The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-06-08
RATE BILL IS SENT
BACK TO CONFEREES
Senate Refuses to Recede from
Recommendations
VOTE WAS UNANIMOUS
Several Speeches Are Made In opposi-
ton to the Stringent Antl-Pass
Provision of Confer
ence Report.
VOTE WAS UNANIMOUS

Washington, June I'm the Senate to-
day the consideration of the conference on
the railroad rate bill was resumed and
Senator Fulton took the floor for the pur-
pose of presenting his protest against the
Senate conferees receding from the SEN
ate amendment, excepting the lumber in
dustry from the provision prohibiting COM
mon carriers from transporting their own
products. He said the amendment was Of
very great Importance.
Objection was made by Senator Tillman
to any effort to instruct the eonferees at
this stage of the proceedings as pro-
posed by Senator Hale, who then withdrew
his motion, which was to declare that
1t was the sense of the Senate that rail-
road employees and their families should
be exempt from the anti-pass amendment
Oppose Ant-Pass Legislation.
Senators Daniel and Carter opposed
stringent anti-pass legislation, the latter
saying the Postmaster General should
have authority to issue free passes over
every railroad in the United States to
all members of Congress to afford oppor-
tunity to obtain information of the coun-
try.
Senators Lodge Bacon and spooner
thought that the word knowingly"
should be retained in the penal clauses Of
the bill, while Senator Patterson con-
tended that offenses could not be commit
ted under the law without knowledge.
Mr.. Bacon antagonlzed the proposition
to increase the salaries of the interstate
commerce commissioners. Senator Spooner
advocated liberal remuneration for those
officials as in the public interest.
Senator Patterson advocated stringent
anti-pass legislation. saying that under
the present system perncious to the last
degree, the delegates to any convention
of a dominant party, will always be
found with their pockets full of passes,
but admitted that this evil cannot be
controlled by interstate legislation.
Mr.. Lafollette also opposed the reten-
ton of the word knowingly" in the
penal provision, saying that 1t would
make it impossible to convict any of
the higher railroad officials who are In
fact responsible for the violation Of the
law"
Opposes Word Knowingly.
Mr.. lafollette also discussed the pass
question, especially urging that railway
mail clerks be included in the excepted
class Mr.. Tillman objected that the
conferees could not originate legislation.
He declared that $50, 100000 worth of trans
portation is given away annually. The
questions at issue were further discussed
by Senators McCumber and Spooner.
Interpreting some of the North Dakota
Senator's remarks concerning salary as
directed towards himself. Mr.. Spooner said
he had not for twenty-five years re-
ceived any salary from railroad COM
pany.
Discussing the necessity for passes to
men in charge Of live stock Senator War
rem discussed briefly the agitation con-
corning the sanitary conditions at the
packing houses and expressed the opinion
that the stock industry should not be
further burdened.
without dividing the Senate then voted
unanimously not to agree TO the report.
The vote had the effect of sending the
bill back to conference and Senators TIL
man. Elkins and Cullom were reappointed
conferees with instructions to Insist upon
the Senate amendments.