Salt Lake Telegram | 1916-03-05 | Page 15 | Water Power Lobby Working with Smoot Crowd at Capital

I Wafer Vr Power L Working With hi Smoot thi C to By GILSON GARDNER WASHINGTON March 4 Since Since February 7 the entire attention attention attention atten atten- tion of the United States senate has been devoted to o a bill bilI drafted by water power grabbers and supported by a p powerful WATER POWER LOBBY the LOBBY the Shields bill bm The debate although it has gone on for more than twenty Y I days daYss is is only just beginning The Shields bill is vicious in the extreme J The purpose of those b d it is js to secure control of the remaining remaining remaining re re- water wafer power sit sites s on na navigable streams without coal p ensa- ensa tion or or government sup supervision nor any adequate provision for REGULATION OF RATES ATES TO 10 CONSUMERS nor the recovery of the site at the end of the proposed year fifty franchise period The bill is supported in in the senate by its author John K Shields of Tennessee Oscar W W. Underwood and John H. H Bankhead Bank Bank- Bankhead Bankhead head of Alabama John F. F haf th of Colorado REED SMOOT OF UTAH Knute Nelson of Minnesota and Wesley L L. L Jones of W Wash Washington I n It is being bitterly fou fought ht by by- Senators LaFollette and Husting Hustin g of Wisconsin Norris and alid Hitchcock of or Nebraska Kenyon of Iowa Lane Lone of Oregon Poindexter ter of Washington and Walsh of Montana In In the senate galleries a large number of lobbyists may Y be observed daily watching it its progress and sending notes to senators on the floor Among those observed in the gallery and nd about the i offices of Senators Underwood Shields and Jones are are Henry L L. L Pierce of the General 1 Electric company Hugh S S. S Cooper for Stone Webster M M. O. O of the Utah Leighton Securities company Frank H. H Short ofas of the Pacific Gas G as and El Electric company Congressman ex-Congressman Dennis O. O Flynn of the Electric Bonding interests J. J W W. Worthington of Alabama Ala Ala- b bama Power and Light ex- ex Congressman ex-Congressman George Washington Taylor representing the M Mussel SL Shoals oils Alabama company The SS latest move In S the fight has been the 1118 organization of what is called the Water Vater Power Development association This is a publicity bureau and starts its C career by hiring the principal publicity man from Secretary Lano Lanos s office a a former newspaper corre corre- This new lobby concern takes the public Into Its confidence by admitting frankly that It has a special Interest to serve in the seeking of n passage the Shields bill since it Is made up of certain named builders of water wheels and electrical appliances and supplies of all kinds Among them are the I. I P P. P Morris C Co o of Philadel Philadelphia hia the Chalmers Allis-Chalmers Co of Milwaukee V So Sons fro Co o of East T LiverpoOl Wellman Seaver 01 n Ohio 0 ve Co Co- of Cleve Cleveland R. R Thomas Co Cof of Pittsburg Westinghouse Elec Electric tire and Manufacturing I Marcus A. A Beeman secretary ot of the new association has been assistant secretary of the Cleveland and Buffalo chambers of commerce and secretary of the New Jersey state chamber of commerce The water s subject is power displacing all matters in the he senate and the friends of the Shields bill are arc getting impatient at trio the delay Vario Various s eU efforts lave have been made to put tit a check on the debate but those in the public interest are determined to continue opposing the measure I their is done between now and fall opposition if no business