Newspapers / The Pilot (Southern Pines, … / July 5, 1935, edition 1 / Page 7
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Friday, July 5, 1935. THE PILOT, Southern Pines and Aberdeen, North Carolina Page Seven from Congressional Record ON THE RAYBURN WHEELER PUBLIC UTILITY BILL NOW BEFORE CONGRESS Excerpts From Speech of Congressman Huddleston (Democrat-Alabama), Ranking Member of Interstate Committee, Friday, June 28, 1935. I SPEAK only of title 1, the holding compauj' part, as I know but little of the titles which deal with other subjects. A t the con clusion of the hearings the bill was referred to a subcommittee of fcur Democrats and two Republicans, of which the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rayburn) was chairman. We labored long and faithfully on the bill. Weeks were spent reading every line, weighing as far as we could every syllable. We found the bill as originally introduced utterly impossible. I advocated throwing it in the wastebasket, and that the committee un dertake to Write a reasonable, sensible bill that would regulate the holding companies and do what any reasonable man should want to do. (Applause.) But we did not find that practical. What we had to do was to take this impossible bill, which in many respects, as 1 repeatedly said in the committee, approached the extreme rim of sanity, and try to make something out of it What is the issue on this bill? In a few words, the issue is whether we will regulate or whether we will destroy. That is the issue. My position now is. and has been from the inception of this legislation, and may 1 say for long before it was introduced, that the utility hold ing companies should be regulated. They should be rigidly and sharply regulated. The interests of the public, of the investors, and of the consumers should be protected by adequate regulation. That is what I have believed in all the time, what I believe in now. and what 1 ad vocate now. 1 have some authority for that position. I read from the cratic platform of 1932: Demo- We advocate regulation to the full extent of Federal pou'er of hold ing companies which sell securities in interstate commerce. Upon that plank I stand. (Applause.) Take note. It says regu late.” It does not say "destroy.’ Those who advocate destruction cannot quarrel with me for my Democracy. No democrat can find fault with me for standing upon the Democratic platform of Socialists, radicals, and what nots. or whatever stripe they have t e right to quarrel with me, but no Democrat dare challenge me on that. \ Applause.) The issue is. Shall we "regulate" or shall we destroy ? That in turn resolves itself into this: Shall we correct the evils of the holding companies or shall we wreak vengeance upon them? Do you come to ^preserve, to build up, to correct, to improve that which is imperfect, or do you come in a punitive spirit, to punish for the misdeeds of the past? You would take vengeance, you say by destroying the holding companies. Take vengeance upon whom? On the corporations who. *as Mr. Rayburn heis said, are inanimate creatures and without souls? Let me say to you that you cannot strike them without strik ing the stockholders who stand back of them. What have the hapless investors done that you should seek vengeance upon them? What have those who have put their savings of a lifetime into these securi ties done? What is their offense? What is their crime for which you are seeking to punish them? That is the issue. It appears in many sections of this bill. Would that I had time to explain them more fully. The bill is a mystic maze. A man of average intelligence wandering into it will soon find him self hopelessly lost without knowing east from west or top from bot tom. After weeks of study the most intelligent man will still remain in doubt as to what this bill means. This bill was written by Mr. Benjamin Cohen and Mr. Thomas Cochran, two bright young men brought down from New York to teach Congress "how to shoot.” (Laughter and applause.) Some of us were here when both* were yet in short pants. But these are days when experience and fidelitv in public service or in business life are exceedingly “disbualifying.” 