The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1920-02-27
SENATE PASSES
RAILROAD BILL
Belief General at Capital That Chief
Executive Will Add Signature to
Measure.

ton of railroads of the country with
the end of federal control, was adopt
ed late today by the senate. 1t
passed the house Saturday and now
goes to the president.
The vote on adoption of the report,
taken after several hours of debate,
was AZ to II.
Those voting for the conference re-
port were:
Republicans-Ball, Brandegee, CAL
der, Capper, Colt, Cummins, Curtis,
Elkins, Fernald, Frelinghuysen, Hale,
Jones of Washington, Kellogg, Ken
yon, Keyes, Lenroot, Lodge, Mclean,
McNary, Nelson, New, Page, Phipps,
Poindexter, Smoot, Spencer, Sterling,
Sutherland, Townsend, Wadsworth,
Warren and Watson. Total Repub-
licans for, 80.
Democrats - Beckham, Fletcher,
Gay, Glass, Myers, Phelan, Pomerene,
Ransden, Robinson, Shields, Smith of
Georgia, Smith of Maryland, Under
wood, Walsh Of Montana and Will
liams. Total Democrats for, Is.
Total for adoption, AZ.
Those voting against the report:
Repub!icans-Borah, France and
Gronna. Total Republicans against,
Democrats-Ashurst, Dial, Gore,
Harris, Harrison, johnson of South
Dakota, Jones of New Mexico, King,
Mcclellan, Nugent, Overman, Pitt
man, Sheppard and Trammel. Total
Democrats against, IA.
Total against adoption, II.
Those paired follow: Bankhead for
with Culberson against; Mccormick
for with Henderson against; Dilling-
ham for with Swanson against; Fall
for with Kendrick against; Simmons
for with Kirby against; McCumber
for with La Toilette against; Harding
for with Walsh of Massachusetts,
against; Edge for with Owens
against.
Announcement was made that if
Senators Hitchcock, Stanley and
Chamberlain, all Democrats, had
been present they would have voted
in support of the conference report.
Thirty-two Republicans joined with
Is Democrats in voting for adoption
of the conference report, while three
Republicans and IA Democrats COM
prised the II voting against it. There
was never any doubt as to what the
senate would do, in view Of the wide
margin by which the Cummins bill,
more drastic than the compromise
measure, was passed. The bill will
go Immediately to President Wilson
and the general opinion around the
capitol was that he would sign it.
During the five hours of debate led
by Chairman Cummins, of the inter-
state commerce committee senators
expressed varying opinions as to how
the public and the railroads would
fare under the bill, which was warmly
defended and attacked. But the in
tense interest, which characterized
proceedings Saturday in the house
was lacking, frequent quorum calls
being necessary to get members in
the chamber.
Around 6 o'clock the patience of
the senate apparently was exhausted
after the long season of speech max
ing and insistent demands for vote
cut short the desire to prolong the
presentation of individual views.
Discussion today related largely to
the labor and rating provisions. SEN
ator Cummins, with great feeling, de-
nounced widespread claims that in
fixing freight and passenger charges
calculated to give the roads return
on 1-2 per cent. meant taking huge
sums of money from the public treas
ury. The bill, he declared would not
take 81 in that way. Such reports
he said were merely part of the
propaganda put forth in an effort to
defeat all legislation on the eve of re-
turn of the roads to their owners on
March l.
During the final debate on the bill,
Senator Simmons, Democrat, North
Carolina, declared the labor unions
were opposing it ''for purely selfish
reasons"
81 am convinced that the opposition
OF the labor unions is not based on
any defects in this legislation" said
Senator Simmons. 'They are opposed
to- it because they want government
ownership Of railroads. They believe
that under government ownership
they could secure more wages. They
believe thew could control congress