Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1884-05-17

anu hVnOoOAJj anu AooA dSouL0u UAi"O viz
people of Tennessee, especially those of
East Tennessee, where / am generally
known, concede that l have accom-
plished the two latter objects. / say
this much preliminary to what de-
sire to say further on.
A month or more since the Nashville
American, for some reason satisfactory
to itself, attacked the Tariff Basis, pre-
pared by the Tennessee Railroad Com.
mission, by which to revise the tariff
of the various railroads of the State,
upon two grounds.
First. Because the rate was too
low on agricultural implements, wag-
ons and vehicles otall kinds, furniture
packed, doors and window blinds and
frames, and intimated that it was done
to favor the lessees of the penitentiary,
Soon afterwards the same paper pub
lished an editorial disclaiming any
purpose Of rejecting on the integrity
Of the Commissioners, which as will be
seen upon moments reflection,
leaves nothing in the complaint, except
that the Commissioners intended to
give the farmer reasonable rates on
his agricultural implements, wagons,
etc., and to the mechanic, manufactu-
rers and builders rates that were just
to them also.
If Il have been just to the roads in
these rates, and l feel that l haye, the
producers and shippers of the State,
and especially those of East Tennessee
will not ask me to make any apology
for trying to save them a portion Of
their hard earned money.
The second complaint was, that we
allowed our roads to charge for a haul
of fifty miles more than the Georgia
roads for the same distance on ''four,
meal, &c." which was a fact; but the
paper in question failed to state that
our rate was lower than the Commiss-
toner's rates of any of the neighbor-
States, other than Georgia and that
they were very much lower than the
rates in force on any of the roads doing
business in the State, and hence were
more favorable to the shipper and pro,
ducer than any rate they had ever had.
We did not make them as low on
shert hauls as the Georgia rates, be-
cause we thought the Georgia rate;
too low, for the amount Of short haul;
that our roads have, they (the Geor'
gia rates. having been adopted for &
purpose that is local to that State. Or
longer hauls our rates are lower thar
the Georgia rates; fact that was hon
estly (?) omitted by the American, NJ
doubt. W.
But | did not start out with the In
tention of denouncing the article re
fered to, because if the public desire al
explanation, the entire Commission
will gladly make it, and can do so t,
the entire satisfaction of any fair
minded man, but my object was Il
state fairly the grounds Of complain
and the status of the matter, as 1 Sc
the Republican Platform of the recen
State Convention in refereing to tn
Commissioners, says: ga Commission
by the way, that is charged in demo
cratic newspapers with giving extr
low rates on the goods shipped by tn
democratic penitentiary ring, and ez
ira high rates on grain, flour and othe
produce shipped by, and to the farmer
of our State"
In conclusion, l will say that n
road in the State carries "grain, fou
f and other produce shipped by and t
the farmers of the State" at a rate any
thing near so low as the one complain
, ed of, and that the penitentiary onl
, manufactures one dollars worth
furniture in every two hundred dollar
worth manufactured by other partit
, in the State, and that it now gets frol
the roads lower rate on wagons tina
, the one proposed.
The truth is, the railroad problem
, a big one, and is yet unsolved, but
am of opinion that the people are
earnest, and intend to settle it. If