The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1892-07-12

railroads were turned over to the tender
mercies of commission to be elected by
the people.
This paper violently and strenuously
opposed the adoption of this article. It
was just as apparent to US then as now,
that the people were attempting to create
an instrumentality which should have
extraordinary and arbitrary powers over
the property of other men. The Kearney
excitement had thrown very large per-
centage of governmental power into the
hands of party known as the Working
men. 1t dominated the Constitutional
Convention. It was an element in no
way amenable to reason. 1t had all the
bigotry of ignorance. 1t entertained the
belief, by far too common among all
classes, that the ills which afflict man
kind are Of governmental origin, and
may therefore find statutory remedies.
1t proceeded with that very partial, very
imperfect, not to say stupid notion, that
governmental regulation ought to dis
tribute as well as encourage the creation
of wealth. 1t entertained the widely mis-
taken notion that government had been
in the hands of the rich and powerful
classes, and therefore all that was needed
was to take the governing power from
these hands and place it in the hands of
the common people," Then laws would
be enacted for the more equal distribu-
ton of the fates of men. Thus poverty
should be abolished by statute and the
hardships of life eradicated by judicial
determination.
This paper opposed the adoption Of the
Railway Commission, and it has seen no
reason to change its conclusions from that
| day to this. Now, after thirteen years of
experience with the Railway Commits
sion, we point to fulfillment for the JUS
tification of prediction we then made of
failure. There was a bare possibility that
men of such character and breadth of in
! formation might be chosen to that office
as would constitute an impartial tribunal
! between the conflicting interests. Es-
sential1y there is an interdependent re-
lation between the shipper and the car
rier. Their interests are identical. In it's
latest and best analysis, there should be
no conflict, but the commercial world is
/ l. ~ IL
struggle for advantage between localities
will be constant. The Traffic Association
of San Francisco to-day is simply an ex-
| preston of metropolitan discomfort with
rates of transportation which do not
| specifically contribute to the growth OF
San Francisco. In whatever DISCUSSES
this question presents itself, the Traffic
Association expresses the discomfort OF
the metropolis with the growth of the
country.
To this date, then, we have had expert
ence of legislative regulation, and of
regulation by commission vested with
extraordinary powers. The first was a
complete, total and ignominious failure.
The second has been more successful in
many respects than was anticipated. One
! thing should be completely apparent to
! the people of California, and that is, that
a regulative fundamentally must be in
continuous session and in the steady and
constant exercise of its power. A bien-
NAL Legislature cannot regulate trans
portation. Statutory regulation at best
would be rigid and infiexible. The re-
currence to the old method Of regulation
would be a revival of the old scenes OF
railroad politics and public corruption
The abolition of the commission and the
RELOCATION of the whole subject to the
! Legislature will suit the purposes of the
| professional politician, the legislative
blackmailer and the eorruptionist to a
nicely. Politics will become a standard
and most profitable profession. Had a
commission been established with powers
analogous to those vested in the commits
sion of the State of Massachusetts, the
thirteen years of experiment in the direc-
| ton of regulation by a commission would
have had far other results. The pro-
vision of the Constitution defeated itself
by its senseless extravaganza. There are
unmistakable signs of unrest, and plain
indications that the whole ground of con-
tention is to be gone over again, and per-
haps the parties least concerned and least
apprehensive under all the circumstances
are the railroads themselves.