Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1889-08-16
JOHN HOWARD WAS RIGHT.
: And Now Texas is Full of Cranks Just Like
Him Who Have Had Their Eyes Opened.
Let the Roads and People Unite.

AUSTIN, Tex, Aug. 10, 1889.


To the Gazette.
In your issue of the Sd instant the fol-
lowing appears from the pen of an able
writer:
DRAW the people and roads together
in friendly discussion, and impress upon
both their identity of interest. Let GER
tam roads give the travelling public bet
ter passenger service, let others stop veX-
ing the public in efforts to harass con-
Meeting lines. Let all of them seek to
arbitrate claims for damages rather than
force adjudication of them in the court
room. Let the people be made to feel
that the roads are not foreign task mas
tiers, but are part and parcel of Texas,
amenable to its laws and workers in its
upbuiIding, and there Will be no need for
smart politicians 10 seek to revive the
prohibition struggle or for railroad advo-
Gates and organs to cry out communism
at better people than themselves.
For making similar suggestions to the
above ohm Howard, "'of and for Tex
as' for the past twenty years and al
ways true to the best interests OF the
state, was denominated by the railroad
advocates and organs a ''crank, whose
sole delight was in fighting railroads.
Like many others who had given the sub
ject close study Howard saw that har-
mony did not exist between the people
and roads, and thinking the proper plan
was to Fget together' he suggested
through the press of the state that con-
ventIon be called to discuss the situation.
From the first intimation of the move
ment the railroad men, their advo Gates
and organs left no stone unturned to dis
courage it; but the people were enthus-
iastic, and the convention ut Dallas
brought out the best brains and energy
of the state What was the result?
The will of the people was defeated.
The officials and their advocates by the
distribution of free passes neutralized the
feelings of the delegates to q large eX-
tent, and they went home chuckling to
themselves how fortunate they, them
selves, had been in getting home free
and fully believing in their own minds
that the railroad men were the cleverest
people on earth, and that the railroads
were gong to do wonders for the state i'll
the way of cheap rates for prospectors
and emgrants ''Their kindness has
doubtless been better than their
foresight, - to use a common phrase.
howard being a railroader himself
of the trade, - saw the game, and pro-
tested, and thereby brought the wrath of
the officials, their advocates and organs
upon his head.
Knowing it was not the intention OF the
railroads to allow the people outside of
Texas to know or hear of the Texas i'm
migration movement, we next hear of
him in ST. Louis advertising and working
for Texas, where twas reported he spent
thousands OF dollars of his own money
for the benefit of Texas immigration.
We are all familiar with the work done
there, and know that it resulted in great
benefit to some sections of the state, and
placed the whole state before the people
in such way as has doubtless benefited
all sections.
Many of our prominent citizens and
business men who visited st. Louis during
that time were more than favorably i'm
pressed with the character Of the work
being done, and would have cheerfully
contributed to sustain Howard in the
work, but they were met by the officials
representing Texas lines and their advo-
Gates and advised not to do so. The
same old lullaby that was sung at the
Dallas convention was repeated, with
the variations added-''wait awhile
and the railroads will do this
advertising for Texas. - Chow
ard is a crank, - and "'has
an ak 10 grind. s" Howard is working
exclusively for Fort Worth, - and so on
ad infinitum.
Our citizens seeing that there was no
harmony between John and the railroad
officials withheld their cash offerings, and
Howard was compelled to give up and re-
turn to Texas.
The average Texan who is interested in
getting people, capital and manufactur-
ing into the state can now see that How
ard was right, and the advocates, OIL
gans and railroad officials'' wrong
Hundreds of us who doubted the good
policy of Howard s methods eighteen
months ago and VINO were timid when the
cry was raised that he was ''fghting the
railroads. are now prepared to take
more advanced ground in these matters
than he did, while large majority of our
statesmen aud the press are more eager
than ever to CIRCULATE railroads or else
fight them Where we had q year ago.
only one ''crank on railroads. as Howe
ard was called, we now have thousands
of our best citizens ready to fight rakl-
roads, as the advocates and organs
would dominate it.
Which is right, the roads or the people
on this question?
1t is a self-evident proposition that we
cannotshave prosperity without harmony
Ifthe people are on the wrong side of
thesquestion, let us face about and go
with the roads. On the other hand, if
the roads are wrong, we have it in our
power to compel them to deal fairly with
the people of the State. -
Probably both to a certain extent are
wrong. 1t requires no prophetic vision
to discover that matters are not as they
should be in Texas as between the roads
and the people-and all railroad officials,
owners, advocates. organs and the SOW
ereign people should be willing TO "get
together, talk over the situation
calmly, adjust the differences between
us If possible and all join hands and pull
together for the uplifting Of Texas.
If we cannot agree, let's have a
s'friendly fight'' with the roads and
settle this question once for all. Any
thing is better for us than an eternal I'M
certainty. Quien sabe? Yours respect
fully, IA3nGRATIoNIsT 4
In Deep Water.
Munsey's Weekly.