West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1888-05-25

tennessee, Virginia and Georgia,
with LAS miles the Virginia and
Midlsnd, and several Smaller roads,
che land lines aggrcgating 4,267
miles. The system includes also
The Baltimore, Chesapeake-andR Rich
mond Steamboat Company, having a
route of 200 miles. 1t trayerses
Virginia from north to south and
east to west, and invades North Car
DINA, Georgia and Tennessee. The
extent of its operations is thus of
great importance to Southern inter-
ests, and yet no man in office and no
newspaper of general circulation
makes fight for laws to rescue
such a highway from stock gam
blers.-the very last men in the
world who should be trusted with
power to levy toll on a stream of
travel.
The inside management of the
Terminal is immensely profitable,
and the opportunity for plumber as
great as India offered Hastings.
We have before us pamphlet
which, if it could reach the farmers,
merchants and mechanics dependent
for transportation on these roads.
would work revolution in politics.
1t is partial exposure of some OF
the swindling that has occurred.
We have room only for two extracts
which are fair samples of all the 20
pages:
The directors bought for the Terminal
Company 5000 shares CSC, 500, 0O0) of the
f. Ten. railroad at par when 1T was sell
ling at 80 cents. They also bought DAN
Vile railroad stock at premium OF 100
per cent. The committee making the
purchase being interested in the stock.
The president and vice-president OF
the Il. Ten. road were part owners or
the NJ. 4 b. road, and sold 1T to the II.
Ten. road for $4,000. Thereupon the
f. Ten. guaranteed $1,000, 900 ofthe bonds
of the M. d b.
We we'll know that these para
graphs convey to the average reader
a very faint idea OF the facts which
they exhibit to those accustomed to
reading such publications. But the
average reader can understand, that
railroad managers turn the crank OF
a printing press and print bonds of
stock; tAey then levy toll on the
line of travel to pay interest on these
securities.
We have not the space to pursue
this subject. Would to Heaven we
had opportunity to make the rank
and file see the situation as we see
it, and as we do know it to exist.
There are those who express sur
prise that we are so earnest about
this matter, but if they had halfthe
that has educated us;
if they were half as alarmed as we
are concerning the near future of
this country, they would be far more
jealous and importunate than we
are. Our only regret is, that we
cannot afford the expense of doing
more than we have done towards
opening the eyes of the people about
a matter few newspapers understand
and still fewer are willing to discuss.
If the rank and file of voters I'M
derstoed this matter as we do know
it to exist, they would very soon
elect to the legislature men able and
willing to enact, and enforce, such
laws as would effectually put stop
to Wall street gamblers controlling
the highways of this country.
We do beg the people to stand by
and support the few men and the
very few papers that refuse to wear
the railroad collar. Recollect the
moment q man of brains shows de-
termination to be aggressive in be-
half of the public right and pub
lie welfare; the moment it is
discovered that he can neither
be bulldozed by threats nor
bribed with office, that moment a
thousand tongues are busy to create
a popular prejudice against him and
to exclude him from access to the
public ear. No'one is especially in
terested to defend him or to take
his part; the ablest talent that mon
ey can hire is constantly employed
to misrepresent him and to propagate
every lie calculated to destroy his
influence with his neighbors; and
these lies, echoed by thoughtless
but we'll meaning persons, so fill the
air that it seldom happens that
such q man can gain hearing for
the cause he represents however
. l.