St. Landry democrat., 1883-05-05
The following is from the St. Louis
Railway Register Of the 21st April

The following is from the st. Louis
Railway Register of the 21st April
Morgan's Louisiana 81 Texas Railroad
will soon pass into the nahas VI 1HG
Southern Pacific Syndicate, and Will
benceforth be managed in accordance
with the dictates of wise and liberal
nolicy. This will be in marked con.
frast with the methods and practice OF
the present officers. =,
This railroad was built by wealthy
firm of New Orleans in order to OBTAIN
communication with a fertile sugar
producing section of Louisiana. 1t new
er had any real competition to meet, but
was an isolated road, and enjoyed a
comnlete monopoly. Its officers were
thoroughly imbued with the ideas OF
their inheritance and became arrogant
and insolent, for they believed that the
people were compelled to deal with
them. The management was selnsh'
harsh, illiberal and unjust towards EN-, !,
ployees and the public. Iley courted
When the Louisiana Western was
COMPLETED and through line opened
between Houston and New Orleans,
other railroads were forced to deal with
the Morgan road and found it dlsa-
oreeable coucern to come III contact
With. The Traffic Manager, j.. &.
Shrieyer, and SnperintendentGe Geo. ran
deiv. were men whose pOmpOus and
dicfatorial ways formed obstacles
AGAINST which the companies struggled
i'm vain. These true fossils were worse
than any of the pleagues 1nfllcted upon
Egypt or the Affections when ve1ed
job. They could not, or would not, un-
derstand modern ways, they never We're !,
willing to extend favor or do g liberal |
thing, they were stingy, exactlng ana
arrogant, to q degree which uofueIeu
mon tyranny. They were unit to nav
idate q scOw upon a mill pond. Meu
yynnld travel a thousand miles rather
than meet either of these railroad Ma
hobs.
This Kind Of men has frequently
cnrsed southern roads, and has been
like blight, whitening otherwise tar
fruit. We must have modern men Tor
modern institutions, and railroads es-
necially need enterprise and Hberailty
In their management in order to sue
coed. Most southern railroad men are
active, skillful and up with the times;
but few are like Shriever and Pandely.
They cannot realize that there ever can
be such thing as competition,
By purchasing the Morgan line the
Southern Pacific is relieved OF the ne
cessity of building an independent out
let to New Orleans which would other
wise have been a necessity, for no
modern railroad could use the Morgan
line, as formerly managed, for connec-.
ton and live.
We cut the above extract from the
Railroad Racket column or the Times
Democrat that paper having published
itwith its own endorsement. In sub
seauent issue of the I'D. we note that
it apologized for its publication, and
gave the oficialsn of the Morgan
road a nice coat of Whitewash. Now,
80 far as the people Of this entire sec
ton of country are concerned, the Reg
isterl exactly expresses their opinion of
these officials. Language could not more
tersely and truthfully describe their de-
meanor and conduct towards it's own
employees and the public than that in
which the Register has done ii, and
when the Legislature takes in hand
the regulating Of freight and passage
charges as it certainly vail do, the 9TH
er railroad companies in this State, may
blame the Morgan company for it, if
they should be disposed to blame any
body.
There was; all along Morgan's line, a
general feeling of qualification at the
announcement that Huntington would
control the road, after April, based up
on the belief that, with the new man.
agement, would be inaugurated a fair
and just policy toward the public.