Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1906-05-17
SURRENDERED

The President of the United States
has surrendered to the railroad cor
porations, and incidentally has brought
himself personally into contempt with
a number of patriotic statesmen and
incurred the distrust of the people
generally.
The railroad corporations. under
the leadership of men like Senator Ell
kins, Senator Aldrich. Senator ALI
son, Senator Foraker and Senator
Knox, have practically killed the at
tempt to enact an effective rate bill and
the people will probably have to await
until the United States Senate shall
have its Republican majority mater
tally changed before relief may be
had from railroad injustice and cor
porate imposition.
When the Hepburn railroad rate
regulation bill, which had passed the
House almost unanimously, reached
the Senate, the real opposition to it
began, for it is in the Senate the rail-
roads have their most trustworthy
lientenants. The men who have for
so long represented the corporations
the Aldrich- Elkins- Foraker crowd
-dete rmined to kill the bill. Aldrich
and Foraker were bold and outspoken
in their efforts. Senator Elkins. more
cunning, sought to render it ineffsct'
i've by emasculatingit.
When the bill was reported to the
Senate it was placed in charge Of Sem
ator Tillman, of South Carolina. His
honesty In seeking to secure fair
and effective bill is absolutely I'm.
questioned, and he faithfully endeav-
ored to defend it from the assaults of
its enemies. Senator Bailey, OF Texas,
the ablest man in the Senate, gave
him earnest support, as did also SEN
ator Rayner, Senator Bacon and other
Democrats of high rank in the Senate.
AS the discussion developed and
the provisions of the bill were thor
oughly discussed, and as the attitude
of Senators toward the measure be-
came known, President Roosevelt ap.
parently realized the fact that it could
not be passed in proper shape with
out Democratic help. Although he
and Senator Tlllman were not on
speaking terms, he recognized the sim
cerity and honesty Of the South Caro-
linian as to railroad legislation, and
sought his aid. The Pre- sident got ex-
Senator Chandler to serve as inter-
medialy between him and Senators
Tillman and Bailey, and in this man
ner they agreed upon certain provis-
ions that were absolutely vital to the
rate bill. The railroad Senators de-
manded that the action of the Inter-
state Commerce Commission, which
had authority to fix the rates Of rail-
way traffic, should be entirely subject
to the United States Circuit Courts.
The friends of the bill insisted that
the court review should be limited.
Senator Bailey offered an amendment
providing that the rates fixed by the
commission should be effective pend.
ing action of the courts. This guar
anteed protection to shippers while
the case was being carried from one
court to another, and was entirely sat-
isfactory to the President. The rail-
road Senators seriously objected to
this amendment. What they wanted
was Just the reverse-they wished to
have the railroads, own rates 60 right
on, even though they were pronounced
unjust and unreasonable by the Inter-
State Commerce Commission, until the
shipper was worn out by interminable
legal delays,
The bill having reached this crucial
point, Senators TiIlman and Bailey
promised the President the aid of the
Democratic Senators in havi ng the
adopted. The President,
on his part, assured these gentlemen
that the provisions they had agreed
upon were what in his opinion were
to the life OF the bill and
that he would stand by them to the
bitter end. Under these conditions
the prospects of securing a fair and
effective bill were most promising.
Imagine the feelings of the Demo.
cratic Senators who had put their
trust in the President when they dis
covered last week that he had delib.
erately betrayed them by agreeing to
a substitute for the Bailey amend
ment that nulli6es the real purpose of
the bill-an amendment that pro-
vides for the fullest sort of court re.
view and is just exactly what the
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