Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1920-08-25

lIlltSS dllQ VII Vic oSoet W
to Newlands | became Chairman.
1t was under my leadership at
\ the request of the President that
the railroads, telegraph, tele-
phone and cable lines were turned
over to the government during
the war.
this Committee / discovered that
the lack of growth of the COM
merce Of the Southern ports in
comparison with tic Eastern and
Northern ports was not due to
natural causes but to the dis
ordinations of the railroads in
their rates to the various ports
and the discrimination of the
government in the matter of ap-
preparations for dry docks and
harbor improvements since the
Civil War. The country does not
realize that the government in
the last so years has expended
for naval stations and harbor
improvements north of Hatteras,
a distance of roughly 750 miles,
nearly S7O0, 100000. while south
iof Hatteras, a distance of over
1000 miles, only $4,000, 900.
The North Atlantic has 18 dry
docks; the South Atlantic and
Gulf has one. a small one, at
Charleston. During the paat
session of Congress two bills were
introduced by Republican Sena-
tors which would discontinue the
appropriation for the deepening
of the channel at Charleston, and
the construction of tremendous
dry dock at that place. 1t was.
by nv efforts in the Senate that
these bills were not pressed and
the work in Charleston is now
going on.
While / was Chairman of the
Interstate Commerce Committee
and the railroads were under the
control of the government, l in
stituted and led the fight with
other Southern Senators for an
equalization of import, export and
domestic rates with other sec
tions of the country. was sue
cessful in this fight.
Since the roads hsve been re-
turned to private ownership they
have sought to re-establish the
old discriminatory rates against
Southern ports. l intend to keep
on with the fight to prevent this
and at the Democratic National
Convention | wrote and had in
corporated in the platform that
plank which pledges the party to
stand for equality of rates, both
import and export, for the ports
of the country, to the end that
there might be adequate and fair
facilities and rates for the mob
iIization of the products of the
country offered for Shipment.
The equalization of freight rates,
import, export and domestic, and
equal harbor facilities mean more
than anything else in the rejuve-
nation and expansion of the
direct foreign trade of Southern
manufacturers and Southern pro-
pucts through Southern ports. l
have saken leading part in Sc
curing the ALLEGATION of ships by
the Shipping Board to Southern
ports and have had considerable
success.
With the increase in our for
eign trade, the South will be able
to take advantage of the oppor-
tunities offered, with its conse-
queht prosperity. 1t is not gen
orally known that. most Of the
larger cities of the Middle West
are closer to the port of Charies-
ton and other Southern ports
than to the port of New York.
In this connection, while dis
cussing transportation. | might
say that while ranking member
of the Postoffice and Post Roads
Committee, l collaborated and
fought through with Senator
Bankhead and others the Good
Roads Act which appropriated
5000, 600, 600 for the government
to cooperate with the States in
the construction of good roads.
The construction of good roads is
one of the greatest needs which
confront the people of this State
as we'll as the country at large,
and pledge myself for the fu-
ture as in the past, to fight for
any proper measure which will
lead to the construction of better
roads.
One of the very many evils
that resulted from the Civil War
was our financial condition under
the Banking and Currency Act
of 1863. This system was in eff
feet up to the time of the
present Democratic Adninistra-
tion. Panics were frequent and
the victims of these panics were
the weak and unbefriended. In
1913 was passed the Federal Re-
serve Act, the greatest construc-
tive piece of legislation enacted
since the Civil War. This Act,
together with the Farm Loan ct,
was passed by virtue of a 'ect
personal appeal of President VIII
son to representatives and sena-
tors who were friendly to him.
With this measure, as we'll as
every other measure, | voted with
the President and did all in my
power to secure the passage of