The Placer herald., 1873-09-27
TIE DURDE>S WE BEAR.


oppression which are bearing upon them and
grinding them to poverty, and the tyrannic.
al measures which are calculated to deprive
them Of their bequca'hed rights of liberty
That fuch things exist to an alarming extent
is patent 10 all, and the true cause of their
existence We deem 10 idle theme for more
thorough discussion and investigation. Tba,
the administration of onr government is de-
plorably corrupt, none but a fool would at
tempt to deny. and that its corruption per
m,aes every tissue Of ahc whole fabrica-
tion, can not be plausbly denied. But the
causes which directly oppress shepeople are
not quite SO apparent. They are indeed nu
merous, and TO discues each known. would
require volumes. The most fragrant. and
those which act most directly on the masses :,
are the unparalleled extravaganza Of the
general government, and the exLortft ant
rates OF transportation imposed by railway
corporations. The expenditures of the Ma
tienal Government alone amount TO not less
than 1888, 10000 annually an extrava-
g'nce which has been greatly augmented
during tl'e last few years, besides the inter-
es. on the national debt, which amounts to
nearly y onc-thrd Of the eniir, revenue alone.
Thisis All exhorbitant tariff, but when we
consider in addition the enormous amounts
paid to railroad corporations, which, accord
ins to statistics, exceeds the total expendi-
lures of the government by about s12O ,CCO,-
600, then it becomes intoerablc. These
two great powers alone, to say nothing of
the extravagant management of our local
affairs, which are often even more in,olera-
lie, grind from the producing people Of the
United States some S7S7 100000 annually.
The extravaganza Of the National Govern
ment has thus far been secondary consd-
Grafton with the people. Through the i'm
me.sse- swi'dles in The various departments,
the consequent numerous d.iacation., and
the wiful waste II finances in the manage
meft of the Army, Navy, Indian and pos
tai affairs, they canVwcll understand why il
ces'sso mitch to run the government, and
know that the only remedy for this wantop
extravaganza is in ,he election Of honest rep
resentalives TO the national councils. And
that the peepl, Of California are becoming
aroused to The ilnportancc Of this duty II
evident from the result OF the recent elec-
ticn. TIE o;heriquestion is not 70 EARLY
eneOn passed, and when understood, is not
so easily cse-come. 1t 'is. indeed, to-day
the great rtoblem of Am rican politics
How can thcee ',nons,rous impositions,
hcaped npon the predicting classes by trans
poriation corporations, be lesscncd? jus
ticernust allow them 'ftir lhtereet Oh the
actuaA cap:,aFinvested, but this is what can
not be a~rs,ttita, without the honest state
mcnt Of the Directors; the pr css Of shares
AS sold in the market is no criterion. The
Directors adopt the custom of watering
the stock until it reaches almost fabulous
amounts, and then advance their charges to
exact from the people sum viii b they will
show is but fair interest on such ficticious
capital; and even when the stock has no,
been waered the management levies high
-ates of fnres and freghts to meet the inter-
est On ,heh 'fn1e btedtfess, caused by fraud
or mismanagoment. 'Tliese evils can be re-
moved, and the power to remove them is in
the hands of the people, but it will require
a 'Dost determined. unAinching and united
effort. Whether the centralized derpotism,
which railroad corporations are seeking to
establish by consolidation and the evils
thereof, shall be swept away by the people
one wy fr another, we donot pretend now
to say. TO zee that The work is done, and
is the one great duty before
them, and to that end they should in all
cases, and throughout the whole country,
deign to elect none hut the 'purest. ablest
and most reliab!e men to every position Of
trust, power or profit. from the highest to
the lowest, and see that they nre pledged
emphatically and unequivocally to use their
personal influence and energies to establish
the relief sought. And one thing further,
to secure the performance Of the pledges
thus ri, hlfully demanded, there chou d, in
all cases, be a provision to impeach him
who would wilfully violate his pledges,
from his official position, and disqualify him
from ever Lo' ding Office agan--not even
dog-pelter. The people of California have
made grand stride toward the accomplish
ment Of this end. Let their action be an
example to the nation worthy Of imitation,
and we predict that if the whole people 1--WE