The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1905-12-19

If their pockets are bullying with
these valuable gifts. sent by the very
corporations who desire them to make
as little legislation against them as
possible?
A Splendid Measure.
The Hearst bill was a splendid
measure of reform for railway rate
abuses and etery kind of railway
abuse. 1t provided for the fixing OF
q reasonable rate by the Interstate
Commerce Commission, in lieu of an
unreasonable rate. 1t corrected the
terminal fees evil 1t provided
against the private car line evil. 1t
had a clause in it compelling rail-
roads to treat all shippers alike In
furnishing cars to carry products to
market. And it contained highly
criminal penalties against railway
officials. high. and low, for breaking
the laws laid down in that bill
Mr.. Shackleford and myself made
merely an informal and subsidiary
report to the house Of representatives
upon this Hearst bill. as embOdying
those features of legislation that we
would like to see enacted into law.
! Our report Of the Hearst bill did not
4 place it on the calendar of the house
I Of repre5epTatbveA It gave st no
official standing. The only thing that
we ACCOMPLISHED was to bring it in
/ formally to the attention of the house
! Of representatives and the country at
large, as a measure promising full re-
I lief against railway eXaCtiOns and
railway eXt0rtions.
What lumber shipper, and vege.
/ table shipper. and orange shipper,
and pineapple shiSger. and melon
/ shipper, and phosphate shipper in
/ Florida viii find anything to blame in
/ this action of Mr. ShacklefOrd and
myself? What shipper of cotton will
I find fault In our action? What ship
] per in Florida of products that is
raised on the truck farm, or in the
field. or grown in the forest, will con
denim us for our action in their own
\ INTEREST," But Mr.. John Sharp Viii
4 hams. the minority leader of the
! democrats. has condemned us.
i "Gold Brick" Caucus.
] And have said through a
public interview and on the
floor of the house that any
/ charge I might make against
him for being controlled by motives
not in the public interest, would be
! truer and more just and right than
j his charge that I defied the caucus
which adopted the Davey bill when
we reported the Hearst bill. The
i truth matter is that caucus was a
"gold brick on the democratic party.
1 Williams never intended that caucus
/ to consider the railroad rate ques-
ton He called it to resign his mi
D.
been voted down in the house Of rep
|resentatives on public question,
partly by the votes of his democratic
associates. Getting angry and vexed
I one Saturday afternoon on this fact
he Immediately made a call for a
&. caucus Monday night following and
I this was the caucus that adopted the
puerile, incomplete. Davey DILL
I voted for the bin in caucus, OF
II course. because it contained at least
| some measure of relief; but l pro
tested on the floor of the caucus That
{ Monday night that such an incom
plete measure should not be made
p the final expression of the wishes OF
the Democracy on this great and i'm
portant national subject And when
7 the caucus adjourned it was, as I said
with the definite understanding thai
each member could go as he pleased
in bringing about remedial relief for
/ railroad abuses.
have suffered injustice at the
/ hands of Mr.. Williams, because l was
insistent and eager I'm the interest OF
! the people of Florida. He made The
: charge and made 1t the basis of his
= removal Of Shackelford and myself
that we had violated the caucus agree