The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-05-19
NIONOPOLuES.

In Saturdays paper correspondent over
the pseudonym of Commerce" wrote us
Il strong article on "monopoies," but there
in assumed positions, some of which we |
regard as indefensiblc. The assertion that |
exclusive privileges and human rights are |
at natural enmity with each other, and |
where the first obtain the last are liable to
suffer-" is to be taken with more grains of
allowance than appear on the face of the |
statement, whatever may have been the in
tention of the author. A patent to the in
vcntor of mechanical improvement is an
"excusive privilege" yet it is so far from
being at enmity with human rights, that
the best interests of the public are served
by holding out monopoly as the reward
to the inventor for cudgeling his brains and
often reducing himself to poverty-taking
heavy risks because the inducements are
strong. The author of a book must have
monopoly in its profits or an inducement
to severe mental labor is lost. Many riy-
ers require ferries where but one can be
supported. The public convenience demands
that monopoly shall he given to some
person who will establish ferry. If n
man builds Il mill on stream of water, and
needs il all to run his machinery the law
gives him with his right to mill site a
monopoly in the water flowing from above
his dam
The cases supposed by Commerce, in
which Il monopoly is imagined to be given
to dealers in meat, shoes, cotton cloth and
groceries would be illustrations of cases in
which monopolics would conflict with the
public good, and in such case, by the test
we apply, they would be inadmissibc We
want proper things in proper places. A
slaughter-housc is useful but we don't
want it in the public square A church is
good in its place, but we are not prepared
to see that the public interests would be
subscrycd at present by placing one on the
summit of Bald Mountain
The high tariffs on railroads between the
east and west result from monopolies; but
the monopolics are not so much the crca-
lures of law as of the concentrations of
capital, and the inadcquacy of railroads to
serve the commercial needs of so broad an
extent OF country. That railroads exert
too much power, that they interfere too
much in legislation, that they carry egsla-
tors, judges. lawyers and newspapers too
numerously in their brecches pockets, and
garrotc them if they attempt to speak, are
| IL. 81, 81 r.,
is not clear until it be ascertaincd where
the power and the means lie to control all
these invasions of the peoples rights. The
power of railroads looms up till it casts Il
shadow over the whole land. We do not
know where, in our blindness, to place our
hands to right ourselves. If we turn to
congress. the spectre of Cakes Ames is
seen forbidding us to enter there and hope
to find justice. If we turn to state legisla-
lures, we find in Illinois, where the only
vigorous popular stand against railroad cx-
tortions has been taken that the judges are
said to find the state powers have been
unduly stretched against the railroads.
Our correspondent is entirely correct in
assuming that Vermont and Rutland county
need cheap freights for carrying away mar
bic and slate and bringing in food, fuel and
other necessarics that we should have
more railroads in the state, and particularly
more to our quarries'; that there is the
same necessity here as in the west for COM
peting lines and cheaper frcights; and that
we must look to intelligent legislative SUI
pervision of freight and passenger rates
In short, we must make common cause
with the oranges of the west. The farmers
and business men of the country must
arouse. Some way will be found to con-
troll railroads if we keep digging for it. 1t
will be found either in congress or the in
dividual states. There may be many mis-
takes, but triumph will come at last for
truth and the people are mighty and will
prevail.
In all we have said, there is no word
rightfully to be construed against railroads.
On the contrary we, like our correspond
ent, Commerce" want more of them, and
desire that they be controlled so as to in
crease their usefulness to the people.