JUNE 7, 1912
The Commoner.
centage of what it can bo made to
pay. Last summer, while abroad, I
saw such a line in N6rmandy, but
lately taken over, vastly improved in
service and management, giving the
best of satisfaction to the public and
promising eventually a fine return to
the government. In Germany, where
less than 3,500 miles of railroad are
privately owned, the net revenue to
the government annually is approximately-
50,000,000. From 1887 to
19 0G clear surpluses were handed
the government exchequer by the
minister of railways aggregating
293,000,000; twice the amount of
the capital debt of the railways in
1882. During that time the nation
saved just that much in taxation, and
without this income many of the gov
ernment expenditures, necessary to
the public welfare, would have been
impossible. "What has been done
abroad may be accomplished in the
United States.
Whatever capitalization may be
fixed by the government as necessary
should be forever restricted against
increase, and the bonds should be
made perpetual, thereby constituting
an irreducible debt. No person
should be permitted to hold more
than $1,000,000 of these bonds. A
limitation of $500,000 would be even
better. Such a limitation would
work no hardship on the "widows
and orphans," though it might peeve
some of the multi-millionaires who
have been overlong "on the inside."
These bonds should be of small de
nominations, say from $10 up, as an
inducement to the workingman to in
vest his savings therein. They could
be sold over the counter through the
system of postal savings banks.
They would make an ideal and
absolutely safe investment for the
man of limited means. With the
government ever ready to redeem
them they would provide a security
on a parity, with actual cash. The
laboring man would enjoy the same
privilege as the millionaire of hav
ing a financial interest in the nation.
Each bond would be his certificate
' of ownership in the government, long
boasted by the campaign trial horses
to be of the people, by the people and
for the people. Finally the working
man would be getting a square deal.
With the postal savings banks
loaning in turn to the national banks
in the localities where deposits are
made there would be a more equit
able distribution of money through
out the country. As a result there
would be a renewed and deeper con
fidence, a more general and wide
spread prosperity, a keener and more
personal interest in things govern
mental on the part of the average
man. It would tend to elevate the
standard of citizenship and render
more alert the watchfulness of offi
cial actions in Washington. Our
representatives in congress would be
required to exert a truer and more
earnest effort in behalf of the whole
people and to evince a less solicitous
consideration for the welfare of
special privilege. And the people
wouldown the railroads in very truth!
Such an ownership on the part of
the government would not provide
against the energy which builds; it
would conserve it. But it would for
ever wipe out the unscrupulous greed
which extorts from the masses for
the enrichment of the few. .
Although the United States has
more miles of railroad than all the
nations of the world combined, thous
ands of miles will yet be needed as
the population increases. The roads
will earn vastly more in the future
than in the past, though perhaps
more legitimately. Under govern
ment supervision, scientifically and
economically managed as the mail
service has been the last year, the
failroads would easily meet all in
terest charges, the expense of main
tenance, make necessary extensions
and yet have a sufficient surplus to
go far toward meeting the ordinary
oxpensos of the government in less
than ten years. Tariff for revenue
only would be possible and the cost
of living would be materially re
duced. With tho injection of even
moderate economy rates could be re
duced 25 per cent within a decade.
The big, underlying incentive for
speedy action toward government
ownership, however, Is tho desir
ability, aye the imperative necessity,
of readjusting the relations of indus
try and commerce which the plunder
ing practices of the railroad in re
cent years have thrown completely
out of gear. Under government
ownership, with an equitable re
vision of freight rates, manufactur
ers and wholesalo .merchants would
no longer find their territories un
alterably circumscrib6d by tho rate
makers. They would view a broad
ened field. Industrial and commer
mercial effort would expand, pros
perity would return, present uncer
tainty would be replaced by a re
newed confidence. Something of the
oldtimo competition would be re
newed. The consumer would profit and
tho manufacturer would not suffer.
Much of this I have said to the
members of congress within tho last
year in a series of letters. Many of
the figures quoted herein wore fur
nished these miB-representatives. The
earlier letters went alike to congress
men-repudiated and elect. Some of
tho latter were enthusiastic before
they reached Washington. Once they
had taken their oaths to servo the
people their enthusiasm quickly dis
appeared. Doubtlessly you will re
member that the railroads went un
scathed in the turmoil attending the
consideration of tariff revision, Cana
dian reciprocity, tho steel trust quiz
and the investigation of two members
of that honorable body, the Million
aires' club, otherwise known as the
senate.
Public ignorance has long been the
safeguard of tho railroads. In it
alone rests their security. The press
of the country can hardly be ignorant
of the situation, yet it has been
strangely quiet.. Usually quick to
strike at graft and predatory plunder
ing, the newspapers for the most part
have been stingy of their space where
the railroadB wero concerned.
In congress willing tools of the
system have been ever ready to kick
up a disturbance and distract atten
tion from any measure affecting tho
railroad hold upon the people. It
has been stated that 70 per cent of
tho members of both houses of con
gress are lawyers. Is it possible that
these attorneys have been retained
by the railroads? Let us hope not,
but it is very suspicious that they
who are supposed to know the effects
of law should not see the importance
of legislation reducing freight rates.
Bribery is a many-sided device of
railroads. It may be of favoritism
and Influence to attorneys, or It may
be cash. It would not seem that the
Hepburn bill, in which tho most stu
pendous outrages were committed,
could have passed both houses of
congress and have been heralded all
over the country as a great measure,
without some concerted influence of
the railroads and this 70 per cent
controlling array of lawyer-statesmen.
Every member of the house
and senate, who voted for that bill,
should hide his face In shame and
never seek re-election.
