Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-11-05

the increased cost of living, and consequent
increase in wages of hands employed. The
entire revenue of government from tariff is
about two hundred millions, but we have
to pay one hundred and twenty millions
yearly in increased cost of operating rail
roads, and about forty-four millions more
as interest on the increased cost of roads
built since 1863"
Mr.. Grosvenor proceeds to discuss
the remedy:
''The farmers of the West do not seem to
Inv, INV, ,tailzed that the adoption of pro
rata rule, requiring all charges for trans
portation to be proportioned to distance in
each State, would establish fatal mOnop-
DIV against themselves, and i'll favor of
those who happen to own farms nearer the
seapolts or the water channels. Yet, if
this principle, that distance alone should
eoytrri dliargt5 tof Transportation, is Just
and beneficial when applied to one State,
must it not be equally 50 when applied to
AL States alike? If the farmer who lives
al a competing point in Illinois ought to
nav higher rate than actual Cost for his
traffic. hi order that another Farmer who
lives al a non-competing station twenty
miles nearer may get a lower rate than
the actual cost of his traffic, must not the
farmer of Illinois also pay a higher rate to
New Yerb. In order that the Farmer uf Ohio
NAV pay lower? This would be the effect
of a general application of the pro rata
principle. In order to lower local rates
and yet obtain a living income, many roads
in each State must raise their through rates.
The present average charge for transporta-
ton of all kinds of freight, over roads of
ali lengths, is ABOUT three cents and Six
tenths per ton per mile, as will presently be
shown, and the average charge for grain all
distances and over all roads about two
cents and four-tenths. If all the roads
should strictly equalize their rates for all
distances, according TO the average now
charged for all, freight FROM Chicago to
New York would cost S21 60 per ton, or Ga
cents per bushel of wheat. Even if such
rates did not depopulate that thriving city,
they would at least put an end to wheat
growing in Illinois, except for home con-
cumption."
The remedy is to be sought in more
competition, rather than in less. Mr.
Grosvenor continues:
"Competition alone has prompted and
enabled the great ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS to the
eastward to wrest large share of business
from the water routes, and to reduce rates,
i'll spite of great increase i'll cost Of Operat
ing. To that competition alone we owe it
that tariff which has made iron cost $50
per ton, has not also made wheat-gr0wing
west Of Cincinnati and c6rn-grOWiItg west
of the AlleghanieS wholly improbable.
Competition alone has prompted the build
ing Of thousands Of miles of railway at the
west, multiplying competing points, and
striking the shacliles or monopoly from hun
dreds of thousands of farmers. Not less,
but more of it, is needed. No ''cast iron"
law, which denies freedom of competition
in low rates, can serve the farmer
or the public. A graduated maximum.
so adjusted somewhat on the principle Of
the table of cost elsewhere given) that no
road could charge for ADORE the actual cost
for given distance with reasonable profit
added, might serve to put an end to serious
abuses of power by some roads. But the
farmer, of all men, should guard well
against any restriction which would pre-
vent the reduction of rates, wherever COM
petition proi1pts it, by requiring as a con-
ditlon corresponding reduction to many
other points at which no profitable enlarge
meIt of business would follow. Still less
can it be the interest of the farmer to
brighten capital, proverbially timid, to drive
it from western investments, and thus to
prevent that increase of railroad facilities
upon which, as facts have shown, the value
Of western farms so largely depends"
After all, freedom il the short road
to many blessings. That the tariff re-
moved, not only the great trunk-lines,
but multitude of others, now crippled
by the excessive cost Of operating,
would compete for the Western traffic,
the cost of building additional roads
would be reduced; the same capital
which now builds two miles to 100000
acres, would suffice to build three miles,
md give the Western farmers during
the next decade one-half greater in
crease in value. No other remedy APP
plies to the weaker as well as to the
stronger roads; the many which now
charge high rates because they cannot
lelp it, if relieved of One-half of the
present cost Of operating, would have
very inducement as well as opportuni-
y to reduce rates, and struggle for a
share of the traffic now denied them. |
It Is not extravagant to say that a re-
iuction Of iron to the prices of 1860
It which the furnaces increased and the |
Mills made large profts-would add |
me thousand millions to the value of |
Western farms, by consequent reduc-
ion in the cost Of transportation alone. |
Mr.. Grosvenor concludes his argu-
nent in the following words:
"The removal of the tariff, the only COM
'lete and efiecLual one, is also the very one |
which the farmers only can attain. On |
his question, political parties will never |
Ne formed until the West learns that it can |
lect President without the aid of Penn |
ylyania. But, among the farmers, there |
) but little diversity of opinion on this |
uestiOn, and if it were generally under |
TODD there would be none. They shrink |
rom graphing with it because they are
traid Of politics. In due time they will |
earn that the less they have to do with |
OliticS, the more it hurts them. The |
rave responsibilities of self-government |
annOt be Shirked by any class or citizens.
hose who blindly follow any party, and
hus suffer others to do their thinking, and
ractically their voting for them, will, in
he end, find themselves robbed. 1t is in
he nature of things, that, if a people in
usted with the power Of self-gOvernment |
o not take care to govern themselves,
Dmebody else will gOvern-and plumber
lem.
It is needless to comment upon this
rgument. It deserves study. The
eople must study political economy;
Or they can never make a government
hat will give them satisfaction, unless
hey conform it to those immutable
rinciples Of economical science, which
ave long been known, but grossly dis