The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-05-26
Ruinous Railroad Legislation.

| hClnOuS RallrOaQ Legislation.
Much of the legislation In this state rel
alive to railroads, during the last few years,
has not been based upon good judgment nor
sound common sense. 1t has been the work
Of men who lacked the capacity to under
stand the effect of the laws they enacted,
and who did not care, apparently, whether
they imposed upon the railroads heavier
| burdens than they could bear or not. Their
chief idea seemed to be to legislate against
the railroads without regard 10 the justice
or fairness of the measures proposed. The
effect Of their work is becoming apparent.
Indeed, 1t is already apparent 1t is prob
able that the control of the Central railroad
would never have gone to Wall street had
it not been for the hostile legislation that
| kept the stock Of the road far below par
and made the holders of it anxious with re-
| gard to the value of IL in the near future.
| The shareholders. menaced by legislation
that threatened to be almost conhscation, got
rid OF their holdings just as soon as they
could.
The Wall street people who got the ma
| jority Of Central's stock had no interest in
Georgia, and, therefore, they ran the road
with the view Of making out Of it all they
| could. One Of their purposes was to get
| control OF all the stock. Had they sue
ceeded in doing that it is proba Bile that they
would have used the road entirely against
Georgia's interests. The people of Georgia,
therefore, instead of being benefited by
hostile railroad legislation are really in
jured by it. The earnings Of the roads are
not sufficient TO permit of necessary i'm
provements or the paying Of such salaries
as will secure the services Of f1rst-class
railroad men.
As long as the present feeling against
railroads controls the legislature it will be
impossible for Georgia's roads to have
t1rst-class roadbeds. good rolling stock and
depot improvements such as the people
demand The tendency of the hostile attitude
Of the legislature with respect TO railroads
is to put a check upon railroad build
ing and throw all the railroads in the state
into the hands of railroad spectators in
Wall street.
Much Of the legislation relating to rail-
roads that has been enacted within the last
few years ought to be repealed. The people
ought to study the railroad situation and
send men to the legislature big enough to
deal with it intelligently.
Too often legislators agree to measures
hostile 20 railroad interests against their
better judgments. They are influenced by
the clamor of a few OF their constituents
who are wholly incapable OF understanding
railroad problems, and whose only motive
in insisting upon anti-railroad legislation is
desire to infics an injury upon railroads
for some grievance they have against the
roads.
What have the people of Georgia gained
by the anti-railroad laws that have been
enacted in this state during the last half
dozen years9 Have they gained snything9
Have they not, in fact. lost a great deala
II the spirit OF the next legislature is con-
trolled by feeling relative DO railroads
similar to that which controlled the last
legislature the material Development OF the
state will be checked and the people will
have good cause TO complain of the kind of
service the railroads give them. The
limit of the burdens which can be placed
upon railroads without running the roads
financially has about been reached. The
truth is. Georgia's railroads have suffered an
extraordinarily large amount of damage
through the action of her legislature. 1t is
surely time to call halt in anti-railroad
legislation. Let men of courage and COM
mon sense be sent TO the legislature and let
the snall but ami bilious demagogues be kept
at home.