Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1879-02-01
Down on the Railroads.

IoIIdIS nave appeared III TIT
CHRONICLE ON the subject of rail
roads, and the prejudice that exist,
generally against them, and yor
treat of the introduction of bill
introduced in Congress as a silly
idea that the Government can regu.
late or control these roads running
from State to State. If you exam
inc the subject more closely, you
will see the great danger that now
threatens the country through the
concentration of the power of these
great railroad corporations and
their combinations, and you will
think differently on the subject.
When the rebellion closed publicly
expressed the idea that the next
great danger that threatened the
country was the corruption and
concentration of power going on
with the great railroad corporations
of the country, and history will
bear me out that my predictions
have proved true, and if the people
are awakening to this fact, it is
none too soon. Without going at
this time into the history of the
past, how legislative bodies, both
State and National, have been cor
rupted by the wealth and power of
these corrupt men who got control
of the leading railroads of
the country and how the judiciary
were created and served their cor
rupt purposes. This would only be
repeating a history that has been
recorded, and very much to the dis
grace OF the American people.
When you see this vast amount
of railroad property, the greater
part of which has been wrung from
the productive industry Of the
country by means of fraud and cor
ruption, now in the hands of a few
men who are using it as means
and power for robbing the people
and enriching themselves, it is
quite time to awake and prepare for
defense that will arrest any far
Their invasion on their rights and
their property. There can be moth
ing more clearly set forth in our
Constitution than that of the right
of the general government to have
control over the commerce of the
country, and | will hereafter take
up this question as to the technical
point of the right to do so over land
as well as over sea and will show
the necessity of its being done, and
will show also that the time will
soon come when it will have to be
done.
We can not shut our eyes to
what has been going on around US,
and if we do not, it is not hard to
discarn why it is that so many of
the Representatives of the people
gave the vote they did for the bill
recently passed in their body. The
people are beginning to feel the
grind of the iron heal Of power
that is being exercised over them,
and their Representatives can not
shut their eyes or close their ears
to it, and now in the din Of popular
clamor it is to be feared that excess
and want of good judgment will
take place in their legislation on
this subject. One excess frequently
begets another, and like the tides
Of the sea if they run high they
llsO run loW-extreme follow ex>
remes. To-day a few leading rail
Dad corporations dictate and con-
rol nearly all the products of the
The vast coal and iron
beds of Pennsylvania, also the ]
great oil products of that State are
owned and governed by them. A
much less number of these corpora |
lions govern the price and control
The great products and graineries
IF the West. The public domain I
s also largely taken up
md controlled by them and
III view VI IueSG IdClS SnOulu uOG
his power have its meets and
pounds and be restricted, as we'll as
Ill other dangerous powers,in Re-
publican form of government.
The stature Of this Colossus of
power is quite vast enough to meet
he Imagination of even the Ameri-
can idea of greatness, and the
grasp has been sufficient to hold the
enormous purse more weighty than
he National debt. 1t has taken q
nearly the life-blood out of the 4
American people, and they will suf>
fer it to grow no greater to sap out !
their vitals. The statesman, the
citizen, the journalist that does not
zee this fact must extinguish his
sight and walk in darkness through
he world. The time is passed to
lsk the question, " Whas are you {
,oing to do about it 2" or the silly :
question, "What would you do
Without these railroads 2" With the
anne degree of wisdom might you