Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-01-19

executed acts, and then only bv appearing
az the prosecutor in the criminal courts, or
Dy lnsututtng civil suits in the name OF
the State. Often charges are made against
omcerS; charges affecting their character
and onicial integrity, that are groundless,
wnue shey have no means of vindicating the
honesty of their conduct before the public,
or having the Chief Executive of the State or
the Executive Council in a position TO de-
that moneys have been properly and legally
expended, or contracts legally and fairly
made without collision or fraud. The COM
plete protection OF the interests of the State
demand, now more than when we had annual
sessions OF the Legislature, that authority
should be vested somewhere for the protec
ton OF the interests OF the State, its funds, its
puOnc institutions, its contracts and public
works; and also to cause Investigations to be
made, that the facts of any alleged fraud or
misconduct may be ascertained, and guilty
parties removed from authority.
To accomplish such investigations or ex-
amlnatlons, would respectfully suggest that
the Governor be authorized, by proper law,
on his own motion, or on charges preferred
IN writing, to order investigation to he made
into the management of any of the State in
situations. contracts or disbursements of pub
lie funds, to the end that the interests. and
the public funds appropriated for the differ
ent institutions or other purposes NAV bc
properly guarded, and dishonest or corrupt
oncldls be removed. and fraudulent or cor
rupt contracts annulled. Such power or au-
thOritY should be carefully guarded so that
no honest man should suffer, any guilty
is always ready for an investigation, while
the dishonest one may shrink from an exam
nation into his conduct. There is no harm
done, but great good has resulted, by our laws
providing FOR the examination OF our county
and state Treasures without notice TO incum-
bents. No official objects, or can with any
pretense OF honesty, To a fair and impartial in
vestigation, and there certainly can be no
valid reason shy other officials, than State
and County TreaSurers, who disburse, con
troll or make contracts tor the apprropria-
tons of public funds. should not be subjected
to the same system of investigation.
RAILROADS.
1t Is a recognized fact that railroads have
in sense, made our State. They have bv
advertised the State, aud thus brought it to
the attention of thousands of immigrants
who have settled amongst us, and are now an
important class of our population. They have
aided In the general material development of
our resources, and have proved themselves
AN Invaluable agency; and all this Is thor
oughly appreciated BY the pub &c.
While this il true it is equally true that the
state has made the railroads, so that a mu-
tual obligation exists between them. To en-
courage, and promote, and aid the building
OF railroads throughout the State, our citizens
very wisely procured from the general Gov
eminent large grants of land, supplemented
by donation from our own State OF 100000
acres OF our school lands, and Government
and municipal bonds, with first mortgage
guaranteed bonds, amounting to about S27 sOj
OJO. so thatmillions ofacres OF land and millions
In the construction of the various railroads of
our STATE.
These generous donations of lands and
bonds were made by the people of Kansas
for the purpose of building the magnificent
railroad system of our state, and for their
generous treatment they expected generous
or at least fair treatment in return and for
years this expectation was fully met. These
liberal subsidies at the outset enabled the
projectors of our railroads not only to build
and equip and maintain the roads in question
~ second hnf
they also placed the original constructors in a
position To greatly enrich themselves as indi-
Nlduals. The actual cost of building, equip
ping and maintaining these roads did not ex-
ceeu more than one half of the cash value
OF the lands, mortgages and bonds donated TO
them, thus leaving about fifty per cent. OF what
Uas been donated for thu construction of rail-
roads TO go into the pockets of the manage
ment. And yet. profitable "a railroad build
ing has been u the construction companies
the State and the people did not complain or
1nterpose any obstacles to the successful con-
struction of railroads, until after the passage
of the "Copsolidation act" authorizing rail
roads TO consolidate and lease railroads
Up to this period in the history of the state
there was perfe :tunderstanding,a and the best
roads. Competition existed between the
roads. and fair and generous treatment was
accorded to the public. But soon after to
passage OF the "act' above referred TO tn.
original railroad companies having sold or
leased their roads to second parties, these
new corporations, taking advantage of this
tothe detriment and injury of the public
From that hour the antagOnisIn between
the people and these corporations has stead
lily increased, until to day we have in our
midst the strange spectacle of a rich, strong
Influential and soldified MONOPOLY RreedilV
encroachiug upon the rights of the very peo-
pie whose creature they are, and to whom
they owe, not only their existence, but the
very patronage which enables them to WELD
n power whose possibilities are simply ap-
palling. Steadily have these corporations in
vaded the rights of the people. They have
taken advantage of the necessities of business
and commerce; they have, upon the flimsiest
preteXt, presumed to do high handed and
outrageous things; they have ignored the
real interests of the State, and have simply
used the State and its resources to the detri-
ment and injury of its agricultural, CONNER
cial aud manufacturing interests so that by a
systematic and thoroughly organized method
OF pooling their earnings" by unjust
determinations against localities and in
dtviduals, by excessive and exorbitant
freight and passenger rates, by draw
backs secretly allowed, thus defra1ding other
patrons as well as by an arrogant and intOl-
Grant policy, they have made it practicabIv
impossible for our merch Jnts and manuiac-
turer5 TO compete with the same classes in
adjoining states. The result of this has been
to make IL Improbable to- develop the manu-.
featuring resources of our state. Manufac.'
tured articles of all kinds made in the far
eastern states are shipped into our State and
sold here at n less cost than these articles can
be manufactured anywhere in the state and
Tor the simple reason that our railroads are
constantly discriminating against our home
manufactures, and eNacting excessive local
rates. under the fallacious plea that a lonv
haul Is more profitable than a snort one even
when greater ate Is charged for a short haul
and the empty car is again readyfor the com
pany's use, and the cost of loading and nm
loading the car - the same in both instances
The effect of this has been to paralyze and
stop the manufacturing industries of the
state.
Furthermore, railroads are constantly dis
eliminating against our Wholesale merchants
in favor OF the same class in other States: and
not content with this they are discriminating
against the purchasing interests of the retail
dealers. aud against the whole agricultural
mercantile and commercial interests of the
state. The agricultural interests of the State
by that form of injustice known as pooling"
by which excessive rates are charged and
competition prevented, are so seriously erin
Is Impossible under the present system of
railroad management, even with the best of