Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1870-02-25

S. Il. BEARCE,
j. s. Z. HAM,
GRANVILLE BLAZE,
ID. Z. PALMER.
Remarks OF Hon. Josiah Crosby of Dexter.
February 18TH before the Committee Railroads,
in opposition to Consolidation.
Mr.. Chairman and Gentlemen of the Com
saittee Il appear before you to oppose the
bill for the consolidation of the railroads of
Maine. appear Of my own mere motion,
employed by no one, representing myself
alone, but to speak in my own behalf and in
behalf of those who may happen to think as
do. am well aware of the gross inequality
of this contest. On the one side we see ex-
Governors, Presidents. Directors and Super
intendents Of railroads, earnest men, men of
brains, influence, position, with boundless
wealth at their command, powerful lobby,
experienced men who know all the highways
and by-ways of influence, and who will doubt
less make effective use of the means in their
hands On the other side is no one whose
special interest prompts him to resist this
momentous project. A few humble individ-
uals, whose interest is simply the common in
terest of the people, paid by no one, with no
lobby at their backs, appear in opposition. 1t
Is substantially an Ell pdrte contest.
| My first impression was that this was a
scheme to unite the Maine Central and Port
! land & Kennebec railroads. But l find that
the bill embraces all the connecting railroads
! in the State. '.Any two or more" connecting
railroads 'may consolidate" / have long
foreseen that the time was coming when this
measure, at least with reference to the NJ. c.
r. and p. & X. X. was to be pressed in good
earnest, but that time has come sooner than
expected. 1t has been proposed several times
before but not then seriously pressed, and
has not til now attracted public attention.
When saw those two corporations last win
| ter fighting with so much ferceness Of wrath
on the question Of giving the Somerset &
, kennebec railroad right to extend their rail-
road from Skowhegan to Caratunk, and when
/ saw, last summer, the holiness of their COM
petition to get control of the Belfast &
Moosehead railroad, little thonght to find
| them so soon consolidated into one magnif-
cent conspiracy to get the control of all the
railroad interest, in Maine. But when
saw, after the September election, not Letors
the election, that they had come together and
given out to the world that they had agreed to
unite their interests, l knew that the appoint
ed hour had come, and that it behooyed all
the friends of equal rights to prepare to de-
fend against the impending danger.
What is the proposition? 1t is in substance
TO combine all the railroads in Maine, repre-
senting now some twenty or thirty millions of
dollars, and which in ten years will represent
| sixty millions, and in few years more one
hundred millions, into one monster corpora
ton, and place the same with all its bound
less power in the hands Of ten or fifteen gen.
| temen, and in the hands of those powerful
ambitious and wicked men who may succeed
| them tomorrow. In the course of nature
even this corporation would soon change
owners, but railroad stock passes from hand,
and in very short time the Goulds, Fisks
and Drews may exercise the jurisdiction pro-
posed to be given to these gentlemen. Fur
thermore this bill, if once passed, unlike
most laws, is utterly irrepealaJle. Let the
companies once accept the act, enter into a
contract to consolidate, and then they are
protected by that provision of the constitution
which forbids you to pass any act impairing
the obligation of contracts, so that you are
asked to give your sanction once for all to
| the most stupo ndous measure ever proposed
in this State, and that, too, when they well
know that you were not elected in reference
to this matter at all.
! Let me call your attention TO some of the
details of the bill, and see how cunningly they
are devised. First, as to the control over
fares by the State Highly respectable au-
thorities contend that the State has a reserved
right to regulate fares. This is the doctrine of
I
gests that if there be any doubt on this point
this will be favorable opportunity ''to de-
clare or re-affirm the ultimate right of the
State over the roads" Seemingly in COM
pliance with this suggestion the bill does pro-
vide that the rates shall not be higher than
they were on the M. c. Railroad and p. & r.,
Jan. !, 1870 That is the rates on Il specie
basis, to which we are rapidly approaching,
shall not be higher than the highest rates es-
tablished under an inflated currency. For all
practical purposes the bill might have for
bidden rates higher than ten dollars per ton
for one week, or one dollar per mile for pass
engers. But by implication the bill gives up
to the company all right on the part of the
State TO interfere with rates unless they ex-
ceed that highest point of Jan. l, 1870. Prac-
tically the bill abandons on the part of the
State the very right which the Governor de-
sired to see declared or reaffirmed."
Then, again, the bill provides that all other
companies may enter into the consolidation
whenever majority of the stockholders
represented and voting at legal meeting
so declare. 1t is well known that all the
stock is never represented at meeting OF
stockholders. The bill then gives to these
gentlemen and their Inscriptions successors
the power by buying up sufficient stock-say
one third or one quarter of the whole, to con-
troll any company, to vote to cancel leases, and
to consolidate on terms dictated by them.
The bill might be amended in these respects,
but should regard any such amendments Of
little value, because know tull well that if
consolidation be once granted, any provisions
now Objectionable to these gentlemen, will be
made perfectly agreeable to them by future
legislation.
1t has been frequently urged that competi-
ton in the building of railroads is not desra-
BILE, and that therefore consolidation ought
not be objected to on the ground that it will
destroy that kind of competition; and Eng,
land, Belgium and Massachusetts are re.
terred to. Those cases are not at all in point
England and Belgium are small States terri
torially, densely populated. Their railroat
system is old. They have all the railroads
they need. The same is much the case will
Massachusetts. AT the last census, Main,
had 472 miles of railroad. Massachusetts haC
1879. The territory of Maine is four tme
as large as Massachusetts. The necessity fo
railroads has reference to territory as well al
to population. Railroads are freaJentl,
projected into parts uninhabited. in order t,
develop the resources of unreclaimed land'
and water power. We are doing this same