Lewiston evening teller. [volume] (Lewiston, Idaho) 1903-1911, 1906-03-15
WOULD RESTRICT
THE RAILROADS !
Hepburn Says They
Should Not Own
Coal Fields
Special Correspondence.

Special Correspondence.
Washington. March 11.-senator
Hepburn engaged in an argument In
the senate last week on the question of
coal lands being acquired and con-
trolled by railroads. AZ q result he
won q high place in the estimation OF
members Of the senate on account Of
his demonstration Of his ability to cope
with the leading lawyers in the senate
on . question Of law. The debate In
full can be found In the Congressional
Record Of March ?.
Senator LaF,ollette had introduced
an amendment to the Indian bill and
had been speaking on It for some time
when Senator Hepburn challenged the
constitutionality Of the proposed
amendment and proceeded to show Mr..
LaFollette the error Of his position.
LaFollette finally openly acknowledged
that he was not In q position to an
swer Senator Heyburn's argument.
Out. Debated the Lawyers.
The result Of the amendment was
that It only received seven votes in
the senate and consequently over-
whelmingly defeated. The discussion
was engaged In by the leading lawyers
Of the senate. Among them being
spooner. Knox. Bacon. Newlands, Nc
Cumber, Teller and Fulton. Senator
Heyburn's argument was sound, and
delivered in dignined and courteous
manner.
The following paragraph indicates
the line Of argument and the position
taken by Senator Hepburn on this Inn
portant subject:
"Mr. President. productive industry
and the functions Of common carrier
should be kept 80 distinctly apart tina,
neither would control the other. ii
productive industry controls the rail-
roads. they do 1t for their selfish in
terests; II the railroads control pro-
ductive industry. they do 1t for theil
selfish interests. It may be difficult to
md remedy for this evil; but It Il
the greatest evil today existing in the
business world.
u Paratyxeo Compeeition.
| "No railroad should be engaged In
any other business than that Of q COM
mon carrier; no productive industry
should have such grasp upon ths
common carriers of the country thai
they can control them. Take the pro.
ducers Of iron and steel products and
4 iron and steel OF this country and allow
them to control the transportation az I
matter OF personal accommodation t
/ them. to the exclusion Of those whom
i they may choose to exclude, you par.
alyxe competition and you place thii
industry In the lands Of the controlling
force Take these coal lands.
i Perhaps we shall never find a cure
in our generation for the evil that ex.
lists In the older states: but we can a
least scotch 1t as It approaches and
threatens the new civilization OF Ou
country in the territories; and w
should direct our attention to it. W.
can only draw conclusions Of wisdom
perhaps from the things OF the past o.
from conditions that are beyond on
reach today: but we should not fail Z
draw those conclusions for the benefi
OF a correct solution Of the difficulties
that confront US in this case.
n Takes Value From Other Fields.
Here are. perhaps In extent and II
character. as valuable coal lands a
there are In the world. We are pro
posing to sell or lease them for IT,
best price and upon the most Favorable
conditions for the benefit Of these In
dams. II we sell enough or lease enough
Of those coal lands to the railroad
to enable those railroads to supply tn
market the remainder Of the Goa
lands will have no value whatever.
Private investment IL not going int
the field to compete with the railroad
in mining and selling coal in the gen
eral market, unless you can reacl
that much to- be desired point OF pre-
venting discrimination In freight rate
on the part Of the railroads, by whic
today In the state OF Wyoming. wher
the railroads own vast and valuabl
coal fields, coal lands that are nc
owned by the railroads have no marke
and Individual ownership Of those cos
lands IL today without any possibl
realization"