Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1871-09-21

by four east-and-wcst and three north
and-south railroads. at cost of hall
the public lands, situate. lying, and
bcing' therein, the half remaining I'M
granted would not merely be worth far
more, but would furnish twice as many
homcstcads, Us the whole did or would
without the railroads. While, there
fore, | council caution, moderation,
circumspection, in making grants of
public lands iii aid of embryo railroads
| mai"tai" that the policy is bcncdccnt
and may yet be extended with advan
tagc to the settlers and the country.
Nor do | concur with those who say,
the railroads may and will be built.
even though no lands be granted" In
the course of two or three centuries,
they might be; but even that is doubt
tui. Madness, if nl1dncss aboundcd in
cash, might construct one railroad across
the continent without public aid but
madness could never find the means of
building a second iron track across
fifteen hundred miles of arid alkali
and grease wood. And besides, since
the public lands arc enhanced in value
immensely by the railroads that traverse
them, it is but naked justice that they
should dcfray 2 good share Of the cost
[ speak, therefore, as a friend not
only Of railroads in general, but of land
grant railroads in particular. when
insist on Il reconstruction Of the policy
under which they have hitherto been
authorized, and often subsidized. That
reform can hardly be too sweeping, and
it cannot come too soon. [ can but
outline some of its broader features.
n dozen or so Of railroad maynatcs.
summoned by private message: meet
from time to time in one IF our Yrcrt
cities. They consult in secret, dine
on wine satisfactorily. adjourn and 9"
their several ways. Next m"rnin" the
telegraph wires will have flashed across
the land their decision that every bush
ell of grain going to market. every bale
of goods passing inland, shall hence,
forth pay twenty to thirty per cent
more freight than has hitlcrt" been
paid. II effect, this bcvy of railroad
kings have arbitrarily reduced the
value Of every farm. every quarter sec
ton, every bushel Of grain, in the Great
West. If they owned the whole coun-
try, and all who belong in it, they
could not lord it over Us more tyranni-
cally. And perhaps they will proceed
next day to make Il scrip divid nd, or
additional issue of stock. representing
nothing but their own rapacity, so us to
c"nccal from dull or careless eyes tie
fact that they are cxactiny from their
customers an annual profit Of Is to Is
per cent. on their actual investment
<. ut" | am asked. ''nay not Il man
do what he likes with his own %
Ianswer. Within certain limitations.
he may. lie may inhabit or lock up
his dwelliny-house; he may not set
fire to it, lie may arrest the stream
flowing and brawliny across his farm.
but if he should wiifully open his food
gates and let off his pond So as to DAMP
age his neighbors below him, he would
be legally responsible to them for the
value Of their crops or other property
destroyed. We mn:t so use what is
indi~putably ours as to do no wanton
injury to Others But railroad is not
private property in the Same sense, to
the same extent, that house or farm
is. 1t is Il public highway. which a
company has constructed. on certain
some Of them expressed,
others clearly implied. If a mailman
should buy up majority Of the stock
Of Il railroad, and thcreupon decree
that n" one but himself should hen r-
forth taavrl on it. he would soon be
authoritiveiy taught that the road was
not his property TO that extent and for
that purpose. He would be ma &c to
understand that the public had IL right
fnl interest in that road, which he could
lOG DC diiOWCu ~ tCIlit.
A private citizen, after giving the
best part Of his life to the requirement
of competence, sits down to conserve
and enjoy it. He builds or buys Il
commodious, elegant dwelling. and sur
rounds it with gardens, arbor>, green
houses, shade trees, and whatever he
deems essential to comfort and natur,l
beauty lie hopes never to be disturb
cd in his possessions, and could not be
tempted to sell them by an offer Of
twice their appraised value But a
railroad company's staff run a line
directly through mansion, garden,
greenhouses, and commission which
he has no voice in selecting appraise
his damages with no regard to senti-
ment, and he must. tumble cut his fur
niture and take himself off, though the
sum awarded him is not half the value
to him Of what he is compelled to Civ"
up. lie is not at liberty even to move
his house off the track and get out Of
the way unless Ivy consent Of the rep
rescntativcs of the embryo ra'll"ad
Is this right? Certainly it is; for
those who represent the railr ad rep
resent also the State and the COMMUTE
ty. They represent that public inter
est in the construction Of f;aclc high
ways OF transportation and travel, to
which individual convenience and indi-
vidual choice must give way. Every
ones ownership of land o houses is
subject to the right Of eminent domain
irrevocably vested in the State, and
liable to be practically asserted when
ever tic public welfare shall require it
We have no labor SO cheap as that
Of Europc; | trust we never shall have.
Labor was always relatively dear in
this country; it is now dcarer Gin |:old)
than ever before. We have an expan-
dcd currency, and our productions of
the precious metal is SO vast and con-
slant that prices arc quite as likely to
rise as fail. With cheap land and
dear labor, our farmers arc required tori
val dear land and cheap labor Of Western
Europe, and send considerable share
Of their products to market Tour thous-
and miles away. That is an arduous
competition. l wis! it were not re-
1uircd-tl;at our metals, wares aud IA
brics, now imported, were produced on
our own soil, and our need Of export
inS food thereby prevented, But we