The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-02-07
Williams OenOunceS Rule on
 the Rebate Bill
TOWNSEND DEFENDS HIS PET
Debate on the Measure So Vigorously Espoused By the President Will
 Continue Until Thursday s=.s.s.-. Afternoon.

Washington, February 6.-Following weeks of hearing and consideration by | the committee on interstate and foreign | commerce as well as urgent recommenda- tion of the President. the House today began debating the proposed legislation on the railway freight rates This action was taken only after determined opposi- tion by the democrats. lead by John Sharp Williams of Mississippi, to the adoption of a rule which would shut out opportunity to amend the bill. Two republicans voted against the rule | and one democrat, Mir. Gaines, Tennessee, voted for it. Otherwise party lines were tightly drawn. The rule was adopted. Unanimous consent was given making the bill to provide for the government uing order of the House to be called up at any time The bill, among other things, aboishes the Panama canal commission, and puts the management of canal affairs in the hands of the President.
 Freight Rates Taken Up.
 MT. Dalzell then presented a resolution from the committee of rates. providing that immediately upon it's adoption, the House in committee of tse whole, shall take up and consider the bill for the reg ulation of freight rates and continue to discuss until Thursday at o'clock when vote shall be taken.
 On division the previous question was ordered by margin of seven votes, the vote standing 162 to loo. MT. Williams, Mississippi demanded the yeas and nays, and the roll was called.
 The previous question was ordered I'll to 140. The democrats with the exception of Gaines, Tennessee, voted solidly against the motion, while Southwick, New York, was the only republican voting with the democrats.
 Mir lpalzell briefly explained the reso- lution, being followed by MT. Williams, the minority leader, who sad that every man voting for the previous question knew it would have the effect of pre- venting any amendment to the resolu- tion.
 MT Dearmond, Missouri, attacked the resolution as wholly unnecessary mar row and partisan" because 1t did not permit amendment and because the ma jority party had determined for the mi- nority what bills should be voted on as a substitute. The right of the minority to name Its own substitute he declared had been denounced in "narroWness and the narrowness of shallow partisanship."
 Most men, he said, believed the bill would be strangled in the Senate.
 The rule was characterized by MT. Grosvenor, Ohio as fair to the minority because the democrats in caucus had de- termined to vote for their bill as an amendment to the republican bill at the proper time. He said six months from now they would be swearing that this was their measure" MT. Grosvenor, in answer to MT. Cochran, Missouri, was rehearsing the original interstate com merce legislation when MT. Gaines, Ten nessee, cried out:
 "Oh, pshaw!'
 When the laughter which followed had subsided MT. Grosvenor indignantly re- torted: That Is in keeping with the character of the position he (Gaines) oc- cupies.'
 Williams Denounces Rule.
 In denouncing the rule MT. Williams declared that the object of the demo- cratic caucus had been accomplished. That object, he said, was to let the Pres ident of the United States and the ma jority party know that there would be no more partisan and factional opposition to a great public measure. 'The rules, he said, amid democratic applause, had been brought in for the purpose of pre- venting a majority of the entire house, composed of the democrats solidly and a number of republicans from formulating a bill which would accomplish the pur- pose sought"
 "Your object is," he said. ito prevent your own men from amending your own bill with our assistance"
 The Townsend -Esch bill, he said, had been framed upon the presumption that the interstate commerce commission would commit error, which was to be guarded against.
 MT. Williams then offered to surrender every moment of debate is the rule were so amended as to permit the vote on three amendments. He even offered to give up the vote on the minority if the privilege he asked be granted.
 MT. Dalzell, however, refused the prop osition.
 The debate was brought to close by Mr. Dalzell, who said amid republican laughter, that democratic caucus was an exceedingly unnecessary thing when it sought to give aid to the President and the republican party
 On a roll call the rule was adopted 166 to 140 Messrs. Southwick and Vreeland Of New York, republicans, voted against the resolution, and Gaines voted for 1t. Immediately the house went into commit tee of the whole to consider the Town send -Esch bill, MT. Currier of New Hamp- shire in the chair.
 Townsend Defends Measure.
 Mr Townsend, one of the authors of the measure, began the debate. He said that the bill presented ample occasion to bring into prominence the agitator who desired notoriety before his constituents and who was eager to strike a blow at the railroads above or below the belt The occasion, he said, was equally fruit f,.., flor tha. greed and selfishness born of great power and nurtured by a desire for financial gain, which would deceive the Congress and the nation into believ- ing that the creatures of the government are outside and beyond its control. and that the problem is so great and com plex that only the railroads can solve it." Taking up the merits of the bill. Mir. Townsend said that it had the two-fold oL.ect of giving to the interstate com merce commission power to fix rate and to hasten and expedite the work of de- termining whether the rates would stand or not through the special court created for the purpose of expedition There will never be a day. he said in the history of this country when the people would ask less ''Tomorrow." ha