Imperial Valley press., 1913-05-20
FRANCIS ]. HENEY ON
WORK OF LEGISLATURE

SAN FRANCISCO, May 2O.-The
soundness and good purposes of the
new laws recently enacted by the Cali.
fornia legislature were ably set fo.t!l
by Francis J. Heney in an address al
the Progressive luncheon. In spite
Of the campaign Of misrepresentation
by the hostile press, he said, the peopl+
would soon come to realize that another
epoch making stride had been made IL
good government in this state.
Heney pointed to the fact that wit!
every Improvement and every step OF
progress in the laws, the same news
papers that fought to the last ditch ir
behalf Of the Southern Pacific politica
machine have made bitter and savage
warfare, and that their cry of freak
during recent weeks is but a repeti-
ton of their cries against all political
advancement.
lie spoke IN part as follows
During the last three months those
newspapers in California which usually
take the side Of special privilege, either
for valuable consideration or othec-
wise, have been diligently clamorouS
i'll systematic effort to convince The
public that the legislature was con
sidering the enactment Of large
amount of freak legislation
at is a striking and interesting fact
that whenever any legislation is suS-
Sested or enacted which has any ten
dency to effect an economic reform
by curbing special privilege, all of the
beneticiaries Of special privilege immc
diately join in loud and vigorous pro-
tests and confident assertions that such
Legislation will inevitably destroy the
industries which are involved, and
bring dire distress to the very people
in whose interests its enactment is
proposed.
when the interstate commerce
commission was first proposed, We
We're told by all the railroad owners
and even by most of the business men
who had been at their mercy und9r
the rebating system that any attempt
to regulate railroad rates would un-
settle the entire business Of the coun-
try, and that no man who was not
brought up in the railroad business
could possibly pass on railroad rates
without disastrous results to both The
railroads and the public. Now that
we have had railroad regulation for q
number of years it is difficult to cOTp =
prehend how q large number Of the
people could have been deceived ty
such talk only few years ago
when Robert NJ. LaFollette was
running for governor Of Wisconsin ten
or twelve years ago on platform
which pledged him to secure the enact
ment Of laws providing for an appoint
i've railroad commission in Wisconsin,
the railroads of that state vociferoUsly
declared that if such law was enacted
not a mile of road would be built in
Wisconsin, and that the roads then
being operated there would be aban-
doned as soon as practicable.
"LaFollette was elected. The legis
laiion was enacted. The best state
railroad commission in the United
States, up to that time, was appointed.
and a new era in the control and regu-
lation Of railroads was inaugurated in
the United States.
when Hon. Hiram w. Johnson was
a candidate for governor two years ago
the paramount issue in the campaign
was: Shall the people Of the state
Of California regulate and control the
Southern Pacific railroad, or shall tina.
continue to govern and exploit
The people of this state?
This was an economic issue, pure
and simple, and it aroused the most
intense and bitter opposition, as we
all we'll remember. 1t was predicted
by many that Johnson would not carry
out the platform pledges if he became
governor. 1t was confidently asserte
that if he did do so the industries Of
The state would be paralyzed.
Governor Johnson has carried out
those platform pledges in both letter
and spirit, and the only industry which
has been paralyzed' or hurt in any
respect was the political industry of
the Southern Pacific Railroad Company
and its hirelings.
"A railroad commission was elected
which for the first time in the history
Of this state really regulated and con
trolled the railroads. AS result there
Of millions Of dollars have been saved
TO the shippers and consumers with
out injury done to the railroads. EX-
orbitant rates have been lowered. I'm
fair discrimination between shippers
has been prevented, and every industry
of the state has thus been put on y
sOunder and better basis.
1.-THE legislature which was elected
two years ago was pledged to make a
radical change in the machinery Of gov