1 pay them a tribute for the exceeding skill which they have shown in weaving in and weaving out. piling words upon words, phrase upon phrase, clause upon clause until a Philadelphia lawyer would get down on his knees and pray to be de livered from the task of interpretation. (Laughter and applause.) .... Of course, I do not know what was in the minds of those who wrote the bill. You cannot deduce it from the bill. Xou (^nnot find out there. I do not know what philosophy they were holding to. “What private griefs they had, alas, I know not. that made them do it.” Suffice it to say that the bill was "fearfully and wonderfully made,” and that every syllable was loaded with arsenic. The utilities charged, and it was charged again here yesterday, that the bill had an insincere purpose, that it was designed to produce chaos and ruin in the electrical industry so that out of the shipwreck might be salvaged Government and municipal ownership and other kindred spoil. in 1928 the Senate adooted a resohition directing an in- vestieration of utility-company practices by the Federal Trade Com mission. TTie Commission s?t some capable gentlemen to work. They began to dig into the utilitv-companv records and papers. They fol lowed the ssme method as followed bv the gentlemen from Texas o*". ^'■i^sterdav. Thev would dig in. and when thev found anvthiner wron? thev ^ise and t^”mpet it to tKe world. I afn reliably informed that thf* Federal ’T'rr>de Commission issued duriner its invpstioation soTviewKere nea’' newspaper releases in tlip form of publicit'''' fpll’ncr the f^eople of the cou»itr\r had found wrone^ with the utilities. T^ev spp’'i‘ more tKaT' AOO gettins; material to p\it but. and ro forfK. "TTipy su^'ceeded ’n buildins'up a stronp^ public senti- ~^^.5nsf th^' utilities. It was I’k^ writing the sforv of a man s hfe i f” ■''■ou tell everv unworthV Ke ever did and everv worthv , ^Kaf onterpfl Vii"? ''D'^ lOfprtriTinf ^’Ke good I''’"!? paM i'’’ A^d whi^h amoncr. ’•''’1 rr«-(1e|nn-t n^^nd up with tKat kind of a biography?^ (Laurrhf.^r and applause.) So v'^>*‘r>p»d the couhtrv into a ra»e; thev formed a public '^pinio»i, e.spec'allv among those who had the least information and most suspicious: thev raised this public opinion to a fever l'“at. nama!?o'TiiP9 arasned th<»ir opportimity and agitators saw that, the tim®^ was rin<» for them. ^o. l*ke vultures ridinp the storm, they r-''>^lr«^od upon this wave of 111 will and op?r»ion aqainst the utilities. They have continued to ride right down to this time. 1 This is the finest demagogue bait ever spread. (Applause) Mr. Chairman, as I s^’d. this is the finest demacroeue bait that was ever snread; thev not onlv get a chance to "soak the rirh” and to fan the nroi'iK^jcps of the poor acrainst those who happen to have manat^ed to hold on to a strav nickel but thev are able to draw around their shoulders the cloak of patriotism—“I am the defender of the people. (Applause.) . I woi’M UVe to oro plonor VMth ^he chairman of the committee. It nn>’ns me dp°’^lv not to do so for I am greatly attached to him. But b»»fore m'*'^ affection for- the chairman must come m.y duty to mv countrv. (apn^ause) and whether it be propac»anda from one source or another, whpther it be influence brought to bear bv officials of the iitihVJps or b^' their stockholders, or whether, on the other hand, it be the threats of the dpm‘'"o"n“s and the agitator*?, or whpther if- be to op- nosp the wJll of t^he Chief Executive of the Nation. I will do what I think is right. (Applause.) ^ wi^l do w^at 1 think *s porht. I will support ‘‘reputation” and not “destruction”— corr'*ction an<^ not ventypanre. I will do iustice without fear or favor, neither th'' imns of darkness nor those who have «!een a new h’ofh*- sh?*’' ^r>-'rp me th» bre?'^*^^ a hai*r. Upon thi.^ rock 1 taVo ^ny stand. “And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” ^‘The Alabaman brought Democrats and Republicans to their feet cheer ing, in a scene seldom duplicated in the House.” (By Universal Service in Tiie Washington Times, June 29. 1935.) An Advertisement by the CAROLINA POWER & UGHT COM> PAMY in the interests of its 11,000 Stockholders, 70,000 Customers and the 240 Communities which it serves, ,
The Pilot (Southern Pines, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
July 5, 1935, edition 1
7
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