THE ALLIANCE - INDEPENDENT.
9
END RAILKOAD III.
The Oarse of Railroad Kale-Its Blight
ing Effects Iowa and Nebraska
Bates Compared-
How to Retire the Corporations From
Power All Patriotic Men Should
Unite and Make Sure
Work of It.
So far as stato politics is concerned
the great i?sue of this campaign is
whether the railroads shall govern the
state or the stato shall control and reg
ulate the railroads. It is the same o'd
battle that has been fought in this state
f or fifteen years. The result of the con
test in years past is well knowi. The
railroads have been victorious. They
have been hard pressed at times it is
true. They have been obliged to open
up "legislative accounts" and spend
money lavishly. They have been com
pelled to purchase the support of news
papers with cold cash as wo showed by
an affidavit of one of their hirelings not
long ago. They have been forced to
bribe legislators, and stato officers, and
even the judiciary is not free from
taint of suspicion. They have
gone in league with the
penitent iary ring, the bounty boomers,
and eveiy other selfish, corrupting in
fluencethat could offer them assistance.
As a result of their operations the
politics of this state is corrupt from be
ginning to end, from top to bottom and
from center to circumference.
In spite of continued defeat the people
have again and agaia renewed the bat
t'e. They fought a long timo in the
republican party. But. thcy saw one
monopoly leader after another go down
under the blighting influence of tho
railroad power. Finally tho people,
despairing of success through the old
parties, cut loose and organized the in
dependent party. They challenged the
railroad power to mortal combat. Two
battles have been fought, and while the
people have oomo within an ace of win
ning each, tho railroads are still in su
preme control.
Tho question at is'uc between the
railroads and tho people is s'mply this:
"Shall the state enact and enforce a
law establishing maximum freight
rates that will be just and reasonable?"
Of late years the question has resolved
itself into this moro definite form:
"Shall we have Iowa rates in Nebras
ka?" The battle batwoen the people and
the railroads was fought out in Iowa
several years ago. What was known
as the granger element in the republi
can party gained control of tho party,
through it enae'ed and enforced rail
road legislation, and brought the cor
porations under the control of tho state.
Low freight rates were established.
Tho "just and reasonable" character
of these rates ha been demonstrated,
not only by decisions of tho courts, but
hy the prosperity of the roads under
the operation of these lavv.
Why should the p9ople of Nebraska
paylocal freight rates that are two, three
and sometimes four times bs high as the
rates which are "just and equitable" in
Iowa? To this question no intelligent
or satisfactory an;wer has ever been
made, or ever will be.
Hero is a table comparing the local
rates in cents per 100 pounds for stated
distances in Iowa and Nebraska. This
table was prepared in 1891 from official
documents. Jts correctness has never :
been disputed. It is just as true now
as in 1800 c inasmuch as no material
changes in rates have been made since
then.
100 MILE HAUL.
lit 3d 5th A C E
class, class, class, class, class, class.
Nebraska 52 41 30 24 14 7
Iowa...., 24 16 8.1 9 7.2 4.8
200 MILK HAUL.
Nebraska 74 59 42 35 23 10.
Iowa... .40 23 14.2 15.9 11 8
300 MILE HAUL.
Nebraska 83 68 51 41 27 15
Iowa..... 56 30 20 22.5. 15 It
NoNebraskan can defend Nebraska
freight rates without rcing a traitor to
his state.
Tho difference between tho Iowa
rates and the Nebraska rates is robbery.
There is no other name for it. This
robbery at tho lowest calculation
amounts to several million dollars
every year. This robbery has taken all
the profit out of farming. It has pre
vented the development of manufac
tures. It has checked immigration. It
has depreciated the value of property.
lit has caused mortgages to multiply.
It has destroyed prosperily and crushed
enterprise. It has caused the blight of
hard times to settle over this beautiful
stato breeding discouragement, debt,
and despair.
Railroad domination is a disgrace to
this state. Like an "old man of the
sea," the railroad power sits astride the
neck of this people. Shall it bo dis
lodged and the peoplo freed from its
blighting effects? This is the question
to bo answered by the people at tho
coming election. And what shall tho
answer be? .
The independents havo put up a
ticket of honest, earnest representative
citizens headed by tho ablest and most
inveterate foe to railroad rule in the
state. It is tho duty of every patriot,
every homc-lover,evcry man to rally to
the support of that ticket regardless of
what his politics may havo been in tho
past. This is not merely a question of
party success. Men should rise above
party in this crisis. Tho honor and
prosperity of our fair stato is at stake.
The corporations care nothing for any
party except as it serves them and puts
their henchmen in power. They have
blasted tho reputation of both the old
parties in this stato as every honest
republican and democrat knows. They
cannot bd dethroned by acting in either
old party. Tho only way to free the
state from their corrupting and blight
ing inlluenco is for all tho friends of
good government in all parties to unite
in electing the peoples' state t!cket,and
a legislature that is pledged to pass a
law giving us Iowa rates.
The only way to retire the railroads
from politics is to defeat the men they
put up for office.
Wo must elect a legislature both
house and senate which will pass a
maximum rate bill similar to tho one
vetoed by Governor Boyd.
We must elect a governor who will
sign that bill and do all in his power to
see it enforced.
We must elect a board of transporta
tion which will carry tin law into
effect.
If the rail roads can control any branch
of tie state government, they will re
main in the saddle.
Let us clean them out root and branch
and end forever their accursed domination.
The independent congressional con
vention showed a fine feeling of confi
dence in tho ability of our party to
carry the First d'strict. Notwithstand
ing the fact that the great city of Lincoln
is included in tho territory the feeling
prevails that tho people's party has a
good fighting chance,
THE STATE SENATE.
