The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1884-12-04
4 powERLEss PEOPLE.

The proposition 10 boycott the Union
Pacific railway Is all right as q suggeS-
ten. but unfortunately It cannot be
made effective in practice The railroad
Is master OF the situation, and knows
Il 7 II we're dependent On the good
viii and friendship Of Utah for Ctah's
carving trade. II would be humble.
self-sacrifcing and subseEvient; but as
it has the Territory completely a its
mercy. Il can be both oppressive and
defiant, needless Of the claims Of right
and Justice. and naughty as 70 threats.
It may be asked why : occupies this
position OF independence. there being
another railroad outlet 70 the east? Il
Is true, there are two lines running out
Of the Territory, but 50 fsr as the people
are concerned there might as well be
but one. One could DO all the business.
and one could Just as well have all,
for any benefits that the public derives
from competition. Practically there Is
no competition. There is strife between
the companies 10 secure business, but
this Is solely for the purpose Of found
ing q new basis for pooling arrange
ments. It makes no difference to the
shipper which road carries his goods,
and for present purposes no difference
10 the railroads. The percentage that
each shall receive Of al the freight
brought into Utah or carried out of
Utah, has been definitely determined by
, the pool agreement, and while shat pool
arrangement shall continue, the trade
viii be divided in strict accordance with
the pool terms. II one ef the roads can
show that the tendency OF business is
ever its line, that it enjoys
the good will and favor Of the
shippers. instead Of proposing a
reduction OF rates, it wo1ld simply de-
mand a new pool and readjustment OF
percentages, while the public would not
be consulted in the matter, nor would
rates be cut, except it might be for
short time until the obiecting road could
be brought TO terms and forced TO
consent to a larger proportion of the
trade going 10 the opposing line.
What Utah needs more than all else
is a railroad that can afford to be indie
pendent and that viii not enter rool;
what Utah viii probably never enjoy is !
such railroad. Railroads of this char
acter are not built nowadays, Jay
Gouldism is supreme in all Of them, |
whether thosewho control them bear the
names of Charles Francis adams. Van
derbilt, Nickerson, Stanford, Hunting
ton, Ames, OF anybody else.
THE HERALD sincerely wishes that the
Union Pacific were in a position where
the people of Utah could successfully !
retaEate against it; We wish the road
were where the people could show by
something mere than words how well |
they could protest against the coercion |
and robbery to which they have been
subjected every day since that famous
golden spike was driven in 1869; we
wish the road we're placed where its
meanness could be met by something |
more effective than wOrdy protests; !
if this could be, we would see the rob
bers, the Adamses, the Kimballs, the
Clarks. the Shelbys, and the whole high
wayman gang. crawling on their hands
and knees, begging, pleading and ap-
pealihg tor the bread which they are
now denying to those who are at their
mercy.
Of one thing. however, we can give
the robber hand fair notice: One of these
days Utah may be independent and
have the undisputed power to deal with
railroads, and when that time arrives
the people will not have forgotten how
they were robbed, despoiled and OPP
pressed, nor by whom they were abused.
Iathey donot retaliate, it viii be because
human nature has changed and man
become no longer resentful.