The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-03-08
SENATE TAKES IT.
One Sided Vote on Acceptance
of the Utilities Report.
Members Said Was Best to Be
Had Now.
POINT OUT JOKERS.
Senators Declare Provisions Are
Unconstitutional.
will Work Hardship on Mutual
Telephone Companies.

! After As minutes argument, the
senate this morning adopted the sec
ond conference report on the public
utilities BILL The vote was 35 to 8.
Strenuous objection was made by Sem
ator Carey to cutting out the physical
valuation of utilities. Other members
filed objections and many who voted
for the adoption of the report, ex-
planned their position and set out the
weakness of the measure.
The report did not create enthusi-
asm even among the most ardent ad-
m1nistration members, who last Satur-
day f1ercely objected to the adoption
of the former conference report and
forced the house to meet them in the
appointment Of new committee.
However. they preferred a partial vic
tory rather than nothing at all and
they lined up solidily for the report
OF the new committee. Only Senators
Lower, Milligan and Reed voted
against the report. Carey voted against
the report, but changed from mo- to
''yeS" and explained his position
1t was Carey who attacked the re-
port and said that the state was doing
a great injustice to innumerable mu-
tual telephone companies over the
state, as under the provisions of the
act. as now reported, that these COM
panieS, each having from 300 to 500
subscribers, could not force a connec-
ton with the Bell Telephone company
and destroyed the chances of building
up their business and reaching the city
patrons. He urged that the bill had
been prepared in the interests of the
lobby and that the measure was un-
fair and unjust.
Senator Brewster, a member of the
jsecond conference committee defend
ed the bill He said it was not all
the state should have or might ex-
pect, but that it was the best to be
had at this time. He pointed out that
the cutting out of the physical con-
nection clause referred only to COM
panies which were not under the su-
pervision of the utilities commission
and that it was not fair to compel
Ecompanies which were brought under
? the provision of the act to meet the
concerns which escaped the inspection
Of the board. He pointed to the large
amount of work done by former COM
mitteeS and paid tribute to their eff
forts. Brewster went into the history
of the efforts to secure a good utilities
bill and said that if there were sec
: tions of the bill which did not meet
the approval of the supreme court,
that it would be much easier to call
the legislature together to fix these
sections than to call a special session
for the purpose of drafting an entirely
new measure.
Cambern and Stannard both en-
thing possible at this session. They
said there were several points which
; they might desire changed but that
they preferred to let the bill go
: through rather than endanger the final
passage at this session of So important
a measure.
Senator Stavely declared that he
would vote for the bill. although he
believed that the original provisions
should be retained in the document
hot Of fad
more people in Kansas than did the
provisions governing the regulation of
the railroads and that the former COM
mittee by vote of 6 to 1, voted to
keep it there
ssI consider this bill much weaker s.
; declared Stavely, who has worked on
4 the bill throughout the session, "than
when it was reported on this floor last
Saturday morning. I consider the new
! provisions of section rs unconstitu-
! tiona1. The administration made a
! ! mistake when it opposed the report
last week, but do not believe in max
: ing further mistake by refusing to
: pass a bill at this session.
Then Stavely said he had tried to in
ject the very sections in the bill which
: the administration demanded, but that
. he had been voted down by the house
conferees. Since then he had found
: supreme court decisions which made
8 unconstitutional any provision which
gave discriminatory power to an ad-
ministrative body.
= = Many of the senators explained their
. votes when the roll was called and
these were universally that the bill was
weak and needed fixing. There was a
very general opinion that the admins
tration had not helped matters when it
took the bill away from he former
conference committee and injected
matter according to its own liking and
r the dictation of the governor
Senator Price objected to cutting out
the physical connection clause as he
said it would weaken the bill and re-
;, suit disastrously to the mutual tele-
: phone companies and beneficially tc
Q the Bell company as its lobby had de-
r sired and demanded. He said the con-
stitutional'1y of the bill was stricken
e at when the committee placed arbitrary
: power in the hands of an administra-
:. tive body This, he believed, was not
g to the knowledge of many members
| who were voting for the bill. Then tn;
| ashland man injected his deep Sarca Sn
and said he wanted the bill put away
for at least two years, in order that =
Il would not be an issue in the campaign
for the United States senatorship-
much, as he said. to the disappointment
of the administration. Then Price
= voted for the bill.
= Robertson, of the minority, urgei
= that the mutual telephone companie:
= would criticise the legislature severel,
: Tor its action. Stewart said the bill
:, had been made much worse in thi
g hands of the last conference committe
n by its unwarrantrd interference H.
. preferred to vote for the bill in prefer
,e ence to having the administration do
ing greater iamage Dy again mixing
in the affair
Every member of the senate excep
l. Lower, Milligan and Reed voted 70
,: the adoption of the report. Caldwell
did not vote on the proposition ant