National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1881-06-21
ReDublicaniSn.


The name of the Republican party in
dicates its adherence to a form of gov
ernment in which laws are made by rep
resentatives chosen by the people and
executed by officers also chosen by the
people and acting within the limitations
of the laws so made. The party is bound
at all times to maintain the right of the
people to rule. It is bound not to allow
its organism, by which candidates are
proposed for the popular suffrages, to be
subordinated to private interests. 1t is
bound to rebuke and oppose any who
have shown willingness in Office to
abuse the power placed in their hands
by the people. If the will and best in
terests of the people are opposed in the
interest Of those who prey upon them,
the Republican party must stand against
the latter or go down with them.
The rapacity of the. great railroad cor
porations deprives the producers of the
country of the greater portion of the
profit from their labor to which they are
fairly entitled. The farmers do not re-
ceive |" a fair return on their investment" !"
The enormous wealth of few men en-
gagged in the transportation business is
the best evidence that they have had
much more than return on their invest
ment William H. Vanderbilt has nearly
a hundred millions of dollars in United
States bonds, besides his vast possessions
in other directions. Gould, Huntington,
Stanford, and other railway kings, less
celebrated, but each of vast wealth,
have saved up other peoples earn
ings until it is doubtful whether they
would be willing to give their wealth in
exchange for what they have not yet ac-
quired. The railroads Of the country,
which cost an acreage of less than $4,000
a mile, are made to yield dividends and
interest on nearly three times that
amount. State Legislatures have been
chosen expressly to check this enormous
extortion, but generally the hired lobby
of the railway companies have bought
some and confused others, until in
despair the people have wellnigh
given over all hope of being repre-
sented by the men they elect The
corporations hire men t. clamor for
vested rights and to resist all attempts
at legislative control. The managers
formerly claimed only fair return for
their capital invested, but they now
abandon this and fix the rate of freight
at what the goods will bear" This
How high a rate would you pay
rather than not have your goods moved
for You at all ?" Mr. Albert Fink, their
chief expert, lays down the proposition
that railroad company is entitled to
charge rs freight an amount equal to
the value added to the commodity by |
moving it. As all surplus productions
would be worth nothing unless taken to
market, his principle would make the |
market value of the commodity a reason
able charge for its transportation to mar
ket.
Finding that State Legislatures cannot |
be relied on to resist the Establishments
Of these gigantic monopolies, the minds
IF thoughtful men have for several years
been turned toward the General Govern
nent. But the corporations are alert
The disgraceful exposures at Albany
show that they intend to battle for the
control of the United States Senate. 1t
s now becoming less question of what
Congress can do to relieve the people of
'ailroad extortion and tyranny than it is
low to prevent a subversion of the Gov
and its complete control by that
TeTy tyranny.
If the Republican party is to live it
must draw strength by near contact with
he main body of the people. 1t cannot
nd ought not to exist as the mere instru-
nent of the Craft and Rapacity which
,uy conventions and Legislatures of the
people with the offices intrllsted by and
he money plundered from the people
themselves.
If ever the time should come when our
resent railroad masters, through such
rgans as the New York Tribune, could
lock the entrance to the Republican
hurch, the struggle would not be to get
4, but to get out.