Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1886-10-02
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LANCAsTER. OCTOBER 2, 1856.
Beaver and the Constitution.

1ought to handle the freight discrimi-
nataon issue very tenderly by de-
eloxing that the law of the state
oould not control railroad corpora
ticns chartered by the state or the United
States, and that the Republican party fa-
yored the Cullom bill, q measure of national
1sgislati0n, to regulate traffic without the
state, and he calls upon the legislature to
regulate and supervise freight charges
within the state. The Philadelphia Press
foels very much abused because Mr.. Hen
~ In q speech at Stroudsburg, pictured
Beaver as crawling on his belly to the feet
q federal power, imploring it to take
charge Of our domestic affairs. The Press
70 studiously abstains from misrepresent-
ing anyone that it feels that it possesses a
right to weep when it deems its friends to
b wrongly abused.
Whether General Beaver is wrongly as
sailed because of his Pittsburg declaration
depends entirely upon whether he intended
10 ny that the provisions Of the state con-
Stitution concerning common carriers
should or should not be respected and en-
forced. The fair inference from his state
ment is that he and his party are not in
4gor Of the regulation by the state of
might charges save within the state;
Whereas the state constitution declares that
~ undue or unreasonable discrimination
GhAn be made in charges for, or the facili-
Hes for, transportation of freight or pas
esngers within this state, or coming from,
Or going TO any other state :" and it will
hardly do for a candidate for governor of
Hsnnsylvania to declare that this provision
q the state constitution should only be en-
forced In part.
Unless indeed he can clearly show that
II b not enforceable, with proper regard to
the interests Of the people and railroads of
sfheaGIAee.: The burthen of showing this
u upon him. We are ourselves strongly of
the opinion that national legislation is
needed to perfectly control the freight
rates Of the country in view of the fact
that the competing railroad lines traverse
different states and no state can control
them all. A state, being therefore power
lens to control the railroads that compete
Tor traffic with its own railroads, ,must needs
refrain from laying such restriction upon
its own railroads as will prevent them
from freely competing with the rival rail-
roads OF other states, judicious as such
restrictions would be in themselves and
Il they could be made to bear equally upon
Al the railroads competing for the same
traffic.
II this was what General Beaver meant
to ny his intended saying was all right
while his actual saying was wrong. If he
b 20 inexpert at expressing what he means
he win not be safe campaigner for his
party. 1t is no part of the duty of Demo-
cratic orators or editors to save the Re-
publican candidate for governor from his
blunders and to fail to trumpet aloud the
fAct that he, who asks to be made the chief
executive officer of the commonwealth, de-
clares that one of the most important of
the provisions of the constitution should
not be enforced, but that Congress should
be relied upon to correct the evil, which
the state has power to modify, if not
wholly to prevent. The words of the con.
stitution are that no undue or unreason-
able }" discrimination shall be made in
charge for transportation from or to
any other state. 1t is the province of the
legislature to declare what discrimination
u undue or unreasonable; and if it finds
that the railroads of the state will be in
jured by restricting them to the same
charge for transportation outside as inside
the state, it may permit charge. The
constitution simply demands that the
charge shall be reasonable; and because
the state legislature cannot make a uni
form freight rate all over the country.
affords no reason why it should not do the
best it can do, when that injunction is laid
upon it by the supreme law of the state.
And he is not in happy condition, as
candidate for governor, who finds himself
Compelled to announce in his canvass that
. law, SssIhie.h he asks to be made the en-
forcer, is not enforceable. and should be
left dead letter.
It is not unusual for candidates to get
into tight places, and this state constitu-
kion has been cornering the Republican
candidates for the state offices and
the legislature ever since its adop-
ton, since they stubbornly refuse
70 enforce it. But General Beaver has
managed to put his foot in it more awk-
vardly than any Republican candidate for
governor before him.