OCR Text |
Show $ M -- -" Is labor, through its legislative representatives, outsmarting the farm bloc supposedly its law-i law-i making bedfellow in the daily ' doings on Capitol hill ? I Some legislators allied with the I agriculturists profess to believe I this that the' soil toilers thus far have been taken for a legislative ' ride by their perhaps more politically politi-cally skilled coalitionists. As evi-- evi-- dence they point to the record of measures passed upon by house and senate, seeing there more eon-j eon-j sidwation for labor bills than those deemed important to agri- culture. ' Labor has succeeded with the cooperation of lawmakers from ! the rural communities or districts dis-tricts in getting action on several in which its keenest supporters are vitally interested. On the other hand a goodly proportion of the bills in which rural representatives represen-tatives are evincing the greatest interest are yet to come before the house or senate for consideration, i Three measures of great concern to labor child labor, underground miner's work-day anil militia control con-trol have passed the house. Only ! one of interest to farmers the homestead tax exemption bill, and i its benefit to farmers is questionable question-able has won final approval in the lower branch. And the last received practically unanimous i support. Many agriculturists however opposed the child labor j resolution, but labor delegates held it non-coalition. ! The agriculturists have bene- ; fitted by some minor balms in pas-: sage by the bouse of such bill; as I those providing for labeling of ingredients in-gredients in commercial fet-d-stuffs, flood ami erosion control encouragement, regulation of commercial com-mercial fertilizers, and irrigation stock redemptions. The senate has recn:: nicd the farmers by enactment of the bill enabling the federal government to buy lands for flood and erosion control. Of more importance was its passage of the homestead tax exemption act. Neither has done J much that labor wants excepting j 'pas age of the child labor resolution, resolu-tion, originating in the upperj house. It did pass the underground under-ground miner's 8-hour bill, but with an amendment which the mine workers declare destroys the measuro's effectiveness. The bill in which labor is most vitally interested H. B. 4, providing pro-viding for many major changes in the state workmen's compensation law is receiving much attention not a little of it adverse. In fact, so strong were the objections that it has been rewritten. The Hall bill, regulating produce dealers, a measure of great interest inter-est to agriculturists, was under floor discussion last week, but remained re-mained in status quo due to adjournment. ad-journment. It was unfinished business for Monday. Chicago versus the intermoun-tain intermoun-tain country. This might well be a title-caption for tho battle now being waged by western industry against the proposal to open the way for a return to the alleged discriminatory discrimina-tory "back haul" system of freight charges through the repeal by the national congress of the transportation transpor-tation act familiarly known as the long and short haul. The real motivating force behind be-hind the railways' effort to repeal the law is said to bo a keen desire on the part of Chicago territory industrialist and wholesalers to regain re-gain control of western markets. This they had before the Panama canal was built. Construction of the "big ditch" and consequent steamship freight movements brought the east into competition with Chicago and eventually opener open-er the intermountain country and Pacific coast to the eastern seaboard sea-board and Pittsburg territory markets. mar-kets. j Now, say westerners, Chicago wants to destroy this competition. i They argue that the railroads base their dcircs for repeal on a desire to at least share in the coast to coast traffic now running through the canal, but that what they really want is destruction of this traffic and to substitute for it a similar line of merchandise from Chicago, hauled west by tho rails. (Continued on last page) Under The Capitol Dome (Continued from first page) Intermountain industrialists and merchants claim that repeal of the law would result virtually in removal re-moval of manufacturing establishments establish-ments to the seaboard. They point to industrial development here, having been made possible by abolishment of the old discriminatory discrimina-tory rate structure under which the rate included the freight charges from Chicago to the Pacific Paci-fic coast plus the back haul charge to Salt Lake City. Repeal of the law would, they say, make it possible pos-sible to return to the old sysstem of freight charges, thereby increasing in-creasing rates to such an extent as to put them out of business in this section. Utah legislators are being urged to memorialize congress against passage of the repeal act. The Utah Citizens Rate association is j supporting the memorial. Some railway brotherhoods are opposing j it on the ground that repeal would help the railroads and thus result in increase employment. S. M. Welsh, state legislative representative represen-tative of the Brotherhood of Railroad Rail-road Trainmen, is supporting it. OUR BEAVER LEGISLATORS Senator Daniel Stevens of the Sth district voted yes on inclusion of property tax offsets or exemptions exemp-tions in payment of the corporation franchise income tax as provided in S. B. 1, and yes on final passage of S. B. 88, with similar offsets as S. B. 1. He voted yes on other bills passed in the senate last week excepting S. B. !. He voted no on the hist named bill. S. B. 140, introduced by Senator Stevens, was withdrawn because of another measure to be intro-1 uuced in its place. He offered an amendment to S. K. 72, providing that the rate on delinquent taxes be lowered from 8 to 5 per cent, saying that it was for the benefit of those who could not pay their taxes. It was not carried. Senator Stevens introduced three bills. S. B. 145 excludes masseu-ers masseu-ers from classification of practicing practic-ing medicine or treating human ailments. S. B. 161 rewrites the state statute pertaining to conservation con-servation of bird life. S. J. M. 1, introduced with Senators Frisch-knecht Frisch-knecht and Miller, urges the sale at a loss of Piute, central Utah and Carbon water lands and power company projects. The last mentioned men-tioned aims to relieve drouth sufferers. suf-ferers. Representative Frank D. Low of Beaver county voted yes on all house bills passed last week ex- cepting IL ! 1- tie was absent and not voting on H. B. 29. |