Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1873-10-02

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| take that course which caused them to be
regarded as enemies by the entire colored
| population, and gave opportunity for
many bad men to use them to the mutual
| destruction of black and white. There
are many excellent men, whom l person
ally knew, who remained at the south at
| the close Of the war, who are still there,
and some in high public position, but
candor compels me to say that the south
| generally has been terribly accused by
an inroad of adventures from the north.
South Carolina, Louisiana and Florida are
| absolutely ruined by them, and there is no
hope for either of those States but to rub
| out and begin anew. l hail, as good omen
| a recent address by Gen. Beauregard and
others. They have struck the true key
note. Had that policy been inaugurated
| in the first place, am sure that all sec
! tons of the south would now be peacea-
BILE, prosperous and happy, and the best
men of that section Of country at the head
of the administration of affairs.
COST OF TRANsPoRTATIoN-TH CAUSE
FOR EXCESSIVE RATES.
| Perhaps the most important question
now, so far as your welfare is concerned,
| is the one affecting the transportation of
the surplus production OF the farmer to
| the seaboard. The cost of moving the
crop has been so excessive that, though
the consumer pays a high price, little or
nothing is left to the producer, and the
question is as to the remedy 1t is a
| troublesome question, and he will be a
| wise man who can solve it. 1t cannot be
denied that the vast Accommodations Of cap
ital in few hands is Just cause of alarm
There are many single railway companies
in the country, welding capitals varying
| from ten to fifty millions of dollars. A
recent article in Harpers Weekly states
that Cornelius Vanderbilt controls railway
lines represented on the stock exchange
by securities equal to 1915 100000, upon
which the gross income lastyear was $45,-
600, 900. In addition to this he controls the
Western Union Telegraph with nearly or
quite 10000 miles of wire, and real or
nominal capital Of S45,OOO,O00. So that
here is one man who may be said to have
his hand on the throat of the commerce
of the country.
| THE PEOPLE SEE DANGER AND WILL PRO-
| TECT THEMSELVES.
The present agitation in the country
means that the people comprehend the
situation and see their danger. They are
determined that no corporation and no
man shall be above the law; that laws
| shall not be made or unmade at the dicta-
ton of this corporation or that. They
are going to watch their public servants.
Heretofore too many legislators in some
of the states were just as much bought
and sold as the bullOcks in the shambles.
| While the people have nobody to lobby
! for them, the railroad lobbyist is every
where. He invades the halls Of legisla-
| ton, he breaks over the rules, he is seen
on the floor of the House or Senate, squat
like a toad at the ear of this member or
| that, imploring one or threatening the
| Other This is no fancy sketch, and to
| see it you need only to have have been at
| tendant On the sittings of our legislature
| in years past. This thing should end.
| You are no enemy of railroads, but you
are determined that they shall stick to
their legitimate duties, and no longer die
tate legislation or who shall be elected to
| office.
| A REMEDY FOR EVILS PROPOSED-POSTAL
| TELEGRAPH.
What is the remedy for the evils have
named? So far as the telegraph is con-
cerned it is easy enough. Other nations
| have shown us the way. 1t is now seven
years since first publicly advocated from
the hustings, the assumption by the gov
| eminent, of the telegraph system of the
country and making it a part of our postal
system. In the 41st Congress, asked for
a special committee, to enquire into the
| propriety of establishing a telegraph sys-
| tenn in connection with our postal service,
with power to send for persons and papers
1t was opposed till the clause was strick-
en- out giving power to the committee.
| The committee was raised and by parlia-
| mentary usage, / was made chairman
| By the same usage ought to have had a
| friendly committee, but did not Thus
| hampered l had to grope along as best I
| could. But l addressed myself to the
| work, communicated with all the tele-
| graph administrations of the world, and
embodied large amount of information
| upon the subject, in the report which I
submitted to Congress. The only regret
| l had in leaving Congress, was that l
should not be able to follow up this great
subject Of reforming the Geographic ser
vice of the country. But this reform viii
come just as soon as the people will it,
and make their wishes known to their
representatives. 1t is a shame, that this
| Country where the telegraph was first in
| troduced, and where, because of the char
acter of our people, it would be used
more freely than in any other Country, if
it was cheap and reliable, has the worst,
most expensive and unreliable system of
any civilized Country on earth. l am
satisfied from a very full examination,
that a perfectly reliable and self sustain
ing system, may be adopted in connection
with our postal service, that will permit a
dispatch to be sent to any part OF the
| Country for 25 cts. for 20 words, and
ct. for each additional word. In the vast
and sparcely settled country of Austria
| lia a postal telegraph has been in opera
| ten for several years, at a uniform rate
of one shilling for twenty words, and was
| perfect success from the outset. The
same is true of New Zealand, where q
dispatch may be sent 1900 miles for one
shilling,
In the summer of 1871, met in Wash
| ing the Hon. VIM. Gray of Auckland, New
Zealand, manager of the Post Office De-
| partment of New Zealand, who assured me
| that the postal telegraph system there was
| a perfect success, that nobody would dis
| pense with it and that it was self-sustain-
ing. On his return to New Zealand he sent
me voluminous reports and documents on
the subject which fully verified his state
ments. Great Britain was very slow to
| adopt the system-her Australian and New
Zealand colonies whose governments are