Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-04-21

served Can any individual, firm, or private
business company do that? Make the expert
walk through your neighbours field, yard or lot.
/ or TO take any OF his property for any purpose,
without his consent. If you offer him million
dollars for bucket of mud, you have no right
TO it unless he consents. Having his consent,
however. you can take all his land without pay
ing cent. This illustrates personal liberty
one OF the privileges not surrendered when the
people organized the government.
Every citizen possesses the power of locomo-
ton, of changing his situation, of removing or
hiring out his person, of renting. selling or de-
stroying his property; as his inclinations may
direct, without hindranee or restraint
except by due course of Law. Such
rights arise from and rest on per-
sonal liberty. A railway corporation can only
construct road, operate train, collect
its track with the states consent as expressed
through some law. To do such things are privi-
leges OF franchises that spring from and depend
on the consent of those who enjoy personal lib
e9y and compose the government.
The principle on which the railway company
can take land without the owners consent or
exercise its other ordinary powers ia that private
interests. must yield to public demands. In pri-
determinations the question of consent is all
important. fhat element of contract is not ma
terial when the railway company wants the
right OF way or depot grounds. If you want
man land or goods from merchant, the price
must be agreed on. No consent, no trade. If
you want to ship an article over q rail-
road, you pay the price charged or you cannot
snip. Ii the rate Is eXhorbitant, as the laws
now stand You must submit and endure it.
Your consent or protest cannot affect it. To
make them reasonable and lust to the shipper
and the railway is what I want and all that any
thoughtful citizen demands. If they are un-
reasonable, every man ought to complain. No
man viii say that they are reasonable in Texas;
nor Will that be the basis on which they are
established so long as traffic managers or freight
agents control them. They will always put
them nigh enough to pay exhorbitsnt expenses,
to afford high salaries for a useless horde of Idle
ofhcers, ana to meet interest on their fictitious
Indebtedness.
The people, for the protection of their personal
liberty and the promotion of their happiness.
create the government. In turn the government
canal, and other corporations for the public
good; and stands pledged on democratic
principles and in obedience to the will
of those who created it, to check and
prevent their expressions and abuse and TO keep
them IN control. No city, town or school cor
poration can levy or collect a toll higher than
authorized by the constitution and laws. The
government regulates them and limits their
powers IN raising revenue or passing orders,
ordinances, laws OF rules for the control of local
aHalTs: IL does so by general laws to be exc
cuted by boards of aldermen, trustees, who
prescribe and enforce the details. Rates of taX-
atlon, ices OF officers, hours of public work and
other important matters are prescribed by those
boards, and the charges of street cars, hack
men, draymep and others engaged in public car
rying are fixed and regulated by them No cop4-
p'alntls overheard of this nor is such exercise o.
powe' called ''paternalistic. or ''undemo-
proposed to be exercised over 'pub
he highways grim faces are made.
Sseowlipg irowS are given, dire calamites are
threatened, and general destruction of the liber-
ties of the people prepicted. An elementary
pfieiple OF law vests the control Of the child in
the parent. By. his act it is given life, and he
controls it until it grows too big or too old for
him. Of this law no objection is urged. An ele-
mentary principle also is that the government
(which created corporations always has control
OF them within certain reasonable implied or
express limitations. By its act they are given
NE, and the presumption IS that they never
grow too old or TOO large for 1t. This presump-
tion, however, is threatened TO be oyerthrown
by the logic of events; the creatures are growing
beyond the control of the creators. They have
gone so long wit mont control or regulation that
they feel free and licensed to assert their indie
pendence OF the government, upon principles
pendent freemen. Indeed, they go further
and claim and exercise the right of reGu-
latisg the public by prescribing the taxes or
rates that shall be paid in the carrying trade.
They have been doing this long enough, and it
is time the public should regulate them awhile.
Nhe people furnish the tFathc and the railways
, simply do the hauling, but now have the power
to arbitrarily fix the rates and to enforce their
payment They are making truck patch Of
Texas &c support the extTayagant wants OF their
owners who reside abroad in fourising cities.
Ii the public complains, their reply is derisive
an ominous shake OF the head, or, as one of
their most distinguished representatives stated
it, ''The people be damned.'
. Combined as they are now, the state govern
IAent is growing insignificant compared to their
power. Their advocates In the lobby, around
and in tAe legislature, deny the right of it under
the constitution as 1t is now framed, to adopt
q commission. The legislature. yielding to
the force of such argument, submits an amend
IAent to the people asking that the conStitu-
tional obstruction be removed. Their leaders
now, to defeat that amendment, contend that
the Legislature has full authority under the con-
stitutlon TO adopt the commission. So it goes.
When they want brains to advance thought,
mature plans and cunningly act to thYaTb legis-
iation, their commands only are necessary.
When they desire an amendment to the fHpda-
mental law defeated at the polls, they have only
TO express the wish, and talent, on fleet wings,
4,.e ~v-s,oo
foot their bills in the indulgence of high luKu-
ries, the employment of influence, the payment
of extraFagsnt salaries, or for corrupt uses to
defeat the will OF the people. they simply raise
the rate on the traffic of the country and make
the people pay it. AS one of their leaders
but few months ago remarked to me: 1--WE
are tax collectors When we need money to
pay damages debts, expenses or salaries, we sim
ply raise the tax and make the people pay it,.
This is simply so; and the candid ones OF them
admit 1t when not engaged in public debate,
Their demands called for an extra sum not long
ago. ana thSy pGI up ttASlf stiieuo4e VI IalSs AZ
per cent. and collected it. In this way, without
notice to business men who had outstanding
CONTRACTS to be filled within per cent. margin,
they imposed on our commerce tax that raised
about 81, 500, 09Q-more than enough to defFay all
the state s expenses for whole year. Hsd this
extra tax been laid on the traffic OF our country
by an act of the legislature; open revolt by the
people would haxe been the result. No plea
could have stoned for the outrage, nor excused
merchants had the s'audacity'' to complain,
but l think they have quit business
since. Others have learned lesson
and viii hereafter keep their mouths shut.
Equal rights to all, special privileges to none'
is one of the notices on our banners that have
altFays read with pride and enthusiasm, But it
is an insult to that cardinal Democratic prlnci-
pie to contend that it is ia force to-day between
the railways and the public. Special privileges
are given to the carriers; and they go unre-
strained. in the exercise OF their wonderful
power. Equal rights are accorded to the ship
DeTs to complain 10 their confidential friends in
Whispering tones of the wrongs done them. Then
for their advocates to compare railway COM
pauies TO private business firms or to individual
citizens, or TO contend that it is 'undeRocrat-
ic'' to control and regulate them, exhibits that
degree OF boldness relieved OF all but well
merited impudenee.
Consider their brief existence in this country,
the wonderful power they possess, the
great leverage upon the destipies of the people
they hold within their grasp the means of COM
biRing talent with capital they control, their
rapid strides to tbs complete environment of the
whole government, state and Federal, and in,
tee light of the false doctrines their leaders
so iRdsstriously intoxicating into the m inds of
the people, patriots must view the future OF our
country with alarm
They talk of the encroachment of the Federal
power upon state rights. Ny fello8-citizens,
this very encroachment and dsnger at which
now the people Of this country revolt, and which
the advocates OF railways pretend to abhor,
superindueed by the influence of uncontrolled
and licensed corporations. They are growing in
strength so as to threaten not only the legislA-
tive apd executive departments with their oEefS