The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1892-09-09
A SCATRING REVIEW OF S0.CALLED
VESTED RIGHTS" AND EMINENT
DOMAIN" OF RAILWAYS.

labor are very much like the story told
OF Tommy, the hard working boy and
his mate in Yankee Blade. Tommy saws,
"Oh mother am awflllly tired! Freddie
Brown and have been saving wood"
Mothcr-"EIow much wood did you
saw Tommy" TOmmy-"I? | didn't
saw any, | furnished the saw The
railroad managers furnish the saw after
1t is given them by the people, and the
people saw the wood. A common argu-
ment used by unthinking ''yokcls" who
suppose they have reasoning powers is
"what would the people do without rail-
roads? We might with equal sense ask
Almighty God what he would do with
out Nebraska. He could probably get
along in some way without our State,
but would lose lots of worship and one
OF the fGirest diademS in his crown of
glory. In like manner Nebraska's pcO-
pie the creators of her railroads would
be back numbers to do without means
OF rail transit hut not so whiskcred as
she is in permitting a class Of "gilded
gall badders to set up dictatOrial powers
under "ycsted rights" and rights of
"emincnt domain" which "rights" are
distorted to legaliZe extortion in over
charges, Let us examine the facts on
railroad investment in Nebraska and
take the Il. n NJ. Railway as fair
example. We arcnot supposed to know
anything about rairOading so we take
the reports of the board of directors of
the Is. d NJ. Road to their stockholders.
In those reports during the years 1856
to 1889 inclusive they show fourteen
hundred and ninety five miles of
line was built on which bonds or
mortgages were placed amounting to
ninety two millions one hundred and
eighty-thrcC thousand dollars. They
say they paid for the construction and
equipment of these lines thirty-twO
millions five hundred and eighteen
thousand dollars. That is they adj
vanced throc hundred and thirty-tive
thousand dollars in buiiiing and eguippiBg
fourteen hundred and ninety five miles
OF road or at Il rate of less than two
hundred and twenty-five dollars per
mile. But they tell us the money on
the bonds was invested too. Well who
assumes and pays the interest on the
bonds? The shipping public Of course.
They furnish the saw we gave them
while we furnish the wood and labor.
What do they get out OF this Labor Of
ours? The i. Il NJ. Road got over six
and u half millions last year on freight,
say nothing of passenger business ont Of
Nebraska supposing our charges 10
average as low rs Iowa md Illinois.
But they will average fifty per cent
higher and ten millions is the nearer
figure. There Is no means whereby the
public can get accurate figures on income
of this line rs they defy tie law more
openly than has any criminal in the
state pcnitcntiary, In refusing detailed
report on State business. The 1891 re-
port of the board of transportation
stands in the same relation 70 the Iowa
reports as an idiot stands to inf clligencC,
as vice stands 10 virtue; in other words
our Nebraska report is an exact re-
Election Of the incOmpctency ana vcnali-
ty of our secretaries and the cunning OF
their railroad pass manipulalOrs. The
eleven tables Of s0-callCd statistics on
Nebraska rairoading are absolute
works Of art In hiding facts and furnish
ing no data Oyrcliability, and one could
figure out the cost of a meal of yictuals
two thousand years before Christ from
the stomach of u mummy with more
accuracy than he can gather any facts
on Nebraska railr0adlng from the fifth
annual report, with but one exception,
and that Is the studied desire TO mislead
and bPfOg the mind that tries TO find out
what these railroad prostitutes OF man
hood in state office are doing. They
tell US freight rates are reasonable in
Nebraska and it Is our duty to believe il
Of course, and If we question their
vcraclty or put 1t mildly and question
their Judgment we are "Calamity howl
ers." We have an object lesson before
MS If we can remember as far back as
1880.
That year we had an abundance Of
crops, but realized nothing from II above
a living and our wise men told us we
needed diversity Of crops. Corn was
cheaper than coal and fuel designed TO
heat the human body had to be diverted
to fuel for the atmosphere because Of
railroad charges.
The next year n partial failure Of corn
fuel left the western part Of our state in
a chilly condition, and our noble hearted
state Issued two hundred thousand
dollars in interest bearing bonds to
supply the heat for body and for kitchen.
Over twenty-five thousand dollars Of
that was paid for freight. That is it
took over twenty-five thousand dollars
to move less than one hundred and
scventy-1iye thousand dollars worth Of
suCcOr 10 the needy portion Of our state.
About fifteen per cent for freight nun
Indicate reasonable rates on staple
articles, such rs coal and seed corn, and
II II does we begin to realize what it
must be on Injuries. such as bcdsteads,
chairs, tables, carpets, cook stoves,
agricultural implements, and such need
less ~ articles that some Of our calamity
hOwlers are desiriOus Of buying of their
patrons the town merchants.
In addition to the 100000 something
over 100000 was donated by private
citizens Cn clothing, etc. which the
generous roads carried free besides the
various passes they issued to heads Of
secret societies and others in stamping
the state looking up cases OF restitution
and incidentally parading the gen
crosby Of the railroads. IN Europe the
noble Duke gathers up the surplus above
existence from the toilers by ''dlyine
right and then when the poOr-house
point Is reached the tOiler can sec how
generous the Duke by "divnc right" is
when he is gathered under the wing Of
pauperism. in Nebraska the 'dyine
right consists of right Of "eminent
domain and his ordship Is a traffic
manager accompanied as his lord high
chamberlain by heads Of charitable