The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1892-02-12
THE COMING ISSUE.
I.A.sAs TAXPAYERS FURNISH THE
CAPITAI. ga Build HAELEOAU5
IN OTHER STATES

ny fl-aeNlahAt7E Us 80 "a -N-' a--F-
-'and the political party HAT fails to d
get on the right side Of it viii get S
knocked out of time. % ii
The farmers alliance might have Z
loue some good for the country, if it !
had confined itself to a discussion OF ;
the transportation problem Instead Of
allowing-a few impractical fellows 10 I
side track it into this sub-treasusy and s
other moonsuine schemes"
do you know what we here in Kan
sas are doing? We are paying for
constructed across Texas.
the Indian territory, ACROSS
Colorado with its sparse settlements
ana out through New Mexico where
the people have not yet learned tie
utility of railroads, across the desert
of Arizona. where they raise nothing
except railroad accidents. We are
also paying for ., 5G0calamity branches
and dog fennel roads in tine state of
Kansas, built for the sole purpose of |
selling them to parent roads in boom |
times and many of them. are laid with |
cedar ties that are already worn or rot |
ted out. We are paying for railroad |
iron that costs sI27 a ton and counted
as capital stock of the roads worn out
years ago and replaced with cheaper
IRON
"A great many people in Kansas /
believe they are paying too much to
the railroads, but what is the remedy?
That is the question that must very
soon be answered. I am in favor OF
the government, which in this country
is the people, owning all the railroads.
1t could manage the railroads with the
same efficiency and economy that It'll
/ does the postonices. The government
should buy the roads and make the
chief manager cabinet officer Do
away with the special palace and pri-
/ vate cars of the brass collar gentry;
do away with the high priced officials;
do away with its passes to Judges and
we could then behold the marvellous
picture of Une-legged brakeman
! standing on terms of equality with a
big railroad i'll courts ofjustice- This
would be thing that nobody has ever
yet seen in this country. If the gov
eminent or the people owned the
railroads a car load of corn could be
shipped from San Francisco to Lands
End in Maine for a five dollar bill. y
passenger could go for, quarter Of u
cent a mile.
''Under the present arrangement
merchants and farmers, or patrons of
the railroads, pay for all the riding OF
every juck-leg politician in the country.
If the government owned the railroads,
there would be patriotic travellers.
The soldier of the Chickuhomiuy could
afford To go over and see the land he
fOughtfOr. Travel would be univer-
: sal. Families would be reunited
State lines would be wiped out. Pro
D yincialism would be destroyed and we
would become one people without diff
3 ference or distinction due to locality
q Labor would be equalized because the
II man seeking work could go "a long
D distance to find employment Travel
y ing passenger agents and freigh
agents, special city agents, and al
e this expensive advertising could b,
} dispensed with and the men employe,
IL in more useful business. Then Their
is an army Of expensive officers, "a grea
many useless tracks and station house
j. that could be dispensed with"
'.Why if the government owned tn
- railroads about $4,000 lawyers nov
+; employed by the railroads would b
.. turned out on "a cold uncharitable worI
4 to hunt for job in feed stables.
would have to march out with thi
~ forlorn crowd myself because L AZ
9 making aliving fighting railroad claim
~ and if the government owned the raj
a roads they would not pay any damages
= The government womb no more nee
% "a lawyer in every village to take car
. of the railroad interests than it yyoul
m need them to look after the postofices.
10 .-TIow would you manage to get tn
no railroad companies to sell their roadsg
i, We'll, sir, would manage to g,
M them to sell their roads to the govern
= meut just IA they managed to get IL
40 people to sell them their right Of wa.
~ When a. railroad company wants
d, right of way through your farm OF eli
70 lot, they don't stand around and be
yOu TO sell it to them. They jui
M survey their track and have your Ian
IT, condemned and YOU may kick all yc
as want TO. What is the matter of COZ
no demning these roads for the benefit
an the people and pay them just Will
Ike GisiBterested parties say they "a
sa worth. some psoPle think a-railroi
IN company has rights and privileges tn
b does not belong 20 common humanit
is Now there is another thing worthy
M, remark and that is the govenme
,.,I ownership OF railroads would wipe O
ms the one source Of legislative infau
cir and corruption and persons in ofici
capacity would have "a forlorn chan
,v- to become honest. The brakem
,Id would not have to work eighteen hoJ
Of day and the government you'd ado
80 some Of the osss thousand contrivauc
Il, to couple cars by which the never en-
MI ing battle fields Of dead and wound
aHr-r.rrra-a- r-r.rfs--- al.