The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1919-11-06

~'SSO sVONtlQIO ~ UOl IL
Washington, D. C.-George p. Hamp-
ton of the Farmers National Commit
tee on Transportation sends out a
warning that unless the farmers wake
up and protest to their respective CON
g-essmen and senators, they will be
saddled with a huge additional charge
in freight rates, due to the return of
the railroads to private speculative
operation.
His analysis Of the situation is up
held by the address of Commissioner
Woolley of the interstate commerce.
commission, in which that official
shows that a freight rate increase of
at least Is per cent is likely to be the
price we shall pay the private ope.-
ators for their kindness in taking the
roads back. This, too, in face Of the.
fact that the roads are now earning a
clear profit each month. .q
But the Is per cent raise in rates is
to be multiplied by five, in the final
charge upon the consumers. That is
the experience of past freight in
creases. Give the roads 10 pc cent
higher rates on beans, and the price
Of beans at retail is loaded down by
five times the actual added freight
cost. Everybody grabs at a new profit
when the rate goes up. The consum-
er pays.
This is the n chance upon which
hangs the saving Of the railroads this
winter from a new chaos under spec
ulative control. II the 80, ZOO, 900
families in the United States can be
brought to understand what they will
pay, in grocery bills, clothing bills,
rent bills and every other item Of ex-
pense, for the return OF the railroads
to private hands, congress will never
give them back. Instead, congress
will take orders from the country and
will pass a law extending federal con.
troll for a period of three years more.
Vote OF Cripple Aid.
On the bill providing federal aid to
the states, on a half-and-half basis,
for the re-education in trades of men
and women who are crippled in indus
try, the final vote in the house stood
1876 to los. Almost every liberal and
semi-liberal in the house voted for
this measure, while most of the south
ern Democrats and a good many of
the more hard-she1led Republicans
voted against it. The chief argument
made against the bill was that it vas
a "bolshevistic" extension Of the pow
er of the government into a field which
should be left to the states. The same
argument was used against the federal
child labor law some years ago by the
same group. They knew exactly how
much the states would do for indus
trial cripples If left to their own dis
posal of the matter.
Among those voting against this
humane legislation were Good and
Haugen of Iowa, Sears, Ayers and
Anthony of Kansas, Clark of Mis-
souri,, Cannon of Illinois, Fordney of
Michigan, Evans of Nebraska and
other western men. Many of the more
timid members who had talked
against the bill in the cloakrooms de-
cided at the last minute that they
were making a political mistake. They
either voted faye" or stayed away
from the rollcall.
Oil Lobby Winning.
In spite Of stubborn opposition on
the part Of Congressman Baer the
mineral lands leasing grab has now
been voted a favorable report by the
house committee on public lands.
Representative Knutson Of Minnesota,
the majority whip, announces that an
attempt will be made to bring it to
a vote before November l.. The oil
lobby is tremendously pleased, and
is beginning to have faith that its 10
year campaign to get hold Of the last
of the natural belonging to
the people is owe
Baer is going to take the fight to
the floor of the house, where he will
have a good deal Of support for many
Of the amendments he has arranged to
offer. Among other things, he pro-
poses that state as well as municipal
governments may have a preferential
right to take leases Of federal coal, oil,
phosphate and sodium lands. The oil
lobby has seen to 1t that no such right
is given the states, although even
railroad companies may have coal
land leases.
Monarchists Not Dangerous"
When the house was about to adopt
the bill providing for a years extern
sion Of the powers Of the president to
exclude undesirable aliens from the
country-the word Undesirable
meaning, in this case, labor agitators
and radical thinkers generally-by
means Of control Of the wise Of pass
ports, Representative Emerson OF
Ohio offered this amendment:
Which restrictions shall provide
that no Bolshevist, anarchist. Or !.
w. w. sympathlzer shall be allowed
to enter the United States"
Representative Huddelston Of Ala
bama asked whether Emerson would
be willing to include "monarchists and
those who preach absolute govern
ment and autocracy' also.
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