San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1881-03-03
RAILROAD MONOPOLY.
BY H. d. LLOYD.

When Commodore Vanderbilt be-
gan the world he had nothing, and
there were no steamboats, or railroads.
He was thirty-fve years old when the
first locomotive. was put into use in
America. When he died, railroads
had become the greatest force in mod
crn industry, and Vanderbilt was the
richest man of Europe or America,
and the largest owner Of railroads in
the world.
He used the finest business brain of
his day and the franchise of the state
to build up kingdom within the re-
public, and like king he bequeathed
mis- wealth and power to his eldest
son. Bancroft's History of the United
States and our railroad system were
begun ut the same time. The histo-
ry is not yet finished, but the railroads
owe on stocks and bonds $4, 100000
900, more than twice our national
debt of $2,22O, 900, 900, and tax peo
pie annually $490,0OO,OO0, one and
half times more than the governments
revenue last year of $274,OOO,OOO.
More than any other class. our rail
road men have developed the country
and tried its institutions. The eva
sion of almost all taxes by the New
York Central Rlilroad has thrown up
on the people of New York State more
than fair share of the costs of the
government, and illustrates some Of
the methods by which the rich are
making the poor poorer. Violation
of trust by Credit Mobiliers, Jay
Gould's wealth and the poverty OF
the Erie stockholders, such corrup-
ton of legislatures as gave the Pacific
Mail it's subsidies, and nicknamed
New Jersey 'The State of Camden
and Amboy," are sins against the pub
lie and private faith On scale i'm
possible IN the early days of repub-
ncs and corporations. Alawsuit still
pending, though begun ten years ago
by citizen of Chicago, to recover
the value of baggage destroyed by
the Pennsylvania Railroad; Judge
Barnards midnight orders for the
Erie ring; the surrender Of its judicial
integrity by the supreme court OF
Pennsylvania at the bidding of the
Pennsylvania Railroad as charged be-
fore Congress by President Gowen,
of the Reading Railroad; the veto by
the Standard Oil Company of the Ell
actment of law by the Pennsylvania
legislature to carry out the provision
of the constitution of the state that
every one should have equal rights
on the railroads-these are q few OF
the many things that have happened
to kill the confidence of our citizens
in the laws and in the administration
of justice.
No other system of taxation has borne
as heavily on the people of those ex-
tortions of inequalities of railroad
charges which caused the granger
outburst in the West and the recent
uprising in New York. In the actual
physical violence with which railroads
have taken their rights of way through
more than one American city, and in
the railroad strikes of 1876 and 1877
with theansrchy that came with them,
there are social disorders we hoped
never to see in America These incl
dents in railroad history show most
of the points where we fail, as be.
tween man and man, employer and
employed, the public and the corpo-
ration, the state and the citizen, to
maintain the equitiesof government
and employment-of the people, by
the people, for the people. .
Our treatment of the railroad
problem will show the quality and
calibre Of our political sense. II will
go far in foreshadowing the future
linesof our social and political growth
1t may indicate whether the Amer-
can democratic experiments which
have preceded it, is TO become ex
tinct because the people had not WIT
enough or virtue enough TO make the
common good supreme--iMarch At