The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1874-02-04
RAILR0AD DE4D-HEADS-

roads would be abolished in our Of
fee, we have received from various
sources the approval of the public.
While these n manifestations have been
most gratifying to us, personally,
and have most Enthusiastically shown
that our course has met the appro-
baton of the best class of cur peo-
pie in the various walks of life, it has
ut the same time aroused the fears
sounded the alarm to somc-of the
craft who have SO leng fattened upon
free pass sop that they look with
holy horror upon the prospect of los
ing the great privilege by running
counter to such an innovation upon
their long established rights and
privileges. Be calm, gentlemen
dead-heads! You have got to come
to it. One of the greatest curses of
our day is this dead.heading editors,
lawyers, legislators, etc, by railroads.
1t has been the means by which the
anaconda railroad rings have fasten-
ed themselves upon the vitals of the
public good. With the courtesy of
free pass extended to the Editor,
as n general rule, the courteous Edi-
tor has been too courteous to criti-
else their action and too busy to look
into the workings of their designs
and expose their deep-laid schemes
of public plumber, There is no more
reason why the Editor of & newspaper
should ride free over railroads than
that that courtesy should be extend
ed to the village blacksmith. If the
railroads want anything published
in his paper, let them pay for it like
anybody else and when the Editor
wishes to take a ride, let him hand
out his greenbacks and equip him.
self with a ticket. This manner of
doing business is above suspicion,
while the free-pass system is fraught
with many and most glariDg evils.
We hope the day is near at hand
when the whole system will be abol-
ished. We see that many leading
Journals in different States are fall
ing into the course we have adopted,
and we hope soon to see the custom
universally enforced by all respecta-
BILE newspapers. In any event, we
shall always revert with pride to the
fact that the GAZETTE was the first
paper in the State to adopt this
course and to assert its independ-
ence.
Since writing the above, we have
received a copy Of that old and eX-
cellent paper the Franklin Reriee0
und Journal, of Jan. %, containing
the following hearty and sensible en-
dorsement of the position we have
taken. The cloud no larger than
the palm of a hand now, Will grow
and enlarge until it covers the entire
horizon. Let the friends Of the re-
form keep working, and all will be
well.
From the Franklin Review and Journal.I
The editor of the MORRIsTOwN GA
zETTE announces that in the future
he will accept no free ticket or COM
plimentary pass over any line of
railroad, and pleads in extenuation
of having received them heretofore,
ignorance of the rules governing
the issuance of them. We agree
emphatically with our contemporary
in his determination in fact we
carried it into practical effect more
than q year ago. No editor can be
true to himself or the public who
receives one of these free passes and
in consideration thereof morally
binds himself not to expose or hold
up to public view the rascalities and
oppressive practices of these mo-
nopUlies. We accepted these pass
es o year or two because the prac-
tice of giving them was general,
but like the GAZETTE did not under
stand that we surrendered our right
to condemn whatever of wrong might
come to our knowledge concerning
the transactions of the companies
who granted them. We were very
severe i'll some subsequent remarks
about freight matters &c on certain
lines, since which time we have been
in apparent disfavor with the whole
ring, and then it was that we inferred
from the circumstances following
that we were regarded as being
guilty of ingrutitutde in the eyes of
certain line Of officials. We have
never since received O free pass over
any road, and will never again accept
one unless at regular ra,es to be
paid in currency or its equivalent in
advertising.
The GAZETTE strikes at the root
of another evil growing out of the
dead head system when it says:
We pledge ourself to support no
candidate for the Legislature from
this district who will not promise us
to refuse the courtesy of a dead
head pass over any railroad in the
State, if rendered him after his cleo
ton. We will bring our corner up
square, regardless of how others may
work.
Don't Do IT!-The Dead Head
system is evidently not extinct in