Arizona republican., 1903-02-10
RAILROAD REST
 BILLS AT REST
The Defeat Accomplished in
 the House Yesterday
That Body Also Agreed on Softer Name Than Poll Tax-Grand Lar ceny Bill Passed-0ther Prcceed- ings in Both Branchts of the Leg islature.

The legislature naS not yet ue.Cellu- ed to business to the depth which might have been expected by the open ing of the third week. The house held two sessions yesterday. In the morn brief afternoon. session there was quite a start in the direction of activity. One of the so-calied labor bills was disposed of by defeat and the grand larceny bill which has been before successive legis- latures to no purpose was passed.
 House Bill No. 21, known as the railway employees rest bill was set for final hearing at half past two o'clock. The friends of the measure were fear ful Of it's fate and desired postpone mcat of proceedings until this morn ing. A call of the house was moved and when it was dispensed with an ad- iournment was attempted. That was defeated and motion by Mir. Parr one of the friends of the bill, that it go over until ten o'clock this morning
 tailed by a vote of 2 to II Indicating the end of tine hiil.
 Mir. Roemer moved it's final p2ssage and the matter was before the house.
 MT St. Charles spoke briefly in behalf Of the measure. He recalled that aa other bill, the eight hour bill, haG [ passed by the unanimous vote of the house. It was incomprehensible to him why any member wEo had sup ported that measure could not support this enc which proposed a ten hours : rest for employees who had been on duty sixteen hours. He desired to go On record as the friend of the iaboring
 man.
 MT. Webb replied in an eloquen; speech. He said that he lad inquired of many advocates of the bill what useful purpose it would serve the rail- road employees. Tie most satisfactory reply he had obtained was that if it would do TO good it could do no harm. He would not be party to the bur dening of the statute books with that kind Of laws. He was himself a friend of the laboring man. At the same time he did not want to go on record as the unreasonable enemy of corporations merely because they were corporations. He recognized the great service the railroads had performed for this terri tory. They had done more for it than legislatures could accomplish in a thousand years by mere acts of legis- lation. The railroads had been sue cessful crusaders against an almost uncOnquerable nature and had made | the deserts and the valleys of Arizona | habitable. MT. Webb believed that the railroad companies made the burdens of their employees as light as possible. | Self interest alone would induce them
 to do so. He believed that such a
 measure as was proposed would be an
 unwarranted interference with their
 operations. Even if it would confer any benefit upon the employees it
 would be brought about by injustice
 to the employers. But the bill as drawn meant nothing and while there was no
 law on the subject there was already
 an arrangement between the roads
 and the employees organizations pro-
 viding for hours oi rest and labor.
 Messrs. Parr and Rowe spoke for the
 bill and MT. Roemer against it.
 | A motion for the previous question
 was not opposed and the bill went to a
 vote with the following result: Ayes
 10, nays 1S The bill not only contem- plated rest for employees but prohibit f ed the running of a light engine for
 more than forty miles without two
 competent men in charge and regulat- tu ttic tics-SiiiS5 cI t,IctttS CI liiclt lll1Il ninety feet to tine mile.
 II The friends of the bill say that it is not dead but in q state of coma. They
 further say that it's defeat was the re-
 suit of apprehension on the part
 of some of it's friends and that it will
 be revived in a day or two.
 Mir. Webb's bill for the amendment
 of the poll tax law came up in the
 committee of the whole, Mir Rowe chairman. The framer of the bill pro- posed an amendment by changing the
 word "pOll'' to "schoCl.' He explained
 that that would more clearly define the
 r3 ture of the tax. MT Marian offered
 an amendment for the unsexing of the
 bill by striking out the word male
 In some manner the discussion revert ed to the amendment offered by MT.
 Webb which was adopted. There was
 some little objection to MT. Webb s
 proposition on the ground that it was unnecessary and that the tax by an
 other name than poll tax would be just as burdensome. MT. Morrison in sup