The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-06-16
FOOD CONTROL
BILL DEBATE
Congress in One of It's Greatest
Struggles Over Measure
Suggested by the
President.
OPPOSITION IS STRONG
Bill to be Passed by the House Next
Week. But It's Fate In the
Senate Appears
Doubtful.
[By Robert J. Bender. United Press

CBy Robert J. Bender, United Press
Staff Correspondent
WASHINGTON, June 16.-The big
food fight is on in congress. While
the people of this country and the al
lied nations watched, the administra-
tion food control measure, making
Herbert Hoover virtual food admin.
istrator Of the. world, was launched
today in to one of the greatest strug-
giles of the American congress.
The senate agriculture committee
mendation so that the senate might
begin work on it at once.
Senator Gore, chairman of the COM
mittee "unfriendly to the measure
asked Senator Chamberlain to direct
its course in the upper branch.
Chamberlain will have democratic
support on the measure in Senators
Sheppard, Texas; Johnson, South Da-
kota and probably some others. He
will have sturdy backing in repub-
lican Senators Kenyon and Norris.
The fate of the bill is yet in doubt.
Opposition will be intensive. How
extensive remains to be seen.
The president has chosen the SEN
ate as the field on which to fight
the battle to decision. He de-
termined not TO await house action
where the measure is practically GER
tain to pass next week. The senate
finance committee has consented TO
give the food bill the right OF way at
the presidents request. The admin
istration preferential routing bill.
still in the throes of debate, may be
side-tracked, unless it can be passed
today.
Give us the legislative right Of
way, and we'll pass this bill through
the senate" Senator Kenyon, strong
republican supporter of the measure.
said today. I'VE have got the votes
to pass it.
Senator Gore, democratic opponent
of the bill, said
Il want it to have clear path for
action by the senate one way or the
other
This is not beleaguered country"
Senator Wadsworth, New York, de-
clared.
Such powers as these are not in
the province of any one man to ad
minister"
Senator Wadsworth would support
and believes majority of the senate
would acquiesce to control bill
which provided the following and
which President Wilson is said to
hold sufficient and satisfactory:
A common buying agency for all
the allies in order to prevent the COM
petitive bidding for food in our mar
ket and thereby put an end to one
big cause for high prices: means Of
stopping the boarding Of foodstuffs
and other necessaries of life with
authority to requisition plants when
necessary to curb this process and
authority to fix minimum prices and
to stimulate production .o
Senator Gore and Senator Hoke
Smith, Georgia, held a long confer
ence last night on the bill. Smith
who is strongly opposed to the meas
ure, will be away next week but said
significantly: There will be suf-
ficiertly long debate that l will have
chance to be in on it."
Where Profit Went
CHICAGO, June 16.--Some OF the
men who raised the plebian "spud"
to an estate comparably only to
crown jewels, may get an opportunity
to tell Uncle Sam how they did It,
Monday.
Several Chicago potato "profiteers."
Continued on page 2O