The times., 1898-03-04
THE LOUD BILL KILLED
Ii Is Put TO Sleep By a Vote of
the House.
IT'S AUTHOR NOT TACTFUL
Members Feared That Editors and
Publishers OF Country Newspa-
IeIs Would Seek Revenge at Eler-
tion Time End of An Effort Ex-
tending Over Three Years.

After three years of laborious work on
bill to embarrass country newspapers
Mr.. Loud Of California yesterday saw the
result of his energies crushed TO atoms
and his labor wasted. The House. by a
vote of 162 to l19 tabled the bill and for
ever killed it,
The measure presented by Mr. Loud
came up in the Fifty-fourth Congress, but
was suppressed. He was not satisfied
with the experiment and resolved to have
il acted on by the present Congress. He
advertised the fact for months, had eN-
perts in postal matters arrange data to
strengthen his position, and when he felt
that he was completely armored for the
fray succeeded in having il placed on the
calendar Of the House for Tuesday last.
Ii was agreed Ia devote three days to the
measure. Had but one day been given for
debate the bill would undoubtedly have
passed, but the developments from the
debate. and the personal actions of Mr..
Loud during Tuesday and yesterday
aroused so much antagonism to his meas
ure that even Messrs. Dingley and Bou-
telle Of Maine. the two most pronounced
l.
defeat the measure.
Mr.. Simpson of Kansas has the credit
of introducing the first wedge into Mr..
Loud's Det scheme He showed Wednes-
day conclusively that express companies
were paid less than ] cent a pound for
carrying articles similar 10 second-class
I postoffice matter. and that the Govern
ment pays cents a pound for second
11..
ed Mr.. Loud TO explain why it costs the
Government eight times as much it
: does express companies for freight.
Mr.. Loud disdained to answer this que
ry, and for that matter all other ques-
tions that reflected on the railroad con-
tracts put To him during the debate. His
treatment of members who asked ques
( tions was Of such a harsh character that
IN more than one instance he lost a sup
porter.
The members who spoke against the
bin followed up the tip given them by AIR.
Simpson. and did so to such degree that
hourly Mr.. Loud saw the support he ex-
pected from his Republican friends drift
away from him. They would not on the
eve of a general election oppress the
country newspapers and relieve the over
paid railroad corporations from the re-
sponsibility for the deficiency in the POST
office Department, knowing fully as well
as Mr.. Loud knew it that it was not
just TO pay railroads the maximum price
for freight. as regulated in 1873, when the
law made il the duty OF the PostOttice De-
partment to reduce the amount paid the
railroads each year the amount of mail
matter increased in volume.
The debate during yesterday was under
the five-minute rule, and the expressions
OF the members did not in the slightest
degree tend to sweeten the temper and
H. IL. I
number Of amendments TO the bill in
rroduced during the three days debate
but with the exception Of one concession
of no importance. none Of them were in
corporated into the bin. While MIR. Loud
foresaw defeat, yet he hoped against ii
because Of the failure of the amendments
10 pass. and he was only too glad when
o'clock arrived TO shut off debate for
the purpose Of voting. At this point Mr..
Barrett of Massachusetts endeavored to
submit another amendment, but was
ruled ont Of order by Speaker Reed.
Imediately after this decision. Mr..
Richardson. Of Tennessee. who had op-
posed the measure from the beginning.
moved that the bill be laid upon the
table. The Speaker was about TO decide
the vote on this question adversely when
AIr. Richardson demanded a division.
which resulted in a vote OF 20 10 l0l in
favor Of laying the bill on the table.
Hoping that by placing his Republican
brethren on record in a matter Of econ
omising IN Government expenses and
thereby forcing them TO vote in favor of
the biz, Mr. Loud demanded the ayes
and nays. and when the Speaker an
nounced that the bill had been tabled by
vote Of l62 10 49, the chagrin Of the
chairman Of PostOIfices and Post Roads
was intense The vote settled the bill for
this Congress, at least