Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-02-10
The. Esch- Townsend Bill
Passes the House.
Williams and Hepburn Have a
Warm Discussion.
The Senate Considers the Agricultural
Biii-The Proceedings.

| W oohhlS loii, rep, S.-A1ter nearly
Tour days OF discussion the House to-
day by a vote of 325 to Il passed The
| Esch-Townscnd bill providing for the
regulation Of freight rates The mega
| tive vote was made un of II RepubIi-
cans ard 6 Democrats.
| The closing hours of the debate were
| occupied by Mcssrs. Williams of Mis-
sissirpi. the minority leader. and Hep
| burn Of Iowa. chairman Of The cormi:
tee which reported the bill. Williams.
while supporting The minority measure.
even though he said he knew it could
not pass. complimeutcu the Rcpubli-
| cans for beinsmg i'll a bill which was
| much better titan he expected would
come from them.
| The speech of Hepburn was rather
in defence Of himself. He said that his
| deeds and acts were a sufficient answer
to the lies and SANDERS which had
| been heaped upon him. The bill known
as the Iienburn bill he said. had been
prepared by the attorney general ana
he only yielded 10 his colleagues on the
committee on the E,svl-TcWnsend bill!
because he did not want the commit &c
| to be the target for ScriDIerS who want
| - StIiSftiOilttt tatd'lilEtS-
| He devoted Sumctlrn, to q strong Dro-
Scntation OF the merits Of the majori-
| tvs measure.
| IN his closing speech Williams con
graduated the House upon the fact that
| Lot only in The matter IF rate lcCisla-
| ton bu. in other particulars. President
| Roosevelt. ''nornina:rd by the Republic
can party and elected by the people,
was beginning to assume a distinctly
Democratic attitude.
Addressing himself to the Repub,i-
cans Williams said they need nothing
more than marking out of the path
| "-ay 10 follow the President not be-
| cause he is president. or a Republican.
| but because h" was outlining proper
| policy for tn" American people. oh >
he said. amid Democratic laughter. II
know hGrN non partisan you are"
Williams said it might be true in
some things, as GrosvenCr stated yes
| to-day. that :hc Democrats camped to-
night whore we Camped last night 1"
but he loudly proclaimed. facing the
Republican side that on this question.
ii is YOU who are camping this year
Nhcre the Democracy campcd last
zeal II. :l'' StHl. inc IliG tbflIN Ill IIe
House did not follow the Presidents
| Recommendation it proved the necessi-
" for in automatic couple between the
White House aGd tn" House OF repro
S@ntatives. ~ Republican Daniel is
calling =" he exclaimed. land he is at
the other end Of the avenue and he is
calling YOU 10 10 identicaliy the Same
thing that You refused to do because
it came ont Of n Democratic Nazareth"
Discussing The merits Of the bill. Mr..
Williams said the country had waited and
waited for themselves to do il justice.
He agreed i'll part with Mr.. Mccall
tMass). He had said the right to fix rates
was Il dangerous power to confer on seven
men. but he argued it was a choice be
tween evils. as only about seven great
railroad magnatcs, acting in conjunction
with one another, We're directing the
stream of American commerce in the
channels they wished and discriminating;
rates Was 10 i" lodged in some hands,
MI. Williams said he preferred IL II ne a
government tribunal. weak and inctfcc-
tive as such tribunals are
Declaring ihat he spoke as q conScrva :
tive he was not a radical. Mi Williams
said the time may come when all the
country except the South would j.. advo-
eating government ownership of railroads.
The South would never support that
proposition because they had Tie old
fashioned idea that the government
should not become too strongly central
lied They were further opposed to gov
ernment ownership because they knew the
government would not opcIate separate
coaches for the whites and blacks
Mr.. Hepburn Gowal. chairman Of the
committee on interstate and foreign com
mc!Cc. closed for the Republicans. He
explained the difficulties OF preparing such
a mt assure as the bill reported saying no
two mon entertained the same opinion
either - to what was in the bill OF VIVA:
ought to be in it.
MIR. Hepburn digressed for a moment
and received sympathetic applause from
both Democrats and Republicans when
hc asked to be excused for intruding a
matter of personal interest into The pro
tc"tiincS, which was the first time he had
done 50 in Is years service. ''If ! have
been criticized nc said with emotion. II
nav" borne it. If | have been S,andcrcd
and lied about. ! have submitted to it.
COnten, that my deeds. my acts. might be
placed in opposition to and in answer to
The lhelS OF those who traduccd me"
The bill he drew, said Mr. Hepburn, he
Continued on page 81