The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-02-16
Ohfec.son. Answered.

urged sgainst the railroad PROPOSE
ton low before the people of this
county.
lst- Oae is opposed to voting
bonds on principle. As it ia g
j question of expediency entirely,
with no moral consideration involv.
ed there can be no principle involv.
ed. Our supreme court and the g. S.
supreme court have decided that
Icounties may legally do this thing,
therefore there is no legal wrong OF
right in the case. If the benefits 10
be derived are proportional to the
cost, and all share equally, or nearly
so, in the cost, then there can be no
moral right involved.
| I'd. When the country neede
railroads they will be built without
aid" If Kansas had acted on this
assumption she would not have had
a mile of road to-day, with The ex-
cepticn, perhaps, OF the Kansas Pa
ciffc, which was very literally aided
in two ways by the general govern
ment. The good policy of aiding
railroads in the manner proposed is
so well established by experience
that this objection scarcely requires
an answer. In some instances coun-
ties have been overreached and
swindled, but this has been their
own fault. As 8 rule, they hsve
got what they bsrgained for, and
would not willingly trade back. Ii
is we'll established fact, that it il
cheaper to aid the building ofroade
to reasonable amount than TO wait
for them au indefinite number OF
years, or lose them entirely by hav-
ing them diverted to other and rival
localities.
81. "The country does not need
any more roads. There is not bust
ness enough to support what we
have" This is true in one sense,
yet it is no more reasonable than
it would be to exclude a third
merchant from YOUR town because
the two you already have are
not making much money. If q
third one proposes to sell you
goods at q less price, and shows
yoa that he can afford to do it,
you viii not give much thought
to the interests of the other two. II
is the best interests of the county
we should leok after, and not the
interests of tho railroads.
4th. "The other companies would
hire this one to put it's tariff the
same as theirs, from this, the only
point where they would enter into
direct competition" 1t is said that
all things are possible, but this is
one of the most improbable Things
in the world, for a company to dis
criminate against q town and coun-
ty where its principal officers re
side, and where their offices and
machiue shops are located. This
being the only point of impor-
lance whe9I the interests of the
three roails would clash, the mar
row gauge could not afford to
sell out cur interests, nor could the
other roads afford to buy. The SIM
pie, common sense thing for them
to do would be to put their rates
down from this point to the same
rate with the narrow gauge, then
they would get share Of the bust
ness from here at that rate, while
their tariff would remain the same
at all points outside of the iafiuence
of this competition.
5th. "There is no guaranty in
the proposition that freights and
fares will be reduced" This is
true, and it is fortunate for the coun-
ty that there is not. We UNDER
stand that the company had no OBJ
lection to insert such a provision,
and we also understand that those
who make this objection say they
would be satisfied with 8 reduction
of twenty or twenty-five per cent.
from the present rates. No one dis
putes that the narrow gauge can do
business at great profit with even
greater reduction than this; but If
company were bound never to
charge more than a certain price,
they would be very sure never to
charge less. The tariff of freights
on the only narrow gauge road in
the State ia actually from twenty
five to forty per cent. below any
other Kansas road fer the same
number of miles, and the passenger
fare is four cents per mile instead
of six. And this road has no COM
petition whatever. 1t does it not
only because it can afford to do it,
but it attracts business to itself from
a greater distance by SO doiug. The
fact is that the laws of business, of
trade, of competition, are stronger
than any guarantee or any statute.
9th. "There il no assurance in |
the proposition that the road will be
built any further east than the east
line of the county," This is also
true, and this is the only PROPOSE
ton we ever heard of that provided
for building any road outside Of the
county to which the proposition
was offered. The only reason for
fixing time when the road should |
be built TO the southern liue of the
State, was to give the people of the
south of US an assurance OF
a road in a reasonable time if they
with their part of the con-
tract. The fact that q road from
here south would not pay its own
ers, Is sufficient answer TO such a
frivolous objection. Ia regard to,
the last two objections, we would