Mower County transcript., 1907-03-06
PASSES SUBSIDY BILL pEopI a DEM n NIDFI1 ~

Pc OPL } / 3 D EM N A n | IlED u
LITTLE opPo s,Tlo rs 2-cEnT
FARE BiL IN SEN ATE. U.
Wilson Of Minneapolis the Only Mem.
Der TO Take the Floor Against the /
Measure and It Passed ~ 4 Vote
Of SIS to s. ..5 y .555i. 81.
st. Paul, March 4.-The important
legislative event Of the past week has
been the consid Grafton Of the bill for
bidding railroads charging more than
2 cents q mile and its companion bill
forbidding the issuance OF passes to-
any one. These bills had passed the
house the previous week. The house
was in such hurry they did not take
the trouble to 60 into any discussion,
as the senate did. The bills were
made the special order In the senate
tor one day last week and the senate
chamber was packed both on the floor
and In the galleries with an interest
"a audience. They were introduced
INTO the senate by Senator Peterson of
Moorhead on Feb. Is and reported
back favorably by the committee on
railroads on Feb. TO- When they were
reached in the senate as a special or
der Senator Hardy Of st. Paul offered
an amendment striking out all after
tho enaeting clause Of the 2-oent bill
and substituting therefor bill provid-
Ing for a 277s-cent rate. / It was notable
that the minds Of everybody were
made up in advance, as Senator
George p. Wilson Of Minneapolis was
the only man who got up, and advo-
Gated the TX -cent amendment. He
assumed openly in his remarks that
this was d compromise by the rail
roads themselves. The amendment
provided that the railroads must ac-
cept the 211k cent rate within ten days
after the passage Of the bill In order
to make it binding and that If they did
not the bill would be subject to change
or the passage of the 2-cent bill in
stead 4sv.-- ~: Z, 1i:tt5 ~. s.~ g. e.
Declares Two-cent Fare Unfair.
He argued that the rate Of 2 cents
was unfair and that evidence had been
presented to the committees of the
legislature showing that railways could
~ kof t1 90. f0p a q
than 2a cents. He quoted Mr.. A. B.
Stickney of the Chicago Great West
ern road as testifying that it cost his
company $1.15 for every dollar they
earn from passenger fares and claimed
that as far as the so-called popular
elamor was concerned it came from
those who did not have the informa-
tion before them which the senate
now has. ........-.>...
He also quoted the testimony of Mr..
A. B. Cults, general passenger agent
of the Minneapolis and St. Louis road,
as confrmatory Of Mr.. Stickney's evi-
dence and argued that the legislature
had no right to compel them to trans
act their passenger business at a loss
and that as reasonable men the legis-
lature should be fair with the rail
roads. He read from the report Of the
railroad commission of Wisconsin,
which had investigated the cost of
railroad transportation and reported
in favor of 21a cents fare. He cited
that in the older states like New York,
Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Ohio
the population was so much more
dense that what was fair in those
states would not be either fair Or Just
in Minnesota and claimed that if the
Minnesota, legislature insisted on be-
ing unfair they, could not make the
rate anyway, because it would be un-
constitutional and would be contested
in the courts He further said that he
had not been importuned by the peo-
pie Of his constituency or elsewhere
to support this bill. s.,....# .~~. L!54Tl.
!: Political Platforms Not Binding.
!. Referring to the platforms Of the
political parties in the last campaign
favoring the 2-cent rate he said that
they were adopted without the infor-
nation which the senate now has be
fore It and repudiated the idea that
the action Of the Political parties was
I binding upon the senate. The senate
had taken testimony and was in honor
bound to act upon the information it
had secured and he felt that as hon
orable men the senators should act in
fairness and Justice and that II they
did not they could not enforce the law
anyway. They had no right to con
dscate the property Of any company
and that if they attempted to do that
they would not succeed. For this rea-
/. son he advocated the amendment with
out intending to formally speak of the
proposed 2-cent fare He recalled the
early action OF the state in voting the
old 100000 railroad loan which was
later repud dated and q compromise
payment ultimately secured. He said
the Judiciary committee now had be-
u 1oreit q bill calling for further pay
,ment on those bonds, Involving alarge
sum, 50 that any Injustice that was