The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-07-16

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4 follows 9ss sssss h ssss .s
Various expeaients have sen 80 stst
! for lessening the cost Of trans1l ortatigg u u
some of the Etates II has beeg props {, =
tplace railway fares and freigAts an !ler w
control Of the State. The Objections go tna,
texpedient are so serious that 1t Should MOI :.
be embraced ia better one can be fou l J.
i This country ID SO new, SO raw, and SO unde
welcomed. the demands for ca ital 50 many and
/ 40 argent, That any policy which " Hld tend
Ito drive capital from Us should be avoided il
,Iipossible. The iStatelis but the aggregate of
/ The people in the State. The people are the
/ purchasers of transportation. The railway
companies have transportation to sell. The
| laWalso holds railroad com anies to be;c0m-
mon carriers,and so bound to carry fer@an
4 when1the price is paid. His now q 1nooted
question whether that price shall be named
! by the companies or iby the people, the sell
ers or the purchasers of the article, Which
Of these two parties is legally authorized 10
| fix that price is probably determined By the
laws under which the several companies are
organized. But which Of them can, in fact,
| fix it is different question.
I It is manifest that if the company be allow
ed to fix the price they may demand too
much. Vendors of all commodities are very
apt to want all they can get. On the con-
trary, ii the people or their agents fix the
price they may set it too low. Purchasers
are very apt to want commodities as cheap
as they can be had. It's not probable that
either party to the transaction would always
| hit upon the exact equivalent. The conse-
quences of mistake would probably be
found most injurious if made by the people.
| II the company makes the mistake and
charges too much no one is obliged to EN-.
ploy it. The producer does bis own carry
| ing 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 munich
pal law is silent, to carry products
| cheaper than the producer can carry them,
or be will not have them to carry. The COM
pany must also carry them at a profit to the
producer, else the product will cease. The
farmers of Iowa will send no wheat to Chi.
cago unless the roads will transport it at
prices which will yield profit to the pro-
ducer. The carrier must earn money for the
producer as well as for himself, else be will
soon have nothing to carry. 1t is as absurd
for the railways to demand more for trans
portaton than the producer can afford to pay
rs it was for the man in the fable to endeayor
TO get two golden eggs each day from his
goose. The attempt TO do so was death to
the goose.
Under favorable conditions, indeed, the
carrier may demand and receive more than a
fair share of the profits Of production.
Where such is the case, when the State finds
the producer makes but ten per cent, while
the carrier makes fifteen or twenty 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 SIC will build another" So the people
are not helpless against exorbitant charges.
On the contrary, if the people set the price
and set it too low the consequences may be
graver. The company has no option. 1t
must accept the price named or not run. If
The rates named will afford slight return
on the capital existing companies may con.
tinue to run, but no more capital viii en-
counter like risks. If the rates will yield no
return the road cannot be run. Company
and community in that case are alike ruined.
This expedient seems to be 100 hazardous to
adopt il 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
consideration.
THE PROBLEM TO BE SOLVER BY REPUBLICANS
ALONE.
But whatever may or may not be eXpe-
dent to be done, this much seems certain
ii the National Government is to do any
thing whatever to cheaper transportation
only the Republican party can he relied upon
to do it. The Democratic party has for
sworn AL such labors. Long ago
they determined the Constitution would
not permit the Government to remove
an obstruction from harbOr or a river.
1t is vain TO suppose they will find
now authority to build canals or construct
railroads. But we are not left in doubt rs
to thei1 present disposition. Two votes given
during the past SesSiOn-One in the Senate
on Mir. WINDOWS amendment to the river
and ilarbor bill. and one in the House on Alr.
McCrary's railway hil-will prove beyond
all doubt that the Democrats, like the Bour-
bons, have learned nothing good, even if
they have forgotten anything bad.
THE MORAL OF THE PAST.
Upon all these considerations, for all these
reasons, we think you should send Republic
cans and not Democrats to the next Con.
gReSs. lfyou cherish the deeds of therecent
past and would not see them undone, if you
respect the present and would not disgrace
it, or if you have hope of the future and
would realize that hope, we urge you to
send Republicans and not Democrats to the
next Congress.
The address is signed by Senator Zach
Chandler, chairman of the committee, and
thirty-eigbs Senators and Representatives,
members of the committee. t.,.- ~
The President Is said to have made UP his
mind thof will NOT dn Ia olloU Snpfh Tar.