The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1906-12-23
LAMAR AGAINST
THE INCREASE
Spoke Vigorously Against
Measure Providing for
Raise in Congression-
al Salaries.

On the question of raising the sala
ries of members of the national hous,
of representatives few days ago thu
Florida delegation was divided. TIL,
bill provided for an increase of two
thousand five hundred dollars in tht
salaries of congressman. w. B. La
mar, OF this district, spoke agains
the measure while Frank Clark of the
Second made speech in favor of the
bill. s. NJ. Sparkman, of the First
district, took no active part in the de
bate but cast his vote against the
measure.
! The following is the speech de
! livered by Congressman Lamar:
| shall vote against the proposed in
crease, Of the salaries of members oil
this house either for the sixtieth con,
gresS or for the sixty-firSt congress
IL it were to go into effect for the
sixtieth congress it would be mem
bers of this house practically voting
upon raising their own salaries, for
many members of this house are
members Of the sixtieth congress- l
shall debate it squarely upon the
proposition of raising the salary at
all. Mr. Speaker, l have no objec-
ton to any man upon the floor of this
house entertaining a very large or a
very small estimate of mis- own abili-
ties. l neither belong to the rich
class, nor do l know anything of
the conditions of ward politics so &C.
curately set out by the distinguished
gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr.
Sullivan.) 1 come from an agricultu-
raj district, where, although l am
lawyer by profession and have been
honored with the high Office in my
state of attorney-general, l could not
make exceeding $4,000 in the little
town in which l live by my profess
sion. This house is constituted prac-
tically of three classes of membership
one very rich, who do not need any
raise Of salaries at all; another class,
who represent railway and other cor
porations in addition to being mem
bers of this house and do not need
any raise of salary at all; and the
other class are those who can not
make more than $4,000 a year in the
communities in which they live. The
people in my district, do not believe,
would tolerate my voting for any in
crease of the salaries of members of
congress. Today the lumber men,
the vegetable men, tobacco men, fruit
men, and farmers generally in the dis
trict l represent are pressed and in
jured by extortionate railway rates
and charges. And this house of rep
neither democrats nor
has not passed an ade-
quate law to protect the interests OF
the people who sent me here, and |
will not cast a vote to raise either
my own salary or the salary of mem
bers of this house collectively when
this house has declined to pass faic.
just, and adequate statute that will
protect the interest of which l speak.
Some of the railways In my dis
trict are capitalized at two, three and
four times their value. Every article
out of my county, every arti-
Gle shipped out of my district, is I'M
justly taxed by the gross, fraudulent
device of overcapitaliZation OF the
railroads. Whether $500 per annum
be an adequate compensation for
members or not, place one serious
objection to it upon the ground that
this house, without regard to party,
did not, when it had an opportunity,
to dc so, pass a fair, just, and ade-
quate law that will protect the people
whom l have the honor to represent.
Whether $4,000 per annum be ade-
quate or not, let me state what dis
member of this house said
to me once Several members were
around and talking about the
sacrifices men had to make to come
to congress and speaking of the in
of the pay of congressman.
WELL" said this gentleman, La
mar, do you believe these Pickwick-
ian stories?" ! said, well. l do not
know. l am inclined to doubt some
of them" Said he, Il do not believe
a word l do not know how it is with
other men, but this is the softest snap
have ever struck in my life
1 would not minimize this question
by either rejecting upon the motives
Of the man who wanted to vote for 1t
Dr. upon the motives Of the man who |
wanted to vote against it. | place |
my vote suuarely upon the ground !
hat the third congressional district |
N my state will not tolerate vote |
raising my salary, or the salaries of /!
other members, when to this time
rave not succeeded in getting legisla- /
ion out of this house that will pro-
ect them against extortionate. over
fraudulent railroad
'ates.