Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1910-06-02


a series of tables, Senator Smoot today
addressed the senate with reference tc
the condition of the farmers of the
country, as compared with their con-
lition in 1906.
"While the prices of practically all
commodities have shown some advance
during the last few years." he said,
"the products of the farm show a
much greater advance than do the
prices of the products of the mines and
factories"
He gave the following specifications :
Corn, 118 per cent; wheat, 88 per cent;
cotton, go per cent; oats, 1872 per cent;
rye, 118 per cent; barley, 126 per cent;
hay, 49 per cent; hops, GAO per cent;
potatoes, 73 per cent; faxseed, 142 per
cent; fat cattle, 92 per cent; fat hogs,
172 per cent; dairy butter, 81 per cent;
eggs, lot per cent. Commenting on
general conditions, Mr.. Smoot said:
"The financial condition of the grain
raiser of Ethe Northwest, the general
farmer of the Middle West, the cotton
planter of the South, is better than
ever before. Financially, the farmer
has become independent. The general
free delivery and the telephone have
placed him in touch with the world and
he is as familiar with current events
as the city dweller. /"
For two hours today, Senator Lori
mer, of Illinois, stood in the senate
and in vigorous language denounced as
untrue the charges of bribery made
against him in connection with his
election to the senate. Upon leaving
the chamber at the conclusion of his
speech, Lorimer hurriedly put his
affairs in order and caught late train
for Chicago. In his address Lorimer
made emphatic denial of all the allega-
tions of corruption and sought to re-
turn the accusation of wrongdoing upon
the Chicago Tribune, in which the
charges were first published. He de-
clared the attack was aimed not only
at him but at his bank.
Washington, May 2S.-At the last
moment before reaching Fthe point of
voting upon the railroad bill today, the
senate took the important step of ad-
ding an amendment placing interstate
telegraph and telephone lines under the
supervision of the Interstate Commerce
commission.
This action was followed by an
effort to restore the portion of section
IL, affecting mergers, which hereto
fore was voted out.
The suggestion for the inclusion of
telegraph and telephone companies
within the control of the Interstate
Commerce commission was made by
Dixon, of Montana, but ultimately his
amendment was supplanted by one in
simpler form offered by La Toilette.
The senate reached the voting stage
at o'clock, after an animated debate,
which dealt especially with whether
the Dolliver amendment regulating the
stock and bond issues of railroads was
in accordance with the last Democratic
platform.
Dixon's telegraph amendment was
in the exact language of the telegraph
provision carried by the house bill, and
it purported to re-enact the first sec
tioh of the present interstate commerce
law, with telegraph and telephone com
panies added. Much objection to .vot-
ing upon it without an opportunity for
examination was expressed. Several
suggestions for adjournment were
made. Ultimately Brandegee moved
to lay on the table, but this motion
was lost, 23 to 81.
The result of the vote had no sooner
been announced than Brown, of Ne
braska, presented his amendment re-
viving portion of section IL. His
prohibits all common car
riers from acquiring any interest what
soever in the capital stock Of, or pur-
chasing or leasing any railroad which
is competitive with that of the pur-
chasing company. A fine of $5, 600 is
imposed for each days violation of
this provision.
Washington, May &c. Through the
defeat in the senate today of several
offered by insurgent Re-
publicans and Democrats, the way was
paved for an early vote on the admin
railroad bill. 1t is believ-
ed this will come tomorrow and the
senate will then adjourn until Monday,
when the statehood bill probably will
be made the unfinished business.
The regular Republicans maintained |.
a firm hold upon the situation in sever
Al votings on important features, not
the insurgents and Dem
)crats united their votes on several oc-
,asions. More was accomplished dur
ing the closing hours of the session to-
lay than in any other week of the
-hree months the bill has been pending
business.
Of all of the votes of the day, the
)ne on the Cummins amendment was
Dy far the most important. The vote
vas by no means so close as had been
predicted by its friends and feared by /
is opponents. Three days ago the ad-
'ocates of the bill suggested by the
administration had been apprehensive
If the success of the Cummins provis-
on, but during that time they had been
active, so that, while they
made important concessions, they Sc
'ured the defeat of the provision.
Of the 29 votes favorable to the
II were cast by insurgent