Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1914-08-19
THE CANAL VOTE,

| am criticised because | did NOT
vote with President Wilson on the
cahal tolls matter. This has been
threShed out time and again, but |
had 2s well say something about
mat, too. One of the main arguments
Tor gong to the enormous expense
OF building the Panama. canal was
that it would open a short water wav
Republican, and this fact was widely
commented on throughout the coun-
between the Atlantic and Pacific
coasts. and would insure cheaper
freight rates across the continent and
TO and from the middle west to the
two seaboards. We built the canal
with That understanding. Free tolls
lor coast wise vessels was one of the
main planks in the Baltimore olaf
form, and this plank was specifically
endorsed by President Wilson, Mr..
Bryan and other Democratic leaders
during the campaign. They told us
the platform meant just what it said.
believed that then, and | believe
IT now. When | became a candidate
ior reelection to Congress two years
ago | signed the pledge, required by
the State Convention, that / would
support the principles and policies
OF the party" Free tolls was consider
ed Democratic principle and
Democratic policy. We passed a law
providing for free tolls in the Sixty
second Congress, and it was a sur
PRISE to all OF us when President Will
son came before us suddenly one day
last spring and demanded that we
repeal that law. lie gave no reason
Tor his action, and he has given none
since. | have never been able to find
HnV SltiSf1ctOIv
repeal the law, and | did not vote
that way Other Democrats, Speaker
clark, Mr.. Underwood, the Demo-
cratic floor leader Mr.. Kitchin of
North Carolina, who will be the Demo-
cratic leader in the next Congress.
voted just as | did. The charge that
we lined up with the Republicans is
raise, for it was not a party question,
and the Republicans were as badly
divided as the Democrats. The charge
mat in favoring free tolls we were
iaVoring ship subsidy is equally
raise. On the other hand, if the coast
wise ships using the canal have to pay
tolls they will have to charge higher
rates, and that will be in the inter
est OF the railroads, their competi-
tors' so that making the ships pay
tolls is form OF railroad subsidy.
-'S - iii''IISl VI ldCL NIEeaI BiltIln
never raised the question: of free tolls
until it was brought up by the Tehun-
lapec railroad, in Mexico, and the
Canadian Pacific Railroad, both of
which are owned by British interests
In repeating the provision for free
tolls for vessels engaged in coastwise
shipping we were lcgislating directly
Tor the benefit OF this English owned
railroad in Mexico and this English
owned Canadian railroad, and the
lranS-contincntal railroads i'm our
own country, and no sensible man can
! deny that fact The more | think
ABOUT my vote on the canal tolls Ques-
tlon the more convinced | am that |
was right, politically, economically
ana IN every other way.
Several persons have stated that
| they heard Mr.. Dominick say, just af-
! ter this vote was taken, that if he had
! Dcen in Congress he would have
voted Just as | did. 1t appears that
"hen he got to examining the state
ment as to my record, as furnished
! MN by Baker, he found so little
TO criticise that he decided to attack
me on my vote on the canal tolls.
1t appears that he abandoned his own
convictions in the hope of gaining
votes if he could show that I was not
IN sympathy with the President.