Litchfield enquirer., 1873-06-19
THE FARMERS AND THE RAIL.
 ROADS.


 recent judicial elections of Illinois and the activity of the ''granges" of Iowa, indicate that the auti-railrOad movement means good deal politically, whatever it may amount to in its main object of reduc- iRg and equalizing charges for railroad transportation. The tone of Eastern crit iciSn Is m the main hostile to the en- terpEise except i'm the case of a few parti- san papers which, like the New York World, triumph in the belief that the Re- pGblsaR organizations in Illinois and Iowa. and probably in Wisconsin, Mime sOta, and Kansas, are par4 zed by the new movement The defeat of an honest d a mistaken judge, and the atrocioss bunklm 0f some of the Grange resolutions are. however, disgusting disinterested ob- servers. and giving rise to the fear that the farmers have already become the prey of that class of hungry, floating pol iticiaEs. who are always rcady to join and Aislsad tO their own profit any political enterprise that promises even temporary s1cceSS.
 Tt Is too early of course to judge with any accuracy of the future of an organiza ton Oaly partially developed as yet, but the principle at the rOOt of 1t has always seemed to us a sound one. The oppo- heats of legislative regulation of railroad charges rely on the general principle that business aOurishes best where it is left un- trammeled by legislation. No intelligent person will deny that as a general rule legislative interference with private busi- ness is mischievous. Private business of any kind regulates itself much better than any government can regulate it. Compe- tition can always be relied on to protect the public. But this rule never has and never can apply to public business like that of the control of transportation. There vas a time when our best roads were tarnpikes, owned by private compa- nics. Net none of those companies was ever allowed to fix its own charges on transportation. Those charges were in- varial.ly fixed by statute. In like man. ner canal changes have always been sub lect to legislative control. It has always been held that the business of supplying the public with facilities for travel and transportation was part of the duty of government: and that, in case of the del egation of that duty to private corpora tions. the government should regulate the tolls allowed such corporations. Progress has given us transportation by rail in place of transportation by turnpike. GOTeznment has perhaps wisely, perhaps anwisely, delegated the business of fur aishiRg transportation by rail to private camp3aies. It did not, however; as in the case of turnpike companies, secure the public from extortion by fixing the rAte Of tolls. Yet where is the difference of principle between the two cases? But, say the advocates of non-interventioD. competition will protect the public in this Ss la sny Other matter of private business. It IS m the assumption that raiiroading ss private business. open to adequate cO@PetitiOn, that the whole error lies. No turnpike company ever had the assurance aO claim the night of regulating its own tells far the simple reason that such g EsgAt wOald have inevitably given rise to a @cst osisoas monopoly. The device of cAzrteEsng an opposition turnpike, and so Ezgal&ASng tOlss by competition, did not sorar so the legistares of half century sz@ce whO lnangaratel the first improve Eezt ln tran<pOEtataOa. Does competi. tloa SGer zny better solution of the. rail. rad rrShgens
 Les zs glance at the condition of things Sa CoaaeckicGk Has competition reliev. s1 us from the extogsiOaate charges of g oS7pzzr that has controlled the main ar tsEy ef travel bstEeen New YorS and Bos tna Ear trsaty years past? 4 railroad cSz11 probably be built from New York so Sew Haven. eEen in these expensive tS2sS. Ear nanA less than the amount rep. ress@Aea bv the capital of the New York Scw Haven railrOad company. Such a S~1A- cauylng passengers and freight at <1@ <sses 1sw charged. would pay good
 sA4sasd= fEnm the start. 4 few years ~11ee anaakemps vas made to charter such a ~umEag r2ad- Several legislatures ~sss es@salsad lxith fhe struggle. The EssPosod cnlEanE could only promise, the saA es@RnE eoald pay down, and wor -e@z1lE- Szppose. however, the charte,