The senate of Nebraska has always
been tho stronghold of tho corpora
tions. Many times have tho people
captured the house of representatives
and through it passed good railroad bills
But as often havo corporation money
and cunning elected or purchased a
railroad majority in he senate, which
has killed all good legislation.
This year we are fighting the great
final battle between the peoplo and the
railroads for tho control of Nebraska.
In this struggle the corporations have
one great advantage: The .peoplo
must gain control of every department
of tho government in order to accom
plish tho reforms they aim at, while
the railroads can block all reform leg
islation by holding control of a SINGLE
department. This being tho case U it
not reasonable that the railroads will
concontrate their efforts to control the
stato senate as they havo in the past?
If the independents would wiri a
complete victory, they must concen
trate their greatest force for their as
sault on tho enemy's strong-hold.
They must capture the state senate.
And now is the time to begin. Every
independent in tho stato shou'd give
this matter his immediate and most
earnest consideration. In many dis
tricts candidates for the senate have
not yet been nominated. Much dc-j
ponds on the nominations. Tho people
should weigh well and consider care
fully tho character, and availability of
candidates for that office. If possible
in every close district, tho whole ant
monopoly sentiment shold bo concen
trated on one candidate. One thing
can safely bo relied upon: That the
monopoly forc9s in both old parties
will be concentrated for the election of
stato senators. Wo may as well speak
plainly about this matter:
Whatever tho democrats may do for
political reasons to "take tho stato out
of the republican column," when it
comes to the election of state senators
in doubtful districts, we may look for
just such trades and combinations
among railroad republicans and demo
crats as we had last fall. Theso efforts
must be met and check-mated. How?
That is tho question for the people to
consider and decide.
There are thirty-three senators to
be elected. Douglas county will elect
three which may be safely set down as
railroad men. In thirteen districts the
independents are reasonably sure of
electing that number of senators. All
tho other districts are fighting ground
with the chances strongly in favor of the
independents in some districts, and
rather against them in others. Tho
independents must have seventeen sen
ators in order to control that body. The
political managers of the railroads
are on tho alert. They are holding
their secret conclaves, and "making
medicine." They are carefully weigh
the possibilities in every doubtful dis
trict, and laying their plans according
ly. They really care nothing for
politics. They would as lief havo a
democratic senator as a republican,
provided he will serve them faith
fully. In tho last senate there wero eight
democrats, and seven republicans, all
of whom stood by tho corporations,
with 020 exception, Keiper, . a
democrat. Tho independents had
eighteen including the traitors, Taylor
and Collins; but at least five of these
were elected by the active assistance
and co-operation of anti-monopoly dem
ocrats. Of coure the Independents haye
made great gains within the past two
years, and especially in tho doubtful
districts, still there is no use disguising
tho fact that they must use all their
energy and a great deal of care and
good judgment in order to elect a ma
jority of tho senate this fall.
PAINT PRAISE.
,In tho treatment of this great ques
tion we have all boon fools, and the re
publican party has bsen the biggest
fool of a! .during a period covering
sixteen years. They have given thoir
best club to the democracy which it has
porsistently used upon our heads with
out mercy. -They havo pursued a course
of folly aod adopted a policy of firo.
Frederick Douglas. '
These are tho words of tho most con
spicious representative of tho colorod
race in America Thoy appeared in
tho press of the country Sunday morn
ing in an extended letter In which
Frederick Douglas says in words that
ho favors the continuance of tho repub
lican party in power. But his argu
ment is entirely out of harmony with
his words.
It will bo difficult to seo how the re
publicans can extract any comfort from
Fred. Douglasw letter. "We have all
been fools and tho republican party has
been the biggest fool of a'l during tho
period covering sixteen years.'?, And
again in his letter Mr. Douglas says, "I
regard Jamos G. Blaino as tho marplot
of his party." And still again tho old
colored man says, "I am inclined
to think tbat there will eventually
come in this country a dictatorship.
There is a growing demand for a strong
government that will be ab'e to protect
all of its citizens rich and poor, white
and black, alike." And so the poor old
colored man in a half hearted sort of
way supports tho republican party,
while he condemns its course in the
past and predicts that it is destined to
give way to a "dic'ator" who can "pro
tect air tho citizens." If this is not
damning tho republican party with
faint praise we are unable to read tho
English language. If republicans ex
tract any comfort from this letter, they
must havo been very short on consola
tion rf lato. If the colored men see
anything in tho words of Mr. Douglas
to bind them to tho republican party
they must have a peculiarly acuto in
sight. Tho most astonishing feature of
the whole business is that republican
paper3 should bo drawn into tho publi
cation of a letter so damaging to their
party.
The Call and tho Journal are trying
very hard to make it appear that
Shamp has been put up as a "stool
pigeon" in tho interest of Bryan. The
fact is that tho fear is father.to tho
thought. But they can relievo them
selves of their load of terror. Mr.
Shamp has been put up as a candidate
for cocgress in the interest of the peo
plo of the First district. He is no
body's "stool-pigeon."
While tho Associated pres3 is forced
to give out some information in regard
to General Weaver's movements, the
real and startling truth is almost sup
pressed. From private and reliable
sources it is learned that the western
tour of tho poople's candidate for presi
dent has been one grand and marvelous
ovation. The western states are turn
ing to the now movement with such
unanimity, tbat even the most hopeful
independents are astonished. Tho imt
mense throngs that gather to listen to
tho grand leader of tho grand new
cause, indicate tho coming of a mighty
pouticai revolution.