The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1892-11-03
Government nership Of Rail.
reads.

Oh the mention OF the ownership
of railroads by the government the
time politicians of republican and
democratic schools become scenic If
+, not tragic when reason and logic are
: lost in the pathos Of impetuous ex-
e clamations. In their remarkable
senility at new measure they seem
menaced with danger from some in
curable atrophy. The emotion is
too great for anything but acclama-
tions and they iterate and reiterate
st will cost eight billions to buy
and to hold the railroads" Having
so exclaimed, mute astonishment
seizes them. They imagine the ar
gument is exhausted, the proposition
is reduced to an absurdity, and moth
ing is to be said. "They will cost
eight billions. 1t will bankrupt the
:. country topay such sum Of money,
even during the period of genera
tiOn. Who now can add anything
Have these anti-deluvian politicians
. thought or do they, without thought,
: conclude thing aust he wrong if
Washington and Jefferson did not
advocate it? These impreshionable,
theatrical gentlemen have for a gen.
Grafton imposed cruel oppressive
tariff on the people! This has not
frightened them and thrown them
into irrational ecstacies! For Ham,
ilton, Jefferson and Calhoun have
advocated tariff, and that makes
it stereotype orthodoxy.
i But now IS we approach A. d.
| 1900, let us think little and COM
pare the cost of railroads with what
the tariff sshas cost "thc working
people" in the last thirty years.
i We will give results rather than
processes, though those are based on
facts and mathematical calculations.
1t might be we'll for laboring men to
look at a new facts, if the obsolete
politician refuse to examine new
measure. Under the tariff let ten
million nen use each 8 cigars day
for 80 years. The,extra cost will be
at least p cents each. And how
are they astonished to find that they
have paid extra, under the tariff
policy, $S,2I2,5OO,O0O! But look
again: Five million men drink 3
glasses day. The extra cost cents
a drink. In 80 years the extra cost
under the operation of the tariff, is
$S,212,500O,OOO. Ten million men
chew tobacco and three million
smoke pipes. In 80 years the extra
cost of chewing and smoking is $4,-
LOG, 350,O0O.
Now notice you have paid fer the
railroads more than twice and a
half by the excess than these arti-
cles cost yoa, for you have paid the
round sun of $2O,53l 100000.
Look still again. In 30 wears ten
million laborers have paid for cloth
ing for themselves and their chill
drea, buying one decent neat suit
q year and have an oyercoat every
three years for themselves extra,
under the operation of the tariff, the
sum of $9,579, ,375, 600. And in 80
years have paid extra for female
clothing. $13,515, 100000. In 80
years the extra cost of the table to
laborers and their families is $780,
643, 100000.
Fer hundred other necessaries
such as stoves, carpets, iron tools,
brushes, paints, building materials,
shawls, shoes, books, and what not
laborers have paid, under the opera
tion of the Tariff, extra in 30 years,
so billions more. And the last esti-
mate is very low one.
! 1t is probable that our innocent
old time politicians, not given to the
unusual infirnative of thinking,
never had such thoughts as these to
cross the horizon of their mental
vision, because Washington or JEFF
ferson never suggest such things.
Summing, up we have $43, 9,375,-
900 as the SUN the laboring men
have paid in 80 years, extra under
he operation Of the tariff. Is it not
astonishing? and more astonishing
hat our politicians have been toe in
,cent of thought to discover the
a nazing facts?!
! Now let us pay the eight billions
!; for the railroads. From $143,569,-
375, 900 take the cost of the rail-
, roads $S,OOO,OOO,OOO and we have
left the sum of $135, ,s69, ,375, 900.
We had a billion Republican Con-
, gress and billion Democratic
Congress, the latter administering
the government economically" So
|. in 80 years allow the statesmen a
billion dollars year for their econo-
mic administration. Then we have
S135,269 ,375, 900 less $4,000, ,00o,-
! 900, leaving $1O5, ,269,375.O0o, Ac-
| cordlngly, in 30 years, the laborers
! of the country have paid the eight
t billions for the railroads, thirty bill
l ions for the economic administers
: ton of the government" and the ex-
!. ira sum of $105, ,269.375, 900.
+, How wonderful that our learned
and acute statesmen can find no way
to pay eight billions for railroads in
y one generation!
How natural and unavoidable that
. laborers are groaning under a gov.
ernment managed for the last sc
years by Republicans and Democrats
/ have before me the details ol
these calculations, but there is space
IS to give ONLY results. Will the obso
$ lete politicians become theatical over
). these figures? Do they care hsv
h the people ..are oppressed and dis
\ tresSed9 Does the Democratic o.
= Republican party care? Far from it
e These figures, with an argunen
b containing more than twenty thou
4 sand words, laying open the Dol.