on the people of this
state. Mr.. Horton is said to be the
author of that bill. 1t is hard to see
how such measure could be con-
ceived outside the secret councils of the
Pullman company itself That bill can
be found in its entirety in the Office of
the secretary of state. 1t is known as
House File No S16 On its face it ap-
peared to be a conscientious effort to
tax this monopoly on some reasonable
basis. AS a matter of fact 1t was a
scheme on the part Of the Pullman COM
pony to avoid all taxation in this state.
Whether Mr. Horton is or is not that
company's attorney is not to the point;
if he is, he not only debased himself
In his public character, but also in his
professional relation, by offering for
enactment into law, such a scandalous
fraud upon the people of this state.
Ia i
the leVytng Of tax Of per cent of its
gross earnings upon the Pullman COM
pany. 1t looked well. And, well it look
ed. 1t is true that every state in the
Union might have passed such a law,
and the Pullman company still remain
untaxed. Mr.. Horton knew that He
knew that the tax applied only on the
proceeds OF business done between
points within this state; and that not
a dollar of tax could have been levied
under that law on the receipts of that
company in this state on tickets sold
for points outside the state. Why?
Because, MI. Horton well knew, such
transactions related to interstate COM
merce, and the state could not have
constitutiOnally collected a dollar on
account of them. He and his legisla-
tive client knew, too, that nothing
literally not enough to justify it's col
lectiOn-WOuld have been realized to
this state by any such scheme of tax
alton.
Such man as this is either alto
gether too stupid or altogether too
clever to represent a constituency in
the Legislature. The conviction of
those who know Mr.. Horton, as well
as the record, which he has made in
its entirety, make it reasonably GER
tain that it is not stupidity that Mr..
Horton is suffering from.
This is not the only piece of bad leg
islatipon that has been effected under
the guidance of our local Republican
influence. The record shows that there
has been practically no other form of
legislation adopted through the efforts
of the representatives of Ramsey coun-
ty in our state government. Mr.. Hor-
ton did his entire duty by his legisla-
tive client in connection with that bill
He had it passed through the house;
but 1t met it's fate in the senate, where
there evidently was no one chosen to
stand between this well known monop-
oily and the commonwealth of Mime
sofa.
If there was any way for Mr. Hor-
ton out of this very scandalous trans
action, which he knows there is not, he
would still find himself impaled on sew
eral other legislative spikes that he
has surrounded himself withal. The
house journal for the session of 1893 is
very dangerous document for the
Holitical ambitions of Mr. Horton. That
document, for instance, among other
things shows that Mr.. Horton was OPP
posed to the humane measure intro.
duced to compel the street car COM
pany of these cities to protect their
motormen from being exposed to the
tnclemencies Of Minnesota winter
weather by vestibuling their cars. So
just and necessary was this measure
that every member of the house of
which Mr.. Horton was a member voted
in favor Of it except five men, Mr..
Horton was one of that five The bill
is now law. Every humane man and
woman in the state that thinks of it
at all is glad that 1t is a law, and
wonder how these poor men could have
survived the exposure to which they
were subjected before the bill became
law.
1t was evidently a much more i'm.
portant consideration with Mr. Hor,
ton that the local street car company
should be saved the expense than that