The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-05-24
PerplexinR Questions.

/
Some Of the fathers of the new party
after the adjournment of conference at Gin
cinnati crossed the river to Covington and
had talk with Senator Carlisle. They
wanted to find out what he thought of their
purposes and projects. Among other things
they asked him what he thought Of that
provision of their platform which looks
toward government ownership Of the tele-
graph lines and railroads. He asked them
how they expected to get possession Of the
telegraph lines and the railroads. They ad-
mitted that they had not thought of that
phase Of the question. They had simply
ship of the lines Of transportation
aud communication would be
a good thing for the people. he asked if it
was their purpose to confiscate them. They
said no, because that would be simply
robbery. The only other way the govern
ment could get possession OF them, he said,
was to buy them, and he asked the fathers
Of the new party if they had any idea what
amount of money would have TO be paid
for them. They were astonished when told
that the amount invested in the railroad,
telegraph, steamboat and telephone lines of
the country was about $40, 0OO, GOO, 900, and
that there was a bonded debt upon them of
over s., 000, 000,0 900. Those two sums equal
about seven times the amount Of the ma
tional debt at the close Of the war. 1t has
taken twenty-five years to pay one~half of
that debt.
Senator Carlisle wanted to know If the
fathers Of the new party thought that the
people were ready to tax themselves to pay
the enormous sum of $4,000, 000. 900 for the
satisfaction Of having the government own
the transportation and telegraph and tele-
phone lines They had never thought of the
matter in the way Senator Carlisle stated it.
and they saw the utter folly of at least one
portion of their platform.
Senator Carlisle pointed out, also, that if
the government owned the lines of trans
portation and communication they would
have to be operated at loss, because the
object of government ownership would be
low rates, and as the government
could not operate them as cheaply
as they are operated by private enter
prise the people would have to tax
themselves to maintain them. This view
was another surprise for the fathers of the
new party, but when Senator Carlisle told
them that if their proposition were adopted
the number Of the employees of the govern
ment would have to be increased to $50, 900
or 100000, and that a party with
such vast patronage could not be driven
from power, the new party fathers had
nothing to say. They virtually admitted
that the government ownership Of telegraph
lines and railroads was utterly impractic-
able.
Senator Carlisle said that the concentra-
ton of the money power in a few hands
was a bad sign, but, he asked, "How are
you going TO remedy it, Shall the legislat-
ure say that when man has earned 81 900
or $4,000 he shall not earn any more9"
The senator's visitors returned to Cincin-
natl greatly perplexed. The platform they
had adopted did not appear to be, after all,
80 fine piece Of political work. They
recognize that it simply recited their griev-
ances and proposed impracticable remedies
for them. And the platform. when it has
been tested by the common sense of the
country, will fail to command approval or
support.
The truth is that the doctrines of the
Democratic party are the only remedy yet
suggested for preventing the money power
from getting into too few hands. The
policy of protection which has 50 long pre-
vailed in this country keeps the farmers
poor and enables the few to accumulate
great fortunes. Abandon that policy and
adopt the economic policy Of the Democratic
party, and fewer great fortunes will be
made and the farmers will enjoy much
larger share of the fruits of their labor.