The Osceola times., 1882-03-25
MONOPOLY VS.. THE PEOPLE.
An Exposition of What May be Expected
In the Near Future at the Hands of
GouId's syndicate.
By James E. Munford.

By James f. Munford
Col Thomas III. Benton, one of the
greatest statesmen of the great men of
his day, conceived the enterprise of a
transcontinental railroad, so that the
people of the Mississippi Valley could
command the commerce of India that
had made SO rich the great cities of the
old world. In ls49 a railroad conven-
ton assembled in st. Louis to carry ont
this grand enterprise Col. Benton ad-
dressed it, and explained the incalcrla-
bic advantage that this commerce would
be to the United States, and especially
to this valley il it was located through
the heart and centre OF it. He reached
the climax of his thoughts in this signi-
ticant utterance: This is the East, there
is India" To perpetuate this grand
idea the people of st. Louis had the
sentence inscribed upon his statue that
they erected to his memory in Lafayette
Park.
In 1851 the State of Missouri chartered
the Missouri Pacific Railroad with a
southwest branch, and took a large
amount of stock in the road. The
Southwest line was intended for the
shortest and most direct route by which
t6reach the Pacific coast. After the war
a great confiscation of the roads took
place through which acts the people lost
nearly all they had put into the great
enterprise. The East knew well the
value of the East India trade and so
manipulated congress that n charter to
build the Union Pacific Road was OBJ
tanned, granting to the road privileges
never before heard of or thought OF. In
stead of locating it on the line that Gen.
Fremont marked ont for Col. Benton,
it was run up the Missouri valley near
200 miles when it was no nearer the Pa
cific coast than the point of beginning.
This was done for the double purpose of
enabling tIem to seize large tract OF
the finest lands on the whole route, and
of lenythening the line and thus
vastly increasing, their requirements
Of territory, and large amount
of bonds from the government.
The men who constructed it under its
liberal franchise made out of it clear
for construction alone over S7,0O0,OOO
besides receiving donation in lands as
large as all the New England states
Through the Credit Mobilier and
other fraudulent transactions the
people are likely to in the end lose about
800 O00O 600. Constructed largely over a
barren region, its local business is OF
small consequence. The stock thus be-
came of little value, and Jay Gould, who,
as a railroad wrecker, is equal TO Caesar
as a military chieltain, obtained control
OF the corporation. To make the road
paw, he, in violation of the provisions oi
the charter, refused TO prorate with any
of the roads west of the Missouri river
The Kansas Pacific bad completed 600
miles from Kansas City to Denver. By
this means the road was crushed and
fell into Gould's hands, by which trans
action, il is said, he made SS,000,000
Having control of the roads west of the
Missouri river, il became necessary for
him to control the Missouri roads run
ming into st. Louis. He is as expert in
manipulating great railroad enterprises
as he is in his other speculations. When
he had purchased the Missouri railroads
and made st. Louis his objective point
and established his barge line on the
Mississippi, he had added TO his system
900 miles of water transportation to New
Orleans, more valuable TO him than any
$1,000 miles OF railroad he had in the
Mississippi valley. With his system thus
organized he saw the necessity Of secur.
ing il against the competition OF
the Southern Pacific railroad. He
regarded it as a necessity, in view of his
vast interests centering at st. Louis, that
the routes TO the Pacific coast should be
controlled by him, and with the power
he had he made an easy conquest of the
Texas roads, When this was accom-
plished the Gould syndicate held sway
over the travel and transportation of the
vast empire west of the Mississippi river
to the Pacific coast. Getting back to the
Union Pacific again we see that it was
the vast bounties and privileges given
this road that enabled the Gould syndi-
cate to become absolute monarch over
the immense dominion that it now
holds.
1t is but retributive justice that in the
dispensalion of events these bounties
and privileges given to the Union Pa
cifc should prove TO be the source of
relief to the people of the South and
West in freeing them from the tributes
and commercial bondage to the people
of the East. But the last act that the
Union Pacific will play will be more dis
astrous TO the people of the United
States than they may dream of now.
When this syndicate finally gets full
sway on the southern routes it will
allow the Union Pacific to fall
into disrepute, and eventually to
be sold out. The $500 900, 600
put into it by the peple will be lost. The
natural channel Of the India and Pa
cific commerce is over the southern
routes to the objective points of New
Orleans and st. Louis, to be distributed
and consumed in the valley of the Mis-.
sissippi, and it will be an easy conquest
for the powerful syndicate controlled by
Gould TO absorb in the end the Union
Pacific, by buying it in, just as it has done
with the Missouri roads The people
will lose all they have put into it. They
the people, DO not now dictate our So
cial and political policy. The office
holders, banks, bondholders, railroad
corporations have become stronger than
the people or the constitution. These
powers have subiugated the people, and
have become so aggressive that an irre-
pressible conflict has been created that
will never cease until either the people
or the aristocratic classes shall one or the
other become the power that shall rule
the country.
CoLoURLEss AND CoLD.-A young girl
leeply regretted that she was so cnlour