The San Francisco call., 1910-06-09
TAFT WANTS Change
IN RAILROAD BILL
Senate and House Leaders Pro-
pose to Recast Measure for
COnferee's Adoption
Insurgents Propose to Fight All
Summer for Retention of
Their Amendments


WASHINGTON, June s.-Several ex-
changes of views between Senators
Elkins and Aldrieh and Representative
Mann of Illinois preparatory to for
NAL conference on the railroad bill, took
place today. 1t was generally under-
tomorrow, although no call fer the
meeting was issued.
Senators Aldrich and Crane visited
the White House tonight and talked
with the president concerning changes
that he might desire in the senate bill,
which practically was approved by him
in his message to congress yesterday.
The general understanding is that
the senate and house leaders will get
together on the matter to be taken from
the two bills before action is taken
formally by the conferees. If this
course is pursued the only question to
be voted on in the two houses will be
the adoption of the conference report.
INSURGENTS PLAN OPPOSITION
Insurgent members of both the senate
and the house fear to have the subject
come before them in that manner, as
they think it would give too great op-
portunity for the elimination of pro-
gressive features incorporated through
an alliance between democrats and in
surgents in the senate bill.
AT an informal conference OF insurg-
ent senators today they pledged them
selves to fight against the adoption of
the conference report should it take
away any of the advantages which they
profess to have forced into the bill in
the interests of shippers.
While the insurgent senators were
announcing that it must be the senate
bill or nothing. and declaring that
they were prepared to fight all sum-
merN if necessary, the president indi-
Gated two changes that he would like
to see made in the bill in addition to
the elimination OF the so days clause
in the paragraph giving the interstate
commerce commission the right to in
vestigate and suspend new rates.
TAFT SUGGESTS CHANGES
Taft is anxious that the house pro-
vision for supervision of the issu-
ance of stocks and bonds by the rail-
road companies be accepted by the
senate. He regards this feature as one
of the pledges of the party, and he
does not agree with the position of
many of the senators that such pro-
vision could be construed as interfer-
ing with state rights.
The president believes that the 10
months allowed the interstate COM
merce commission in which to investi-
gate rates before acting on them is en-
tirely too long. He thinks six months
would be a better period.
President Taft told both Senators
Aldrich and Elkins today that he was
anxious they should proceed as rap
idly as possible and that there should
be a satisfactory bill.
Pullman Rates Attacked
GUTHRIE, Okla. June S.-AIeging
that upper berths in Pullman cars were
not worth more than half as much as
lower berths. Attorney General West
today instituted suit before the inter-
state commerce commission against the
Pullman car company and the railroads
operating in oklahoma to compel a re-
duction in rates for upper berths.
A schedule of alleged reasonable
rates for both upper and lower berths
was appended to the petition as an ex-
hibit.
Vests action was taken in pursuance
of an agreement recently reached at
the st. Paul convention of attorney gem
erals whereby Kansas, Missouri, Arkan-
sas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana and
Ohio were TO follow the lead of Okla
homa in attacking Pullman rates.