The sun., 1903-02-06
The TRUST. BUSTING CAMPAIGN
A DECISIVE BATTLE rs ABOUT TO
DE FOUGHT.
TIVE House Committees Hold the hey 10
the situation and Gan carry 1hroush
Or Defeat the Programme of Repuu'
Ican Leaders and the Administration.

Or Defeat the Programme OF Reptit'
ucan Leaders and the Administration.
WAsHINoToS. Feb 5.-Congress is now
in the last stages of the trust-bustin ing cam
paixn, The preliminary skirmishes have
taken place and the important, decisive
battle il about To be fought To the gen
ersl public it might appear that the Little
field trust .b,ister, now before the House
under a special rule which provides Tor a
final vote next Saturday. Is the real spoils
OF war. The fact Is. however. that the L'
tlefield buster is a mere stalking horse, the
actual fighting being done behind the
closed doors of one or two committee
rooms
The House Committee on Interstate com
merce, Of which Representative Hepburn
Of Iowa is chairman, and the committee on
Rules, of which Speaker Henderson, a'so
OF the Buckeye State. is scS-ofiicio chairman
and actually the whole thing now nave
the key to the situation in their hahds
and can carry through or defeat the pro-
gramme of the leaders and the Administra-
ton a. they may see IN
1t is the plan Of the Senate to shelve
the Littleheld bill, when II is laid before
that body next week and place on the
statute books as m&-trust legislation the
three measures which have already passed
The Senate One of these passed the House
to-day, one IL in conference committee
and the third is in the vest pocket Of Speaker
Henderson and Representative Hepburn.
Number one is known a. the Hurry up
bill, originally drawn by Attornoy-General
Knox, providing for eIpeditrg suits
brought under the sherman Antitrust
law; the second Is the Hanna Nelson amend-
ment 70 the Department Of Commerce bill,
prov ovidng for restricted puhlcty to apply
10 interstate commerce corporations, and
the thir, is the Elkins bill, dealing with
the uuest ion Of relates and other railroad
dscrimina ations.
This las. named measure is the one that
mildly threatens to block the programme
Of the s. nate and the President Chairman
Hepburn is personally willing to report the
bill from the Committee on lnteist ate and
Foreign Commerce, Of which he is chair
man, and he is inclined TO trlIsye tha. a
majority Of the committee will support
the hill, although several members are
now against IL.
But according to well defined reports
to-day, Speaker Henderson has taken
the bit in his teeth and does not propose
Congress as il secs fit, H. thinks IL might
he lust a. well TO pock.t the Elkns bill II
the Senator's intend To iguof. the Iijtie-
field trust buster, The S eaker thinks
it would be better for the House TO pass
such bills rs il desires to, including the
Iittlefeld buster, and II the Senate does
not choose to act upon them, for the House
to show like inactivity with regard to bills
passed by the Senate. The Senate and
House measures will thus pass each other
in the rotunda. as a msmber expressed II
to-day and never he acted On by both
houses.
Speaker Henderson does not admit his
TO 10 his purpose but the Republican lead
ers in the Senate can get no assurance from
him that he will favor the passage OF the
busily consulting him for the past few dave.
IL is probable, however, all things con-
sidered, that the Senate will come out
ahead a. usual, and that the net result
Of the effort to enact trust busting legis-
lation In line with the recommendation Of
President Roosevelt will he the passage
Of the Ell<ins Rebate bill. the Depart ment
Of Commerce bill. providing restricted
publicity for interstate corporations. and
the bill to expedite antitrust cases in court.
The Lit leheld trust buster will never be
heard Of after 1t reaches the Senate.
II II plain that Speaker Henderson is
not In sympathy with the Senate pro-
gramme and that he thinks the House will
not pass the Elkins bill for he SAID Tonight
in an interview:
The rule under which the House pro-
ceeded to-day to pass the expediting bill
and to consider the Littlsfeld bill to pre-
vent rebates and for publicity was adopted
by the Committee on Rules two days ago.
and this was no reason why we should
change our programme at late hour,
even II the Senate did pass, yesterday
afternoon, measures along the same line.
1t Ii true the Elkins bil differs in some re-
spects from the Littlefield bill, which is
now under consideration In the House
but the latter bill was considered long an
carefully by a subcommittee Of the House
Committee on Judiciary. in consult al ion
with the Attorney-General, and II is be-
lieved that it represents more nearly than
any other measure the views OF the Ad-
minist ration and of the House.
If 1t does not represent the views OF the
House it can easily be amended IN the House.
and should it not meet with the views OF the
Senate that body can amend 1t when II
reaches IL. In any event the antitrust
legislation OF the present Congress will
probably be arranged in the conference.
I don't believe there is a single member
Of either body who Is opposed to just and
equitable antitrust legi-lation ] favored
it during my first term a. Speaker when the
Houae passed several antitrust measures,
and am heartily in favor Of 1t now