Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1886-02-13
THE RAILROAD COMMISSIONS IN
CURRY.

yond the first witness before two very
important facts were pretty well es-
tablished first that the Lexington Goal
Mining Company and the Missouri "a
ciic Railway Company were practical
" one; and, second, that the last men,
toned corporation had determined to
freeze out all the small operators III
coal.
The inquiry had not proceeded be-
yond the second witness before 1t was
definitely shown that the railroad had'
for between three and four years, vol
unfairly, made and maintained a ate
of 60 cents per ton on coal to Kansas
City, and that so far from complaining
of this rate as non-remunerative the
company was eager to have the pal
shipped.
The extraneous matter that was
brought in need not here be discussed.
1t only proved that there was a strong
luminosity existing between the railroad
company and Mr.. McGrew. That
does not interest the public. What
does interest it is, the fact hat upon
the heels of putting up the rate OF
freight rs per cent. the railroad compa-
nv fostered if it did not inaugurate a
cut in the price of coal to below the
cost of production, ifthe avowed freight
rates are the real ones. No M whose
verdancy is not exceedingly refreshing,
will, for a moment, believe that the
coal company is selling coal at a loss
out of philanthropic considerations.
| The mere statement of that proposition
| is enough to bring a smile to as stolcal
a %countenance as that Of wooden In
| dian.
The fact is patent; it is so plain that
he who runs may read; the railroad
| company has determined to freeze out
its smaller rivals in the coal trade i'll
| Missouri. Not only that. but when
selling coal, at retail, in Kansas CITY,
| at 9 cents, 1t refused to sell it at the
same price to other coal dealers, thus
freezing them out also-even SO far as
that does it go.
The last fifty years have witnessed, in
this country, an industrial revolution.
Machinery has SO s%upplsnted manual
labor that one inanimste, soulless mass
of wood and iron will do the work OF
ten, twenty, thirty men. Upon this
condition of affairs comes the even
more terrible evil and danger of con-
solidation of corporate wealth and
power. The happiest manufacturing
| condition was whef the hundreds of
small operators in a city produced in
| their homes or limited manufactures
good articles by hand. Their appren-
tices and artisans were then as of one
family. To-day the lordly establish
ment supplants a city full Of these, and,
Incorporated, can by reason of its priv
ilege of soullessness represent with
vigor the privileges OF capital, while at
a distance the workman stands and
| wonders if labor has any rights at all.
The railroad corporation goes beyond
this, for it deties the constitution of the
state by entering the coal business upon
its own line; its directors and officers
violate the law by being concerned i'll
furnishing their W road with fuel;
and, not satisfied with lining their
pockets with unlawful gains, they fire.
ouently manage to do so more or less
at the expense of their stockholders.
Is there remedy? Must these things
be? Have we passed from the age OF
highway robbery to one gilmore insidi-
Gus pillage? Are IL property
and our dearer rights to be dominated
bv corporate power? Verify it seems
SO, when some of the very men who
are expected by the people to defend
their interests come to us with the
railroads argument upon their lips.
Once, during the war, Gen. Holmes
caught the writer mapping. He sud-
denly asked one day: "How many
curry-combs have you i'll your bat
tery2 Curry-cOmbs not being very
valuable property we had not kept close
account of them and replied that we die
not know ; to which the old Maritime
answered quickly: "Well, sir, if you
don't know who in the hell doe:
know" There was absolutely no an
swer to be made to that-it was on
business to know. And now, in lk'
manner, we ask the Missouri Pacific
Railway Company, if it did not know
when it made a 60 cent freight ratt
and maintained it for four years that i
was a paying one, who in the worl(
did known 1t was its business t.
know, and as there was much more a
stake than two dozen curry-combs W.
are of the opinion that it did know
that the rate paid it, and paid it well
, in fact was satisfactory so satisfactory
indeed that it was maintained not on
, year, not two years, but nearly Ton
, wears, and until it concluded to ru'
the coal roost in Missouri, and like
game cock among a lot of Brahma:
9 from the top rail of a barn yard fenc
g to O defiance to the world and fla
= its wings as lord of all creation.
But even a game cock comes to grit
e sometimes; especially when he strut
and crows. Other people have RICH
. as we'll as corporations, and when IL
Missouri Pacific railroad, which
managed by the answering click to 8
electric button in New York manage
= for all there is in it, as cold blOoded
:, as aver pirate upon the high seas SUI
its merchant victim; whenever this CO
poration attempts to cOntisca
Missouri property; reduce u &C
W operators to dependents. or drive the
out of the business, it must expect /
be sistance. Nothing but what is reaso
ne able is asked. Give us fair freig
it rates on coal. Enable our humbl,
coal operators to do business on a ht
ell with the greatest. That is the la
OF No nonsense about 1t. No subte
to fuges. They are as transparent as pr
W. white glass. And this is NJ bat
er, between the Missouri Pacific railrC
A. and James G. McGrew. Anybody W
lc- thinks 80 is deceived, In that cor
=