Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-11-15
LANCASTER WISCONSIN, TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15 1870


ety 4Os OF
tl4Es
III 5H
1.
Iav ae H.
e
We 6 .om 81 f5aovias 10 re-
3au. .t.tir. .i..
lsas ha COTTON u-
Ha.r sears Ia hts c1un-
rf corporate Iahuence
h., mag er-fv day more and
imof powerful ~ consolidation
~ railroad CORP cations, with Their
immense capitals, in nil sections Of
the country, aad the pretcntious
power they exercise, afford lndica-
tions that the policy Of the managers
Of these corporations is TO grasp
control not only in state but in ma
tional legislatures. Take a few ex-
amples Commodore Vanderbilt
holds ia the pa:m Of his hand three
such great rair>ad institutions as the
Hudson River Railroad Company,
the Harlem Railroad Company, and
the New YORK Central Railroad
Company. The Erie Railroad, with
its gigantic proportions, is managed
by an adroit abroad manager uamed
Gould, with an cntiring adjutant in
the shape of an opera Boufe director,
the magnifcors Signor Jim Fisk.
The Pennsylvania Central is q huge
political machine, one Of whose
branches may he said to 30 located
in the Senate Of the United States,
where the New Jersey, Camden aud
Amboy monopoly has had central
bureau for more than quarter Of
century. The Baltimore and Ohio
corporation has about as much to say
in regard to railroad transportation
to and from the rational capitol as
Congress itself but its encroach-
ments upon the prerogatives of the
people to the eight Of way" over
thoir own domain, have not been
quite 80 cXtensiec as some others of
our railroad corporations.
The New England railroads have
4 heavy politicahipnuenco while the
rebuilding Of the Southern roads
gives to tie railroad monarchs in
that par. Of The c)unt:y-whoso OPP
crations, however are largely based |
on Northern car al--no little politi-
cal power Then We have the great
Pacific Railroad corporation, with it's
iron bands Spanning the continent
and pointing the Eay Of the whole
world 20 the riches and wants of the
oace far Indies. anon wo shall have
tac atupend0us Longitudinal Rail- !
road, stretching al the way from
Bearings Straits - The I-thmus of
III lra he verl:abio backbone" Of
at Gai uniting It's cx-
nd tnpHe.-
a
.te..a
o g. F a7t
-. a35 "Y -ae saa-
"a pre- EAT ~
= The American
ao "ttFm u a ,ar
'oH"'aatloh q thc
IN rec II theNs vast
a'-a 'ra spas may have upon
-4.af" u rs country upon the
erNs cy ~ &.~ institutions ana
ta" pef9t,Wty 81 political liberties;
ta' IA vie" 81 pes Die contingencies,
W. tmnk we ares ,eited IN caution
luG the people aShnst the possible
creation OF a railroad oiigatchy mere
that may prove ~ dangerous TO the
nation IN times |" come - was the
southern cotton o1lgarchy IN times
past.
Tho newly developed power IS IN
our railroads. lac enormous capital
Invested in these, and the concentra-
ton OF 1t IN lev hands, compare
lively, enable the managers to con-
troll, yea, to buy up, If necessary,
political leaders ana legislatures, The
railroad property OF 'ne country OF
al klnds-5tock., bonus I@hus, roil-
ing sVocA' Ouliu ~ ni"lul"otoIioS
ana moneys ecafcely less IMAM
TWO Thousand ml:liohS oi uoilals' Inc
gross annual income approaches that
OF the federal government, and the
profits amount, probably, to nearly
a hundred and fil2y millions year.
We speak Of tlto property at its
present estimated or nominal value,
and not of tho cost Of the railroads,
because the stock in many cases has
been doubled or Inflated more than
that. Il must bo remembered, too,
that most of these railroads earn
good interest on tae inflated stock,
for which the pAblic have to pay
increased fares AID freightage. I'M
agino what power this stupendous
capital with its yast annual income
gives to the maeaates who control
the railroads. hen look at the
hundreds OF thousands OF people
either employed ID them or directly
! interested IN them, as stockholders,