The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1882-04-19

disaster if not bankruptcy. Unconditional
submission to its demands, with sworn
secrecy az to its proceedings, can alone
smooth its corrugated brow and secure the
| privilege of special rates. Wealth and aris-
/ tocracy have free access to its sanctum,
while poverty and obseurity stand in the
outer court neglected and despised.
To show that speak by the record, 1
again quote from the report Of the New
| York committee.
| Numerous examples are cited in support
of this statement, which we omit.)
Comment upon these facts is unnecessary.
| They stand out in such grossly revolving
colors as to strike every honest man with
astonishment and indignation; in their
greed of gain abusing public favor bestowed
upon them in the way of liberal charters,
striking down one set of business men TO
advance another, and all under a bond of
secrecy, must carry to the mind of every
thinking man the conviction that something
must be done to checkmate these gigantic
institutions before they have compasSed
their end of subordinating every other in
terest to their own. Who will not say they
should be made to realize that there is a
power greater than any they possess, which
will be exerted to put an end to such
abuses? What honorable man is SO welded
to railroad interests and so oblivious to the
claims of a great public as to sanction such
injustice, not to say gross immortality?
DISREGARD OF PROPER RATIO BETWEEN
DIFFERENT POINTS OF SHIPMENT.
Nothing has tended to create greater
dissatisfaction or stronger prejudices IN
the public mind against railroads than
their failure to prorate freights accord
ing to distance. Their policy, with
out exception, seems to have been to operate
their roads for all they could be made to
bring to the stockholders. Officers and
employees under their managers have been
taught to keep, under all circumstances, an
eve to the interest of the stockholders, and
take advantage of every circumstance pro-
motive of this end In the examination OF
witnesses by said New York Committee,
Mr.. Butler being called, testified:
That he serves the stockholders only, and
only regards the public interest to make 1t
tributary to the interest OF the stockholders.
4 Mr. Blanchard, another witness, said:
I knew of no claim that the non-shareholding
interests had upon me as railroad officer, so
long as | was within the written law, to eoncede
its views in the matter of rates and in the man
agement of our traffic.
In a joint letter published some time since
by Messrs. Vanderbilt and Jewett, two of
what are termed railroad kings, they say I:
The managers of a railway company desire to
make all the money they can for their clients,
and to do this they have constantly before
them the question what rate within their char
tered limits will an article bear that will
yield the largest profit.
again read from said report:
William w. Mack, of Rochester, edge-tool
manufacturer, ,'testifes that he shipped his goo is
to New York, and had them re-shipped to Gin
cinnati, via Rochester, and saved fourteen
cents per hundred-weight thereby; shipped
goods to New York, and then re-shipped to ST
Louis via r ,chester, and saved eighteen cents
per hun Ired-weight. In each case the railroa 10
hauled the goods about seven hundred miles
farther than direct haul from Rochester, and
did it fourteen and eighteen cents cheaper, re-
spectively.
Port Jervis milIers have grain shipped from
the West via Port Jervis to Newburga, and
thence hauled back to Port Jervis, distance OF
fifty miles at less rate than they could stop
the cars at Port Jervis in the first instance.
The county of Franklin is recognized as non
competing territory, and such, well illustrates
the higher rates which neutral ground is re-
quired to pay. For instance, they charge six
ty cents hundred on butter shipped to Boston
from all points in ST. Lawrence county over the
Ogdensburgh and Lake Champlain, and Yer
mont Central roads, seventy cents from the
nearer county of Franklin, and the rate increaS-
ing as you approach Boston, until 1t IS ninety
cents from St. Albans, Vermont.
1t is needless to multiply facts and figures
upon this point. There is not a man i'll the
House or out of it who does not know that
where there is no choice of means Of trans
portation railroads seldom fail to charge
higher rates for the fraction of hundred
miles than for many times that distance
where there is competition and choice CT
means / might cite numberless instances
coming within my own knowledge and
experience in relatiod to the railroads
in my own section. Upon the
New Orleans, St. Louis s. Chicago and
the Mobile and Ohio Railroads these
Determinations are constantly and open
ly made; even transporting freight from
st. Louis and Memphis to New Orleans and
Mobile for half the amount charged from
intermediate points, and less than half the
distance. In the one case they are subject
| ed to the competition of the Mississippi
River, and in the other they have no COM
petition.
do not say that prices of freight can or
ought to be prorated exactly according to
distance for the handling OF it at one point
costs Just as much as at another; and there
are other considerations which must enter
into the makeup of freight bill. But
what mean to say distinctly is, that when
a railroad company, having customer in
its power, helpless and dependent, levies
| black mail upon him in the way OF freight,
l can see little difference between that spe-
cies of robbery and that OF the highway
man. The one presents his pistol to your
breast and commands you to stand and de-
| liver, while the other refuses to carry your
| freight unless you submit to extortlon
amounting to black-mail. In both cases in
timidation is the means and money the end.
1t must not be understoodlthat | am an enc
nv to railroads, but / war upon their NAL
| practices as do upon those of individuals.
| The position which | hold at the hands of
generous constituency will not allow me to
do less, even if my own sense OF justice
failed to prompt me to It,
THE WEALTH AND CONSEQUENT POWER
OF RAILROADS.
/ advert to this point, with no purpose OF
creating prejudice against railroads, nor
with any view of encouraging spirit OF
communism as to wealth, but simply to
show upon what they have fed, how they
have grown, and to what proportions they
may attain if pampered By the Government
and allowed to eat out the substance of the
people. !,
The most reliable data recently furnished
as to their wealth sums up about as follows;
10000 miles of railway with a professed
capital of 50, 200 000, 900, their gross annual
receipts amounting to nearly five hundred
millions. exceeding largely the gross reTen-
ues of the United States Government, and
equal to a per capita tax of SO upon
every man. woman, and child in the United
States. To this must be added the vast
amount of the public domain, secured by
them through one device and another, ag-
gregating 296, 100000 acres, worth about
i seven hundred and thirty-sevcn millions of
dollars, equal to nearly ene-half the whole
/ public debt
In many cases these lands are exempt
from taxation for years to come, and about
! one hundred and seventy millions were
granted reserving no right to actual settlers
upon any terms, except such as the rail-
roads might prescribe. These lands in many
instances have become very valuable since
said roads have been built, and are held by