The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1918-10-11

tical reactionaries have just gone
through disastrous week.
trouble started on Monday morn
ing, with the peace editorial IN that
reactionary mouthpiece, the New
York Times. Everybody jumped on
the Times at once, and it's influence
as dictator to congress was shrlv-
eled up as though by furnace blast.
Monday afternoon the two branches
OF the woman suffrage movement
made their effort to change the
plans OF the senate leaders, so that
vote on suffrage would be taken by
the senate in this session. Ihey
were successful.
On Tuesday and Wednesday the
senate committee on agriculture MAI
two of the representatives OF the
Chamber of Commerce of the United
States sweating in the witness CHAIR
and learned of the financial help CIV
Chicago packers and their numerous
allied corporations.
Thursday was marked by a power
full speech in the senate by Borah,
who prevented the waterpoWer leas-
mo bill from being railroaded to
conference committee. Aided by
Cummins of Iowa, the Idaho senator
held up the game, demanding that a
special committee of the senate take
up the whole question OF providing
for public ownership ana develop
| ment of power, instead of the mono
| poly-breeding scheme of private leas-
ing.
And on Friday the house passed by
a unanimous vote the great wan
taxation bill which makes the tlrs'
serious attempt to take from the wal
profteers a large part Of their wal
profits. None of the standpattefs
| who last year denounced these tax
J rates as 'confscation"' dared on TINS
= occasion to utter a word Of protest.
BURLESON GIVES WORKERS
4 REPRESENTATION
q Among the very satisfactory events
q of the week was the public an
4 nouncement by Postmaster Genera
4 Burleson that he had appointed
trade union leader, Miss Julia OCon
U nor of Boston, representing the or
n ganized telephone workers OF the
country" on a committee which is II
q investigate and report on working
q conditions and wages in the. tele
d phone and telegraph service. This Il
q the first time that Mr.. Burleson ha:
81 ever recognized the trade unlol
q movement, and it is complete re
q versal of his former plan, which wa
B to refuse any such recognition.
q Some weeks ago the house passe'
q the waterpower leasing bill, in
q form very highly approved by tn
u power trust lobby and repudiated BY
President Wilson. The feature which
q he tried in vain to remedy was tn
& clause in which the power companle
q are promised an exorbitant rate O.
q pavment for their plants when tn
y government takes them over, at tn
end of 5O-year lease period.
b Senator Fletcher, chairman OF tn
IS senate committee on commerce, MAD
81 an attempt on Thursday to have TIL
III bill sent to conference commute
ID of the two houses, although the sen
Il ate had never passed waterpoWe
81 hill which at all resembled the hous
b measure. Two separate bill had bee
Is passed by the senate, but they ma
Il been handled by different commit
=. =. tees.
za y" PEOPLE SHOULD OWN WATEF
- POWER
= Senator Borah said bluntly that /
y wanted to see a public ownership bl
d substituted for the leasing scheme.
4 "There is no domestic problem"
4 said. ain which the country, and tt
Z great West particularly, is more il
B terested than that of power develol
1 ment. It lies at the base OF our Il
n ture growth and prosperity. 1t
= not a problem of mere temporal
II moment, but is one extending itse
II into the remotest future and is ass
II ciated with our permanent happlne
| and prosperity.
II Water power is monopolistic in
] nature, and therefore lends itself
II artificial monopoly. 1t is not nece
| sary for us to be diverted CT undu
affected by the presence or absen
| of a power trust or power mono
H oly at this time. 1t is sufficient tn
we know that in the very nature
things we are to have either mono