The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1868-02-18


I,Ia !, - claim US for teacher, whenever it
-, ;,formation; nor is there anything
-, the questions which any intelligent
.a.der of that paper has not already salts
ac.orily answered, in his own mine, yet
| our desire to impart information to those:
| who need it and ask for it is 50 great that
we waive the discourtesy of that paper and
proceed to furnish its editors answers to
their questions, in the order they propounA
them. Their first is as follows
at, as the ARGUS claims, corporation ms IS
no right to tax the people for the bu,Iains :,
railroads by what right does our democf a,io
council tax this city for S2o, ooo ih'e'' - '
Camden road?"
Ansuer.-By fright obtained from the
state of Illinois by . former leader IN the
radical party In This county, once county
Judge, and once mayor, and by him sold to
the city; and because, now, no other party
but the city has any Fright" or jurisdiction
over the road, or power to put it in repair;
and because the city has the 'right" and
the power to levy and collect tolls to REIN.
burse every expenditure power the town
would not have in regard to the railroad
stock. 5-
The second question of the Union is as
follows: sa
"Why should the laboring people of this city
pay fifteen cents bushel for the same coal which
in Peoria sells for half that amount?"
,Ans,rer.-The .'laboring people do no
such thing. They pay no more per bushel,
for single bushel at time, than those pay
who purchase large quantities, thousand
bushels, or ten thousand, at time--and
this has been the invariable rule at Mr.. Ca
ble's coal Office since he has been in the bus
iness-now over nine years. And this much
abused Cable-monopoly is the only coal
company where the poor can get their coal at
the same rate as large purchasers. very
large portion of the expense of coal comes
in consequence of getting it to market. In
Peoria they have productive coal mines IN
the bluffs Immediately adjoining the city, if
not within the city limits, and are thus saved
great portion of the expense of transporta-
ton. The miners wages are reduced to the
lowest possible point, and the coal producers
are doing such an illegitimate and ruinous
business that they must soon shut up their
mines, leaving their manufacturers an I'M
certain supply, and thus greatly injuring the
business of the city.
The last question our 'neighbors ask is as
follows:
"Why should they pay twice as much for Ca
ble's coal to-day they paid for coal from the
same mines before the present proprietor owned
| them"
We might answer BY asking why every
| thing else costs twice as much as it did be-
fore the war; but we prefer to answer the
question directlv-and our answer is as fol
lows: "They" do not pay twice as much. Be
fore the present proprietor owned the mines
the price ranged from to II cents, on q
gold standard, and it has not averaged 10
cents, on gold standard, since the present
| proprietor owned and operated the Mines
How the business paid, at the prices the
| Union refers to, can be seen BY the follow
ing extract from an affidavit of Holmes
! Hakes, ESQ.,, taken to be used on a trial Of
a motion in the case of the City of Rock Is
land VS.. P. L. Cable, ct al, pending in the
Rock Island County Circuit Court
"This afiant further states that the entire net
earnings of the Rock Island L Peoria Railroad
Company, and of the Coal Valley Mining Com
pany, up to the LIST day of October, 1853, when
Cable bought the property, did not amount to
enough to pay for the coal taken out of the
mines, at tue rate of one cent per bushel; or te
enough to pay the interest that accrued ON the
mortgage bonds of the railroad company up to
| that time; which facts are shown by the books OF
the companies which have just been examined
| by this afian:.
(Signedl II. HAkEs.
Subscribed and sworn to this 18th day of JAN
| uary 1865 before
s. P. HODGES, Clerk.
If our friends of the Onion desire any fur.
Their information it will afford us pleasure to
| furnish it.