The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-03-16
RAILROAD BILL FIGHT BEGINS
MINORITY OPENS THE DEBATE
WITH BITTER CHARGES.
Senator Cumniins Rails Against DactAIIon
q the AdnlnlstFAtisa-saSs BIiI Was
DOctored and Never meported Prop
erIy - InsurErats New Openly Defiant.

rrg buaurweus No" Oueoig DeOant.
WARRINGTON. March IS-H senator
Cumminss speech in the senate this
afternoon can he accepted as an indica-
ton. the attitude % the Senate insurgents
toward the Taft administration has adj
vanced from hostility to open defiance.
The senator vas opening the debate
on the ADMINISTRATOR railroad hill
This he condemned unhesita tinRly a. q
measure dictated by the railroad man
ayers
The senator criticisms Of the President
were 80 sharp as almost IN st1rtle the
Senate at times. He said that the time
had come when a senator was called on
Tn surrender his honest convictions and
violate his conscientious scrupleA Ia do
what the President directed ar incur
The risk of being read out IT the party.
~ the uncontradicted and repeated
and apparently authorized statements ~
the newspapers he not in error said the
Iowa senator. every Republican at least
n expected 20 vote for this ball just as
u IL unless he dares TO incur not only
the Executive displeasurc hut 10 be
banishsd from the Republican ranks.
do not speak Of this phase Of the subject
In a spirit Of anger. I am conscious Of
M other sentiment than % profound
regret
sIlrecogniEe that IL 10 not only the
Fbrivilege hut the duty Of the President
~ the United states Tn make such recon-
menhatons to Congress as in his Judg-
ment will beet promote the general vel
fare He is quite within his privileges
and his duties in expressing his views
upon SIGH subjects a. often ~ he likes
and - emphatically a. he pleases.
Whether he IL within his privilege of his
duty when he undertakes to prescribe
the PRECISE form which legislation shall
assume may we'll he doubted
His great predecessor evidently thought
that executive proprety did not permit
H. for when ne was dealing with the
same subject IN his message az the he
mining Of the first session of the Fifty
ninth Congress In 1895 he said: IL - not
my province TO indicate the exact terms
OF the Law which shalt he enacted. but
call the attention Of the Congress to Ger
tain existing conditions with which u -
desirable 70 deal
Il would not. however. 10 inclined 20
attach much importancs TO the practice
which now seems TO he very genera
were Il not that its consequences must
In the very nature of things he disastrous.
Although a senator NAV be IN full sym-
pathy with the broad purposes which the
Executive proposes to accomplish the
moment he asserts his independent view
Of the best wAy To accomplish the puT-
po~e he finds himself IN direct conflict
with the President and he must choose
between losing the Presidential favor
and dong the thing 40 his conscience
tells him u ought tn b. done. The result
will Inevitably he that he must either
surrender his Independence or 10 IN con
slant and most dissgrecable conflict with
the Chef Executive.
There was plenty Of evidence m the
Yourue OF the first afternoons debate on
the bill OF the prolonged fight that - to
come. In fact senator Bailey told the
Republicans that they would he lucky Il
they finished the session hefore the dog
days. senator Bailey made this predlc
fion after Senator Hale had delivered
one OF his customary disciplinary talks
The senator from Maine had urged soma
tor ElklnE. who 10 IN charge Of the rail
road hill. to expedite the matter and
make It possible for Congress to adjourn
by May /.
You will he lucky. indeed. exclaimed
the senator from TeVas. e you get an
adjournment by the dog days
oh. MIR. President protested Mr.
Hale my mind ~ not - bedraRRlad a.
that am optimistic enough 10 believe
that We can pass the bill and get away
much earlier. I do not think senators
will stay here until dog days The Sena
tor from Texas himself will want to get
through and get hack 10 Texas hefore
the hot weather comes.
That may be- replied Mr. Barley. i
have seen times when senators consulted
their personal comfort rather than the
public interest
Mr. Bailey added with emphasis that "
Was Just a. we'll "a have an understanding
about this bill at the outset
This measure cannot hs rushed through
here he declared The Senator FROM
we-t Virginia did not explain this hill
when he reported II. and the newspaper
say the fnends II this hill are not going
to disc,Iss II. 80 that they may get II to ID
vote earlier This ~ the first time th..
minority has over opened the dehat. On
90 important q bill The ma jority mem
bers Of the committee owe ~ 10 the senate
90 explain the merits 81 the hill
sSometimea you get NOR" votes for a
hill by not discussing IT, senator Elkin-
frankly admitted.
Yes II u IL had hill and cannot be
defended. retorted the Texan.
senator Nelson. a near In-uTgent also
oompLaIned that no friend 81 the hill had
appeared m the senate tn sing its praises
Senator Bacon said that the situation was
unparalleled. Mr. Bailey added 20 the
general embarrassment 81 the Admins
tration senators by asserting that II the
truth came out II would be found that a
majority Of the Interstate Commerce
Committee of the Senate were opposed
70 the bill
lit 10 here IN a minority report he
exclaimed
1T vas signed by a majority 81 the mem
bers Of the committee who we're present
Senator Elkins rejolned
Yes. by a majority ~ thoss present
and voting. but not by a majority 81 all
the COMMITTEES members. replied MIR
Bailey.