New Britain herald., 1916-09-01
CONGRESS WORKING
 ON EIGHT HOUR LAW
Continued From First Page).

'"There are worse things than strikes" said Bonnet, "and one of those things is the destruction of the American system of government. don't propose to cast my vote with a
 pistol at my head"
 Rep. Cooper of Ohio, republican, denied that labor was holding up con-
 gross as MT. Bonnet charged.
 Tt was not the railroad men who
 asked this legislation,' he said. "They
 do say, however, that if this house passed this bill today, and the senate passes it tomorrow, they would have the power to call off the strike.' When the senate convened recess
 was almost imm ediately taken until 1 D. m. to permit the interstate com merce com mittee to continue it's work of drafting the strike prevention leg
 islation and to permit republican
 members to confer on the proposed
 bills
 At o'clock Senator NeWlands in
 troduced the revised senate bill and it
 was formally referred to the interstate commerce committee. Senator New
 lands said that the committee would
 report finally within a short time and
 that he would seek to hold the senate
 in session until the whole subject was
 disposed of, even if it should extend
 the session far into the night
 President Wilson spent almost an
 hour conferring with democratic
 members and then returned to the
 White House.
 Definite abandonment of the plan to
 attach the railroad strike legislation
 to the pending bill to enlarge the in
 terstate commerce commission was
 agreed to by the senate committee. The president explained his pres
 ence at the capitol by saying T am just keeping the threads together Eight Hour Bill First Aim. Majority Leader Kern said after the presidents visit that the democrats ' would concentrate on the eight hour bill and put over the rest of the rail- road legislation until next week. Many democrats felt there would be little disposition among the republicans to tlnbuster against the eight hour Dill Tn view of the present situation. The senate committee determined there was too much opposition to the
 interstate commerce commission en- largement bill to risk attaching it to the emergency legislation.
 AS the bill stood this morning the
 senate committee had agreed that the new commission should consider an increase in freight rates to meet such additional expenditures by the rail roads affected as may have been ren- dered necessary by the adoption of the eight hour day and which have not been offset by administrative re- adjustments and economies should tho facts disclosed justify the in crease" Some members were inclined to the belief that such definite direction re- garding the rate question would pro- l yoke opposition in the senate from progressive republicans particularly, l which would make quick passage of 1 the bill impossible. Wants I. c. c. to Fix Wages. Senator NeWlands said the commit l tee also was considering including a 1 provision to empower the interstate |; commerce commission to fix the 1 schedule of wages upon railroads. I've will have to do this some time ] and might as we'll do it now," he l said. He also was inclined to urge | the committee to include in the eight 1 hour bill some features of the pro- ! posed amendment to the arbitration l act which would prevent future strikes 1 during investigation. There seemed 1 to be little prospect that the commit ! tee would agree to that because of the i cerainty that it would provoke oppo- l sition. President Wilson it was said. l urged that the senate bill adhere as l closely as possible to the Adamson bill 1 in the house.
 As agreed upon today, the senate