Workmen's advocate. (New Haven, Conn.) 1883-1891, 1890-01-25

The remedy to the inaction or bad
action of the Legislature does not lie in
giving any man or set of men dictatorial
powers; it can only be found in the
application of
THE REFERENDUM PRIN CIPLE,
which involves absolute responsibility of
the legislator to his constituents and the
right of the people to originate laws.
Another recommendation of the Board
is more likely to receive attention from
the New York Legislature, in so far as
it will meet with favor among the rail-
road monopolists who now control the
policy of the State and that is an Act
to Prevent the
DUPLICATION OF RAILROADS.
This Act, as projected, provides that
corporation to build a railroad cannot
come into existence until a hearing shall
have been had before the Board of Rail
road Commissioners and that body shall
have decided that public convenience and
necessity shall require the construction
Cf such road; the decision of the Board
to be subject to review by the Court of
Appeals.
The theory of this proposition, which
has already been advanced in previous
reports of the Board, is briefly explained
as follows;
"a railroad cannot be built without
the State delegating to it's promoters the
highest power it possesses over prop
erty-the right of eminent domain
the right to take private property for
public uses. The State itself never
exercises this sovereign power except in
cases of public necessity. Why should
it thus delegate it to any thirteen men
to be exercised for mere private gain,
frequently at the expense of vested
rights and grave public interests?'
We agree with the Commissioners
that there is no reason why the State
should delegate its power of eminent
domain to thirteen men. But we go
somewhat farther than the Board be.
cause we are infinitely more logical
and we say: There is every reason why
the State should not delegate its
POWER OF EMINENT DOMAIN
to thirteen men or to thirteen hundred,
or to thirteen thousand, or to any num-
ber or class of men, bo should exercise
it itself. Again, therefore, the remedy
to railroad duplication" Is to be sought
not in consolidating the monopolies Gre
ated by the State, but in the Sta.e
resuming its power, by revoking the
charters which it has granted in viola
ton of public policy and which the
grantees have repeatedly forfeited by
violations of public rights.
To those who contend that capitalism
is a better manager of great public en-.
terprises than the State can be the
report will prove suggestive reading
The Commissioners point out many
ABUSES, DEFECTS AND ACTS OF
DISHONESTY
in the present management of railroads
that no ono could find in the administra-
ton of the Post Office, even under our
corrupt political system. The return of
freight cars is Intentionally delayed;
favored customers are permitted to use
cars as warehouses; rates are reduced
to an unduly low point on certain
articles, as for instance, soft coal, in
order to bring a competitor to terms,
with an unjust rise after the result is
accomplished" certain roads have very
poor facilities; pooling is prohibited by
law, and adjustment is therefore at
tempted by ''dlfferentials." etc., etc.
Finally the Commissioners, while by
no means men of extraordinary ability
and foresight, cannot be blind TO the
obvious tendency of our competitive sys-
tem-"the absorption of the weaker by
the stronger and the general
CONSOLIDATION OF ALL RAILROADS
in great groups, as in England" They
say that the ''leaven of consolidation is
at work." and we shall no more think of
contesting this than of preventing it.