"
the
VOL. i. NEBRASKA CITY , NEB. , THURSDAY , NOVEMBER 17 , 1898. NO.
I
OFFICES : OVERLAND THEATRE BLOCK.
, T. STERLING MORTON , Em-roil.
A .lounxAft nnvoTKu TO TUB DISCUSSION
OP VOI/ITICAT , , ECONOMIC ANT ) SOCIOLOGICAL
QUESTIONS.
ESTABLISHED CIRCULATION OVER 5,000.
TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION.
One dollar and a half per your , in advance ,
postpaid , to any pnrt of the United States or
Canada. Remittances made payable to The
Morton Printing Company.
Address , TIIK CONPKIIVATIVK , Nebraska
City , Neb.
Advertising Rates made known upon appli
cation.
Entered at the postofflco at Nebraska City ,
Neb. , as Second Class matter , July 29th , 1898.
KAITjKOADS KUN BY GOVKUNM12NT.
"Experience shows that wherever
railways have been placed under govern
ment control the people have had better
service and at a cheaper rate. In Bel
gium , where the government has as
sumed the control of the railways , fares
and freight rates have been cut down
one-half and the wages of employes
doubled ; but for all that the railroads
pay a yearly revenue of $4,000,000. In
Hungary , where the roads are state
owned , one can ride six miles for a cent.
In Australia one can ride 1,000 miles
across the country for $5.50 or six miles
for 2 cents. SixtjT-eight governments
own their telegraph lines. Forty-four
governments own their railroads in
whole or in part , while only nineteen
do not. "
The above paragraph clipped from
Farming , published in Toronto , Canada ,
furnishes an excellent illustration of the
sort of pabulum served up to their pat
rons by the anti-railroad press. Con
sular reports , vol. XLV , No. 107 , page 579 ,
contains a statement from Consul Gen
eral Maratta of Victoria , Australia ,
from which we quote : "No doubt wo
in Australia will never be able to obtain
rates as low as those that prevail in the
United States , our conditions being rad
ically different ; but the extraordinary
thing is that the assertion should bo per
sisted in that our Victorian rates are
lower than those charged in America.
Over a large portion of the Pennsylvania
system , which may be taken as a typical
case , the average ton-mile rate which is
the only possible basis of comparison ,
was in 1800 less than a farthing ( one-
half cent ) per ton per mile , while the
averngo for the whole system was three-
tenths of a penny. That is to pay , that
throughout this great organization the
average for goods of all classes was just
over a farthing ( one-half cent ) per ton
per mile , while in Victoria the average
for all classes would bo more like three
pence ( six cents ) per ton per mile. The
average American rate for wheat is
under one-fourth of a penny per ton per
mile , while the average Victorian rate is
one pence , four times as groat. "
In Belgium , while it is true that the
rates have been reduced they are still
higher than in the United States , both
for passengers and freight , the latter
being at least three times as great as in
this country. The Interstate Commerce
Commission some time ago prepared a
report for congress in which it was
shown that with one exception as to
passengers ( Norway ) and no exception
as to freight , European rates are much
higher than our own for similar service.
lu England , where the conditions are
more nearly similar to our own , than in
other European countries , the second-
class'passenger rate is materially higher
than our first-class , being 8.2 cents
against 3.84 cents per mile , while the
freight rate is shown to bo nearly three
times as high. The entire list of coun
tries owning their railways might be
gone over with similar results.
In reply to the closing sentence of the
quoted paragraph in question , it may be
said that instead of forty-four , only
twenty- three governments own their
own railways in whole or in part ,
namely : wholly owned , Egypt and
Nicaragua ; inpart , Argentina , Atistral-
asia , Austria-Hungary , Belgium , Brazil ,
Canada , Cape of Good Hope , Chile ,
Denmark , France , Germany , Greece ,
Guatemala , Holland , India , Italy ,
Japan , Norway , Portugal , Russia and
Sweden. Of these only the first two
named operate all of their own road and
three , namely , Greece , Holland and
Italy , opei ate no portion of theirs. Sev
eral of the other countries , namely :
Argentina , Brazil , Canada , France ,
Greece , Guatemala and Japan , own less
than 80 per cent of their railroads , and
iu many cases do not operate all they
own.
own.Wore
Wore it worth while much more data
in refutation of the assertions made in
Farming could bo supplied , but enough
has been given to show what little
foundation there is for this and similar
statements. The press of the present
day is to n large extent the educator of
the people , and the publication of mis
leading statements , particularly when
they are likely to affect public action , is
little , if anjr , short of a crime. Es
pecially is this true in respect to those
papers that eschew politics. Misrepre
sentation has come to bo so generally
accepted as the principal factor in the
advocacy of partisan measures , that
people look with suspicion upon state
ments made in party organs , but that
fact should make other journals more
careful to ascertain the truth of what
they pitblish. Too much harm has
already been done to the railroads'of
this country by inflaming the public
mind through misstatcuionts as to their
operation , and journals like Farming
would do well if they would carefully
examine such statements before giving
them ciirrency.
It is .stated that
WANT A
the Cuban "As
sembly" at Santi
ago is in great want of a quorum' ' . But it
is also said that there is no such want
around the U. S. commissary depart
ment at that place. A joint com
mittee , consisting of Senators Proctor
and Thurston , should bo immediately
transported to Cuba to investigate this
grave matter. Those oppressed Cubans
should have a quorum ; if it can not bo
had in any other way , one should bo
provided for them at Washington. The
"liberty" of these Cuban patriots to have
quorums and commissary in plenty
must not bo infringed.
The statements
SOAKED ALL ,
sometimes made
icimori ; .
by partisans just
previous to elections are absurd and in
credible even to the tinderstandings of
the most densely ignorant and stupid.
Not many days since THE CONSERVA
TIVE attended a public meeting to listen
to a discussion of economic , financial
and political questions. Among the
speakers was a violent republican candi
date for office who informed his hearers ,
in perfectly original English , that the
effete monarchies of the old world began
to tremble as soon as the news of the elec
tion of McKinley penetrated the indur
ated wax which veneered their anti
quated car drums. But after a partial
recovery from their first fright they be
gan with the silly exception of decrepit
Spain to pose as friends and admirers
of the United States. Thus said the -4
speaker England began to pretend to
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