RAILWAY LEGISLATION 169 



assembly two years later, but it happened that a special session 

 limited to thirty days, was held in 1873, to consider a revision 

 of the code of laws, which had been drawn up by a special com- 

 mission. 



During the earlier part of this special session, the sentiment 

 of the legislators seemed to be in favor of letting the question 

 rest, except for a resolution requesting Congress to legislate on 

 the subject, but about the first of February, 1873, the state 

 grange held a meeting in Des Moines, the capital city, and gave 

 new life to the issue. This body, composed of over twelve 

 hundred representative farmers from all parts of the state, 

 adopted a memorial setting forth the abuses of railway manage- 

 ment and demanding the immediate enactment of a rate law to 

 protect the people from outrageous discrimination and extor- 

 tionate charges. The individual members of the grange, 

 moreover, undoubtedly exercised considerable influence by means 

 of personal contact with their representatives in the legislature 

 and by threats of united political action in the coming election. 1 

 Possibly as a result of the pressure thus brought to bear, a section 

 was added to the railroad chapter of the code by which passenger 

 fares were limited to three and one-half cents per mile. Other 

 sections which proposed to incorporate a schedule of freight 

 rates in the code were adopted in the House, but failed of pas- 

 sage in the Senate by a tie vote. 2 



During the summer of 1873, the two interacting forces of the 

 demand for railroad regulation and the desire for agricultural 

 organization and cooperation, working largely through the local 

 granges of the order of Patrons of Husbandry, brought about 

 the formation of an Anti-Monopoly party, with government 

 control of railroads as the main plank in its platform. 3 The 



1 Senate Journal, 1873, p. 125; McNutt, in Cloud, Monopolies and the People, 

 168; Farmers' Union, March 8, 1873; Prairie Farmer, xliv. 44, 51 (February 8, 15, 

 1873); Chicago Tribune, February n, 1873, P* 2 - 



2 Senate Journal, 1873, pp. 7, 77, 85, 100, 129, 139, 142, 150, 234, 248, 288, 

 294-296, 313, 315, 319, 321, 331, 334, 347; House Journal, 1873, passim; Iowa, 

 Revised Code, 1873, p. 239 (Title X, ch. v, section 1305); McNutt, in Cloud, 

 Monopolies and the People, 168; Chicago Tribune, 1873, February n, p. 2, April 

 n, p. 2. 



8 See above, pp. 89-91. Platform is in Martin, Grange Movement, 513; 



