The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1873-07-18
CHEAP TRANSPORTATION.
Ex-Gov. Palmer's yiews-Some Bub-
bIes Crushed by Hard Logic.

Ex-Gos. rainier of Illinois is the
most prominent public man OF ac-
knowledged ability and patriotism,
who has so far taken an active part
in the farmers movement. On the
4th of July he made an elaborate
and carefully prepared address to
the farmofs ceiebrr,ion at SPRING
field. We extract some of the
leading points, whichh treat of sew
eral of The fayorite schemes propos-
ing to remedy the great evil of cost
ly transportation:
And You will pardon ME for say
ing here that none of the plans pro-
posed by any of the professional
railway reformers have. in my judg-
ment, the least merit, or promise
anything towards q favorable re-
suit! To notice these schemes will
aid us in our efforts to reach the
very Q1est on to be solved.
One ofthe remedies proposed, and
the one which seems to have found
the greatest favor, is that of direct
Congressional and Legislative in
reference to fix the rates to be al
lowed for transportation. No Con-
gross or Legislature is equal to the
practical duties required by this
scheme. Railroad rates must, in the
nature of things, vary according to
| the special circumstances, and no
Congress or Legislature would I'M
dertake to discharge the task of
watching the varying demands of
such duties. The attempt would
only be TO increase the number of
commissioners, those anomalies in
| the government, which are neither
| legislative, executive nor judicial
in their nature or functiOns-not
chosen by, or responsible to the
people-and that would soon be-
come a mere appendage to the
railroad system. The most and the
best that could be expected of them
would be to coDfine themselves to
the arduous, though pleasant, duty
of signing the receipts for their
compensation.
And the same may be said of
Legislative tariffs. And there are
two objections, in addition, which
apply to the whole theory of
direct Legislative interference to fix
the rates to be allowed to the rail-
roads; and these are, that the rights
and interests of both the people and
the railroad corporations would be
endangered by such a policy; and
the second is, that the people cannot
be compelled to pay more, nor the
railroad companies to accept less,
for their services than a just and
reasonable compensation. l throw
out of view the inevitable corrup-
tions which such a policy would
engender. We know the influence
which wealth exerts on our politics
and there is danger, If the principle
was once conceded that railroad
tariffs might be conclusively settled
by Legislative action, the people
have greater reason for apprehen-
sion than the corporators.
Another one of the schemes OF
professional reformers is, that Con-
gress should at once engage in
building railroads to compete with
existing lines.
If this scheme contemplates that
the federal government shall engage
to afford to all portions of the coun-
try the advantages of competition
with existing railways. then we may
well feel all the agonies of rear al
the anticipated approach of the tax.
gatherer; but if it means that one
or two trunk lines are to be con.
structed by all for the benefit OF
some one or more cities and dis.
tricts, leaving all the other districts
to feed the demands of the corpora.
tions, deprived of part of theiI
profits, we should have another H.
lustration of the folly of mere en-.
piricism in politics.
All these schemes arc worse than
follies. The only remedy for The
abuses and expressions incident tC
railroad management is to put into
the hands of the people the means
of self-redress for every wrong they
may suffer, and any relief obtained
in any other way than by voluntary
action of the people Themselves
would be productive of greater in.
jury to the institutions of The coun.
try, and to the popular spirit, than
hundred years of the seyerest ex-
actions to which the railroad corpo.
rations can subject the people.
God, in his providence, permit.
men to be slaves after they have lost
the spirit of freemen; and govern.
ment may destroy all the institu-
tons OF liberty by incessant attempts
to interfere either with or for the
people.
We want only legal rules of evi.
dence, which will throw upon the
railway carriers the burden of vim.
dicating their claims whenever they
are disputed. We need only such
changes in the remedies as will en-.
able us to ascertain the cost and the
actual value of railroad property,
and we must have such enactm ents
as will separate the ownership OF
railways from the business of COM
mon carriers prosecuted on their
lines; and the roads Themselves
must be thrown open to competition
upon terms that will protect owners
of railway property, and at the
Same time break mp combinations
and monopolies.
/ All the laws that fix the character
of the stocks of railway companies
as personal property, and fit them
for the manipulations of gamblers
and stockholders, must be repealed.