Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1907-05-30
RESERVOIR BILL
GOES THROUGH
ONLY THREE VOTES CAST IN
OPPOSITION.
REVENUE PROPOSAL KILLED
Senator Husting Offers Amendment
to Tax improvement Company Not
Less Than Than $4,000 Year,
but Argument Prevails That 1t Is
Not Fair to Make Only One Pay.
Mad son, May %.

Mad son, May %.
The Wisconsin river reservoir dill
vent through the senate last night
with so little opposition as to cause
the spectators to wonder why so mu.l
ado had been made of it. The whole
matter was tnreshed out again, Sen
atCr Burns substitute to make the inn
prOvement through a state cOmm.s-
sion was defeated and Senator HusJ-
ing's amendment to require the inl-
prOvement company to pay the state
fixed revenue for the franchise was
likewise voted down and the bill
passed. The opposition mustered
only three votes on each of the three
rCIlcaIls taken Senators Burns.
Husting and Martin voted for the
Burns substitute. Senators Hazel
wood, Husting and Morris voted for
the Husting revenue amendment.
Senators Burns, HazelwOOd and Hust-
ing voted against the bill on NAL pas
sage. Senator Husting. the demOc-
racy's leader, was the only senator
who voted against the friends of the
proposition consistently on every roll
call. Democracy was divided against
itself, Senator Smith voting for the
proposition every time he got the
chance, as often as Senator Hustin9
voted against it. Senators Lockney,
Randolph and Rummel should be num-
hered against the bill for they were
paired against it with Senators Roehr,
Wolff aud Browne, its absent friends.
On final passage the bill was support
ed by Senators Bird, Bishop, Brazeau,
Fridd Marsh, Martin, Norris, Mum
son, Owen, SanEOrn. Smith Stout,
Whitehead, Wilcox and Wright-15
Senator Froemming voted only one .
during the night, in opposition to the
Husting revenue amendment.
The bill gives large powers to %ile
Wisconsin River improvement COM
'Dany, a corporation capitalized ut
100000, for the purpose of construct,
ing reservoirs and dams on the up
per Wisconsin river, to make water
power and to regulate the flow Of the
river so that the danger of sprinA
floods may be avoided and 50 that Wa,
ter power industries may not be sus-
pended in times of drought
The passage of the bill is a victory
for Senator Marsh, who introduced H.
and Senator Brazeau, who argued
earnestly and effectively in favor Of
it and overcame the opposition which
was led by Senators Burns and Hust-
ing. They declared that the bill
proposed to give away without com
pensatiOn to the state a rich fran
chise, and that it was a different prop
osition from the ordinary bill to au-
thOrize the construction of a dam.
Proposes State Remuneration.
Senator HUstng contributed the
most important element Of the pro
ceedings by offering an Amendment of
length asking to have the bill provide
that the Improvement company shall
pay &C the state as compensation and
consideration for the franchise sought
a stipulated rate calculated upon the
amount Of power developed, not to be
less tnan $4,000 a year after 1871.
His amendment provided that n he
year 1910 the company should pay
the state $4,000; in 1911 $4,000 and
therea (fter not less than
$25, 600, or IS cents per electrical
up to $4,000 horsepower,
so cents on all between $4,000 and
100 900 horsepower and 25 cents above
100000. The amendment also prCvid-
ed machinery for the calculation Of the
power and made it the duty Of ne
railroad rate commission to verify
planned that his amendment was adapt.
ed from the New York law with ref
erence to the water power on the St.
Lawrence river and he commended
the amendment to those who had lr-
gued in favor Of regulation and COM
pensation instead of state ownership
and administration of the works. Sen
ator Brazeau declared that such a
was not to be fairly tackled
on to the bill, because the New York
system was far more developed and
valuable than the Wisconsin river
system and that it was hardly fair to
tax heavily this proposed work whom
not a dam hitherto authorized had
been taxed
Senator Owen made a vigorous
speech in favor of the bill declaring
himself as reluctant as any one to
give away state franchises without
but he thought the I'M
provement proposed meant doing for
the head waters of the Wisconsin riv-
err, without cost to the state, just
what the federal government had done
with an expense of a million and q
half on the head waters of the Mis- |
sissippi river.
The senate confirmed the nomina- !
ton Of Z. L. Tracy of Milwaukee to |
be state oil inspector. in place of E. |
E. Mills of Burlington. There were
10 votes in opposition.