Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1906-05-29
RATE BILL is PASSED.
SENATE APPROVES MEASURE
ALMOST UNANIMOUSLY.
Bitter and Wordy Contest of Sew
enty Days Ends in Favorable Ae-
tion on Railway Rate Control Bill
by Vote OF Il to 3.

The railroad rate bill was passed by
the United States Senate at 80 o'clock
Friday afternoon by a vote of IL to 8.
Senator Foraker, Republican, of Ohio,
and Senators Morgan and Pettus. Dem
ocrats, of Alabama, cast the negative
votes, Senator Aldrich of Rhode Island,
leader of the Republican conservative
forces. was the only notable absentee
when the roll was called and his pair.
Senator Teller, announced for him
that had he been present he would have
voted for the bill
As the sentiment was unanimous
aside from the three exceptions noted,
none of the general pairs prevented any
Senator present from registering his
will on measure that has had scarcely
parallel in Importance since war
time, not excepting tariff bills and
financial legislation.
LAYS Result to Roosevelt.
Much of the bitterness that has char
acterized the last days of the notable
debate disappeared as the hour for call
ing the final roll drew near, and at the
very close of the seventy days contest
there was presented the anomaly of
Senator Tillman taking the floor to de-
clare that whatever success comes of
the measure now on the threshold of
becoming a part of the law of the land
will be due largely to Theodore Roose-
welt. Senator Dolliver and others also
spoke in praise of the President.
Mr.. Tillman, who in all probability
would decline to shake the hand of the
President of the United States if they
met upon the street, who has refused
and probably will continue TO refuse
to set foot inside the White House as
long as the present administration en-
dures, declared at the moment of ac-
ton that he did not want to lay down
the responsibility that had come to him
when the bill was thrust into his hands
and he was made the leader in
charge of it without a committee be-
hind him-without saying that had it
not been for President Roosevelt's in
defatigable work in and out of season
there would have been no rate legisla-
ton.
Hoped for Better Bill.
The Democratic leader in charge of
the bill said he could not congratulate
President Roosevelt, because he be-
lieved a better bill could have been at
tanned if the President had pursued his
original cause to the end.
Neither could he congratulate the Re-
publican party, he said, for while the
G. o. p. was now lined up there would
be wounds to heal, scars to remove and
bitter memories.
The last thing of Importance the SEN
ate did before passing the bill was to
strike the words "in it's Judgment
from the section comforting the rate
making power on the Interstate Com
merce Commission. The vote was 80 to
"a. With these words out, it is con-
tended that the court review provision
has been broadened, or made at least
more ambiguous than if it had been
provided that the commission should
determine and prescribe what in it's
judgment shall be just and reasonable
rates, instead of being authorized to
declare arbitrarily what absolutely are
llst and reasonable charges. On the
bher hand, had the words been retain
ed, the bill would have been OF doubt
full constitutionality.