The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1874-08-14
The TRANSPORTATION Question.

Congressional Natlonal RepuDllcan
Committee relating to the Transports
ton question is worthy of thoughtful
consideration. After discussing its
importance, especially with refer
ence to the Western States, the commit
tee say:
Various expedients have been suggested for
lessening the cost of transportation. In some
OF the States il has been proposed to place
railway fares and freights under the control
OF the State. The objections to that expe-
dent are so serious thar it should not be en-
braced il better one can be found. This
country is 80 new, so raw, and so undeveloped;
the demands for capital are so many and so
urgent, that any policy which would tend to
drive capital from us should be avoided IL
possible. The State il but the aggregate OF
the people i'm the State. The people are pur-
chasers OF transportation. The railway COM
panies have transportation to sell. The law
also holds railway companies as common car
ricrs, and so bound to carry for all when the
price is paid. 1t is now mooted question
whether that price shall be named by the
companies or by the people, the sellers or the
purchasers OF the article. Which OF these two
parties is legally authorized to fix that price
is probably determined by the laws under
which the several companies are organized.
But which of them can in fact, fix 1t is dill
ferent question
1t is manifest that if the company be al
lowed to fix the price they may demand too
much. Vendors Of all commodities are apt to
want all they can get. On the contrary II the
people or their agents fix the price they may
set it too low. Purchasers are very apt to
want commodities az cheap as they can be
had. 1t is not probable that either party to
he transaction would always hit upon the ex-
act equivalent. The consequences OF mis-
take would probably be found most injurious
il made by the people. II the company makes
the mistake and charges too much, no one is
obliged to employit. The producer does his own
carrying before the railway is built. He has
the perfect right to do so after 1T Is built.
So every company is compelled by the laws OF
trade, even if municipal law is silent, to
carry products cheaper than the producer can
carry them, or he will not have them to carry.
The company must also carry them at profit
to the producer, else the product will cease.
The farmers of Iowa will send no wheat to
Chicago unless the roads will transport it at
prices which will yield profit to the pro-
Queer. The carrier must earn money for the
producer az we'll as for himself. else he will
soon have nothing to carry. 1t is as absurd
for the railways to demand more for trans
portation than the producer can afford 10
pay az it was for the man in the fable to get
two golden eggs each day from his goose.
The attempt to do 80 was death to the goose.
Under favorable conditions, indeed, the
carrier may demand and receive more than
fair share of the profits of production. Where
such is the case, when the State finds the
producer makes but 10 per cent, while the
carrier makes Is or 20 per cent, it is very
easy and perfectly legitimate for it to say TO
the company The work you do can be done
for less money. We will pay you for your
road what it will cost to build such another;
or you may keep your road, and we will build
= 10 moi hall loo
against exorbitant charges. On the contrary,
if the people set the price, and set 1t too low,
the consequences may be graver. The COM
pany has no option. 1t must accept the price
named or not run. If the rates named will
afford slight return on the capital, existing
may continue to run, but no more
capital will encounter like risks. If the rates
will yield no return. the road cannot be run.
Company and community, in that case, are
alike ruined. This eXpedent seems to be too
hazardous to adopt, if better can be found.
Another expedient is to build a double
track railway between the Mississippi and the
Atlantic, over which any party may run
trains, and all trains to run with the same
rate Of speed. This is worthy of careful
The "mooted question" must be de-
cided before the transportation problem
can be solved. The railway companies
desire to sell transportation +; the peo-
pie desire to buy. The rule that "two
parties are necessary to every con-
tract" will have an exception if either
of the parties to such contract has the
power to fix the price which shall be
paid and accepted without regard to
the views or the wishes of the other.
The INTER OCEAN demands railway con-
troll, but regards infexible schedules as
and recognition of the
existence of the power without limita-
tion to enact them as exceedingly dan
gerous. The authority to either de-
stroy or make valuable railway property
of an entire State, by fixing the rates
which may be charged for railway SER
vice, will open the door for wholesale
public corruption-a result to be de-
plored more than any suggested by the
But it does not follow that
no limitations should be placed upon
the companies. While being permitted
to fix the rates which shall be charged
for the use of their property, it should
always be upon the condition that they
are equitable. Enactments prohibiting
and unjust discrimination,
leaving to the courts the decision, upon
the circumstances of each case, what is
q reasonable rate aud what is unjust
what is practicable and
can be sustained upon principle, can be
passed and enforced.
The railways and other common car
riers are engaged in the discharge of
public duties, and for that reason the
may properly direct as to
the manner in which these duties shall
be discharged. That railways are pri-
vate property has been repeatedly de-
cided by the courts. Being private
property, they can be converted to the
public use only by the exercise Of
the power of eminent domain. The
Constitution, however, provides that
no such appropriation shall be
made without compensation to the
owner, and the measure of such COM
pensation must in all cases be ascer-
tanned by judicial proceedings. Where
the public interest demands the appro-
priation of any other property to the
public use as sites for public buildings
common roads and canals, it is ordered
by Legislative enactment, and provision
is made for ascertaining its value in pro-
ceedings before juries, in which all
parties have ample opportunity to pre-
sent evidence and be heard in argu-
ment. If the Legislature should at
tempt to fix the amount of compensa-