People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1892-10-21


people. In this mighty conflict between
humanity and gold, all thought of self
from an individualistic standpoint.
must be eliminated from the problem.
and man must work for man-not for
self, but for humanity in general. The
question is this: Can labor afford to &C.
cept a division of stolen property as
bride or reward ;Or its active participa.
ton in an aggressive and relentless
warfare waged against itself? Besides
this, the proposition seems to be based
upon a false premise, to-wit: That
capital pays for labor in proportion to
the profits realized. II it is assumed
that wages are reduced because of re-
duced profits, are we also to declare
that with an increase in profits capital
will voluntarily offer an increase in
wages? On the contrary, is it not true
that all increase in wages has been
forced from unwilling employers BY
the united demand of organized wage
workers?
8. A gross Misrepresentation of the
true status Of railroad corporations and
theircapitalized fraud-in that it is as
sumed that reduction of freight and
passenger rates must necessarily reduce
wages. To begin with: The projectors
and builders of railroads never have
any money of their own. The original
incorporators of railroad companies are
generally impecunious exploiters or
promoters 1t is fallacy to speak of
railroads as on par with ordinary in
vestments of capital. Railroads are con-
structed with borrowed capital and the
people furnish the security upon which
such capital is borrowed. Such security
consists Of charter or franchise and
the permission to acquire a fright
of-wav" by the exercise of the delegated
power of eminent domain" Upon this
security the money is borrowed with
which to build the railroad, and in most
instances the bonded indebtedness ex-
ceeds by thousands of dollars per mile
the original cost of construction. Asa
rule, all shares of stock represent dis
honest and fraudulent additions to the
capitalization of railroads, in the acuui-
sition of which investors were system
atically swindled, and in the effort to
impart some semblance of value to
which the people are continuously
robbed.
A few figures must suffice to show
the enormity of this swindle and the
extent to which the people are being
robbed. At the close of the year 1888,
Poor's Manual had this to say: 1T is
not probable that the cost of the mile
age constructed in the three years end
ed December 81, 1883, exceeded $50, 900
per mile. The whole increase of the
share capital, 1899, SS7, POS, and a por-
ton of the funded debt, was in excess
OF cost of construction IA billion dollar
steal). If it be assumed that the cost
in money of all the roads in operation
in the United States, did not exceed, as
1t certainly did not, the amount of their
funded and floating debt, So, Isl, 40, RS,
the actual investment was most profit
able one. The net earnings for this
year QSSS) were S336,9l1,S 1884, a sum
equaling about nine per cent. on their
cost"
Note the fact that the highest stand
ard authority upon railroad statistics
in the world says that the railroad sys-
TEN of the United States did not cost
more than $4,000 per mile
Now let us see what Poors Railway
Manual for 1892 says about the question
of present cost of all the railroads in
America. Iquote: "While $500, OOO.-
900 represents the true cost of all roads,
it is only fair to say that owing to the
decline in the price of labor and the
products of labor, the roads could be
duplicated to-day at a very much less
expense. Basing the cost of supplies
to-day upon the quotation made and
comparing said cost with the prices
which prevailed fifteen to twenty years
ago when railway building was at its
greatest height, it is reasonably safe to
say that every road in the United
States could be duplicated for less
considerably less-than $4,000, 900, 900. "
Other eminent engineering experts
have declared that the roads cost S2O.-
900, or less, per mile. Now take a
glance at the situation at the close of
the year 1891. At that date the roads
aggregated mileage of 17O,6Ol miles,
which at sSO,OOO a mile Ia liberal esti-
mate), cost s5,1ls,OSO, 900. The net
earnings from traffic, rentals and other
sources for the year 1891, above all
costs OF operation, including better
ments and repairs, amounted to $780,
100000, in round numbers, or 7.03 per
cent upon the sum of $50, 900 per mile
for the entire railroad system. OF this
sum there was 800, 72O, 900 paid in divi-
dends, 1921, 100000 paid as interest upon
bonds and SIS, O2O, 900 passed TO the sur
plus fund, which, at the close of the
year 1891, had assumed the following
proportions:
Real estate, stocks, bonds and 9TH
CT H'estntnlS ........tl, bl1 OSl, OK
OlheT dSSets ........... ............ ZI9 l59 i6-
AVsoA'sss .....tl, go lyO 81,
II, then, the railroads of the United
States were capitalized, as all legiti
mate enterprises should be, to-wit, al
the actual cost, or cash investment, the
railroad owners would certainly have
nothing to complain Of But instead O.
such being the case, we find the stocks
bonds and other indebtedness of the
roads aggrepatinQ the amazing sum n