We must send a different breed of
statesmen to Washington. There
must be fewer law-sharps and more
friends of the people In the true
sense of the term. In this day' of
conservation tho more intimate
rights of the people must not be
overlooked and neglected.
Finally the forcing of the Issue is
In the people's hands. There is only
one way.
Grill your congressman; but har
poon your suave smiling senator!
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JT mjllW v; yf g
President Taft's Texas supporters
refused to participate in tho stato
convention dominated by tho Roose
velt forces at Ft. Worth, May 28.
They marched away before tho timo
set for convening and held a sepa
rate convention. Each convention
chose eight delegates-at-largo to tho
national convention and declared for
its favored state and national leaders.
-Returns from Minnesota show that
Woodrow Wilson was indorsed in a
majority of the counties. Champ
Clark failed to carry a district in tho
stato except tho Fourth, in which ho
will bo given solid delegations from
Ramsey, Chisago and Washington
counties. If the unit rule prevails at
the state convention at Duluth all of
Minnesota's twenty-four delegates to
Baltimore will go instructed for the
New Jersey governor.
Seven persons were killed and a
score seriously injured by a tornado
which swept through Skiatook, Okla.,
May 27.
Roy J. Meyers, a convict released
from the penitentiary at Phoenix,
Ariz., by Governor Hunt to go to
Washington to obtain a patent on an
electrical machine, reported to tho
governor and returned to tho penitentiary.
A solid delegation of forty mem
bers instructed for Woodrow Wilson
was elected to the national demo
cratic convention May 28 by tho
Texas democratic convention. Tho
delegation is composed of eight delo-gates-at-large
and thirty-two district
delegates. Tho Harmon forces made
one test of strength on district dele
gates and wero defeated, 542 to 150.
Cato Sells, of Cleburne, was elected
democratic national committeeman.
Louisville. Ills successor will bo
John C. Mayo.
Tho Kentucky democratic stato
convention Instructed tho delegation
to the national convention to vote for
Champ Clark as long as his namo Ja
beforo tho convention.
Montana democrats in stato con
vention unanimously adopted tho
committee resolution indorsing tho
candidacy for president of Speaker
Champ Clark and instructing tho
eight delegates to vote for him.
Theodore Roosevelt mado a clean
sweep in the Now Jersey primaries
and will get tho state's twenty-eight
delegates to the national convention.
His popular plurality will bo abovo
15,000.
Governor Woodrow Wilson carried
all but two of tho twelve congres
sional districts, In the New Jersey
primaries, and gained twenty-four of
tho twenty-eight delegates, including
tho delegates-at-largo. "Uninstruct
ed" delegates nominated by the anti
Wilson wing of the party wero elect
ed In the Ninth and Tenth districts,
tho strongholds of tho elements op
posed to the governor. Governor
Wilson won his most striking victory
in his homo county Morcer which
contains Trenton, tho stato capital,
by a vote of 2,674, compared with a
vote of 371 for the anti-Wilson nomi
nees. Tho Wilson vote, as compared
with that of the opposition, was a
staggering blow to tho antls. Some
districts went for tho governor by
as high as 20 to 1.
A cinematographic explosion in a
moving picture theatre at Vilareal,
Spain, resulted in the death of eighty
persons in the panic and fine which
followed.
Captain Arthur H. Rostron, com
mander of the Cunard liner Carpa
thla which sped to the rescue of the
sinking Titanic, was presented with
a loving cup by a committee of
Titanic survivors, who boarded the
liner on her arrival at New York,
May 29. Medals were presented to
tho officers and the entire crew.
That the public dance halls of
America are the greatest contributors
to the downfall of young girls was
contained in the report of tho social
service commission submitted at the
closing session of the Northern Bap
tist convention at Des Moines, Iowa.
The Roosevelt republicans in Colo
rado have filed a contest with the re
publican national committee against
the seating of tho delegation elected
by tho republican state convention.
When the republican national com
mittee meets at Chicago Juno G, they
will be called upon to decide 204
contests. Four years ago there wore
219 contests presented to tho com
mittee. Of tho 204 contests filed,
177 wero presented by tho followers
of Roosevelt and twenty-seven "by tho
friends of President Taft.
Mrs. David Beach completed a
journey on foot from New York to
Chicago and gave to Mayor Harrison
a message which she received from
Mayor Gaynor.
Champ Clark carried Arizona In
tho democratic presidential primary
by a vote of three to one over Gover
nbr Wilson.
Governor James B. McCreary de
feated Senator James for temporary
chairman of tho Kentucky demo
cratic state convention at Louis
ville, May 29, thereby swinging con
trol of the reorganized state com
mittee into the hands of the adminis
tration forces and making certain the
election of Rufus H. Vansant, candi
date for state chairman.
TJrey Woodson of Owensboro, Ky.,
member of the national democratic
committee for eighteen years and
secretary of that body for several
years, failed to gain the indorsement
of the democratic state convention at
Cleveland was selected for tho
meeting place of tho next convention
of tho brotherhood of locomotive
engineers.
New York City Is experiencing the
first serious hotel strike In its- his
tory. Waiters walked out of the
Waldorf-Astoria, tho Gotham, the
Breslin and Rector's in the midst of
the evening dinner, May 29, leaying
hundreds of hungry patrons In the
3 ireh.
Thomas E. Watson lost his fight to
control the Georgia democratic state
convention at Atlanta, May 29. He
won a place as delegate-at-laTge to
tho Baltimore convention, however,
with others whom he denounced in a
convention speech as his avowed
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