THE COURIER,
11
LETTERS TO "GREBNBOY."
VI
(JOVERNMKNT OWNERSHIP.
This time it id municipal, state and
national government; ownership of pub
lic franchises that you are interested
in. Wheroby you give evidence that
your head is level. "Charity begins at
homo." Taxation of municipal fran
chises, so as to relieve the owners of
real estate of a great part of this burden
paves the way to municipal ownership
of street railways, gas and electric
plants and other valuable franchises.
In my opinion we are not ripe for
government ownership of meana of
transportation and communication and
I trust we never will be. A standing
army of civil employes of the govern
ment is a far greater menace to our io
etitutiona than our little army of in
fantry, cavelry and artillery. A bureau
cracy of government clerks, subject to
civil service examination and promotion
is not only the tirst step, but the first
mile post in the. establishment of
hereditary office.
No 6ano person questions the wisdom
or possibility of municipal ownership of
public conveniences. The real question
iB bow to bring it about and the par
ticular fear of timid and apprehensive
porson9 is lest tho corporations having
the monopoly of transportation .or other
public franchise should have their
feelings lacerated. It is suggested that
theBo privileged people be handled with
velvet gloves and approached with fear
and trembling. Which reminds one of
the erstwhile famous song of "Hilde
brand Montrose" who advised his,
sweetheart that as a token of recogni
tion he would-"strike her with a feather.
History doeB not show one. instance
in which a monopoly has ever volun
tarily made restitution to the people of
right9 of which they had been despoiled.
The iron jaws thut have closed ou the
bono of privilege never open nor even
relax until they are broken.
' Municipal ownership of public fran
chises is successful in 'a number of
of cities and has failed of being brought
to a culmination in others. But the
question has taken a firm hold. It is
permanently in the air and haa come to
stay.
Brushing aside as visionary and im
practicable the peremptory seizure of
local franchises aa advocated by our
anarchistic friends, two methods are
feasible. One is to pass and carry out
a legislature enactment by which the
property of the monopoly is assessed to
its actual value and then acquired by
the city. The second and perhaps best
method is to tax them out of existence
By using the taxing powers of the
municipal government to their utmost
limit, two birds are killed with one
stone, It takes the burden of taxes
from real estate and places it upon the
Bhoulders of public franchises. Then
keep on doing it until they are ready to
sell out or quit. This is in effect the
- purport of the Ford franchise tax bill
passed by the New York legislature and
which Governor Roosevelt had the
courage to sign in the teeth of the
groatest pressure ever brought to bear
upon a public man. The bill declares
all franchises granted by local authori
ties assessable as real estate.
These franchises are, as a rule, the
most profitable kind of property in the
community. They coat their posaespors
nothing or next to nothing and they
produce larger profits than any other
species of property. Take the case of
tlio street railways. The steam railroad
Iniys and pays for its roadbed and is
taxed on it the same aa other Teal estate.
In the case of a city traction company
Urn people 'spond thousands of dollars
in grading and paving the streets and
tlw... 1 J .1 . " n.,.tlnn
I vy w.vii UHUU tUOUl UVt) IU viJUwu
wunoui compensation; f
Our municipal authorities have been
blind or else been blinded to the op
portunities presented for utilizing fran
chise revenues for defraying the ex
perjeoB of municipal government. It
hue been figured out that tbo taxing of
public frauchises would reliove real ,
estate owners or from one-third to one
half of their tax burden.
By the way you manifest preposter
ous anxiety lest our friends the demo
crats or fusioniste, or whatever they are,
should seize upon this vital question as
an Ibhuo. Calm yourself. In the Old
Testament, in tho chapters concerning
themselves with Abraham, you will find
'this passage: "Pear not, Abraham, for
I am thy shield and exceeding great
reward." Abraham Lincoln once said
"The Lord has His purposes." Rest
asBured that these purposes, so far as
American politics are concerned are
entrusted to the republican party. The
democratic party and its allies exist
chiefly for the purpose of being "ferntast
the government."
J. H. Tyndale.
THE PHILOSOPHY OP PATERNITY.
The disgruntled person who thought
that life might be tolerable .if it were
not for its pleasures was unable, prob-'
ably, to command the simple and profit
able form of satisfaction which cornea
from living in the house with a nice
child. To be sure, one nice child is a
scant allowance. At least six is prefer
able, if one can find keep and education
for so many. Jason Jackson, of Boston,
who loves all sports, and searches life's
pockets for pleasures, appreciates
children with a man's irresponsible joy,
and loves to have them about in all
stages of growth. It was he who ad-
mitted, with a new baby in his lap, that
he liked to have always one nice soft one
in the house. All properly constituted
parents share that like, though it is a
very exceptional family nowadays that
lives persistently up to its preferences
in this particular. It is the disposition
of all the world in these days to run to
town; and town life, full of distractions
and elaborations, and calculations and
costs, undoubtedly favors Btnall families.
The possessions of great treasures in
evitably involves cares, and mothers
remember, even if fathers forget, that
children don't grow up as they should
without thought being taken for them.
Though there are folks to whom chil
dren are a trial, and to whom a certain
scale of living, and et raw berries in
March, and the opera, and timely
journeys, and various privilegea of an
unencumbered life, are worth more
than young faces at the breakfast table
and kisses at bedtime, the general
conclusion of mankind is that nice
children are God's best gift. E. 8.
Martin, in Harper's Magazine.
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