Farmers and Railroads: A Legislative Clash
Eastern Washington farmers celebrate a hard-won freight rate reduction, while bitter rivalries emerge between Spokane and the Palouse country.
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The people of the Palouse country are well satisfied with the work of the legislature, and while the Anderson freight bill as passed is not all they had hoped for in the way of freight-reduction, yet it is a big help, and will save on this season's crop, if the yield is as large as is expected, fully $500,000 to the farmers of the Palouse country alone. There is considerable bitter feeling against Spokane, the senators from that city and the Spokane Review for the stand taken by them against the bill. The people say that Spokane is largely dependent upon the Palouse country for its existence, as no other country contributes as much to the support of the falls city as does the Palouse, and for the senators, leading citizens and the leading paper to take a stand in direct opposition to the interests of the people from whom they get a large portion of their support is a breach of faith that will not be soon overlooked or forgotten.
“The people say that Spokane is largely dependent upon the Palouse country for its existence... and for the senators... to take a stand in direct opposition is a breach of faith.”
Conflicts between regional economic interests—specifically between agricultural producers and urban commercial hubs—have been a constant in Washington politics since statehood, echoing modern tensions between rural agricultural sectors and regional urban centers.
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