The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1912-08-10
SENATE ADOPTS MEASURE THAT
IS STRONGLY OPPOSED HY
GREAT BRITAIN.
VOTE IS OVERWHELMING
Measure Provides for RESTORING Amer.
ican Commerce on tho High Seas
Prohibits Railroad Owned Vessels
From Passage-BilI viii Do Re.
fcrred Back TO House.

Washington, Aug. 9-'rhe Panama
canal administration bill. providing
freo passage To American ships. pro.
hibiting the railroad owned vessels
from using the waterway aud author-
izing the establishment of n one.m man
government when the canal liz com
plctcd. was passed hy the senate to-
night, by vote of e. to ~. Tho pro-
vision FOR free tolls, which was fought
out In the senate Wednesday. was in
horsed again Just before the passage OF
the measure.
Attached to the bill as It passed tho
senate were two important amend
lnchts directed at trust or railroad
control OF steamship lines. The first.
by senator Reed. would prohibit ships
owned by an Illegal industrial combi-
nation from using the canal, and the
second. by senator Bournc, would force
railroads To give up water lines that
might otherwise bc their competitors.
II II were proved that they were sitting
competition.
Free Toll Provisions.
opponents of the frec-toll provision
i"r American ships against which
Great Britain made formal protest. car
r'ed their fight up 10 the last moment
ot 'he bilTs consideration. Just before
is passage Senator Root moved To
s'rikc out the section giving free tolls
'o American coastwiso vessels. and
Senator Hokc Smith of Georgia moved
To strike out the provision of free
toils 10 American ships In tho foreign
trade Both motions were defeated bv
overwhelming votes.
\ As the bin passed Il would permit
American coastwise vessels To mss
through the canal FREQ without condI-
TONS. while American foreign trade
SHIPS might pass through free III their
owners agree to sell the vessels Ia tho
United states at fair price I'm timo
lof war or emergency.
The great fight OF tho day ccntercd
about the provision to prohibit railroad
owned ships from using the canal. Tho
"r"ad terms of the original house bill.
Wl'Ich would have required every rail-
ROAD IN the country ut once to dispose
or any steamship lines with which it
hisht otherwise compete, wero not
accepted by the senate. This was
inodiiied 80 that railroads only would
pe PROMPTED from owning steamship
l'hes that may operate through tho
Panama canal.
Tho Bourne Amendment.
| MIR Bourne's amendment, however.
adopted later by u vote of 80 to rs. re-
stored much of the vigor of the anti
ralIfoad provisions of the house bill.
~ provided that If the interstate COM
mtrce commission should find that any
r"lif"ad hnd interests In any competi-
1--WE fhc of steamships. and that such
interests were detrimental TO public
interests, the commission might force
the railroads to dispose of such In
tcrcsts,
Aticr the amendments had been
adopted To the house bill. 1t was
, moved that the whole paragraph rclat-
ing to railroad control be stricken out.
This motion was defeated. As to 1s.
n substitute proposal by Mr.. Brande-
gee To prevent any ships To use tho
canal, giving to tho Interstate com
nerco commission power of control
over them, also was defeated.
The Rccd amendment against trust
oNned ships was called up for a sec
ond vote before the bin passed and
was adopted on final passage by a
vote Of 80 to 23.
The completed canal bin finally was
passed with Senators Burton. Crane.
Gal niger, Lodge, Root and other OPP
ponents of the free tool and anti rail-
road features voting against It.
In the form In which II returns to
the house the bin adds to the general
scheme for operating and governing
the Panama canal provisions for tho
admission to the American registry of
any forciIn-bnil ships owned by
Americans provided they are operated
wholly In the foreign trade.
No debate was allowed today under