The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1893-05-04
The RalLRofbs AND rHE PEOPLE.

The Sampson Democrat discussing the
proposition for the people TO own
aud control their public franchises
says:
"Many well-to-do farmer does
not spend $40 in fare or freight over
the railroads in a whole year. If
the government buys the railroads
be must help pay for them, and it
will ruin him to do it, and then if
he wants to ride, or ship anything
over the road he must still ray his
freight or fare. Just as well buy a
horse and wagon, and then have to
pay for it when You want to use it,
We are surprised that man of Mr..
Bethume's sense and fairness should
put himself on record with a state
ment like the above. Every one
knows that if the swell -to-do farmer"
or any other kind was not to buy a
single railroad ticket in u whole
year, that he would be contributingall
the same 70 the profits of these roads,
to their big dividends on watere ed
stock and to the princely salaries of
numerous offices &c. Every bag of
guano, every pillow, every rope, every
pound Of coffee &C., that the people
buy has had the profits of the cor
porations added to the price. On
the other hand from every pound of
cotton, and every crate of strawber-
ries shipped, the profits to these cor
porations is taken out of the price
paid to the producers. The people
are willing that these transporta-
tion companies should have a fair
price for their work, but they are
not willing that all their profits
should go to make railroads rich and
leave them poorer each year. In
short the numerous fortunes piled
up by the railroads and other cor
porations and monopiies of the coun-
try is extracted at last from the
people who labor and create wealth.
But this is not the worst feature of
the railroad business in the hands
of private monopoly. The extent of
their corrupt influence on legisla-
lures is unmeasured. If the last
legislature had collected the taxes
due the Wilmington & Weldon rail-
railroad alone, the farmer about,
whom The Democrat seems to be
concerned, would have had less taxes
to pay himself. Whenever a man or
business escapes Or evades taxation,
some other man or business must
pay what the other should have paid.
Nov rs to that s'hcrse and wagon"
logic, it is simply stunning. When
a man buys horse and wagon, he
pays the horse enough corn and
fodder to keep in good working or
der, and pays enough repairs ON the
wagon to keep it in good running
order and then pays some one to drive
it if he hasn't time to do it himself.
Yes he pays this himself and does not
expect anyone else to pay it. 1t
would be very foolish in him to turn
and give his horse and wagon to an
other man, and let that man not
only charge him enough to feed the
horse, keep the wagon in repair and
to pay the boy to drive it but also
charge enough to pay himself big
profit. Soon Mr.. A., the first man,
would find himself coming out in
debt at the end of the year, while
Mr.. B would have made enough to
buy him private carriage for his
own exclusive use. And when at
last Mr.. A. began to speak Of this
injustice, he would find that Mr.. B.
would laugh at it. Then Mr.. A.
would appeal to the law makers and
to the courts to see that he got his
rights, but he would find that he
had no rights that Mr.. B. was ahead
of him and the law makers was on
BIS side. How much better it would
be for the farmer to-day if the
the mails were conducted by private
monopolies SO he could pay 5 cents
on postage letter, and let the private
monopoly get the cents extra and
grow rich SO they could help the
railroads to corrupt legislatures and
congress. How delightful the idea,
1t is condition and not theory
now confronting the people. They
want and must have more dollars and
are not concerned SO much about the
theory of intrinsic value"
Who cares whether silver cost only
thirty cents an ounce or a dollar and
thirty cents an ounce to produce it.
1t is the cost of acquisition after it is
coined that gives the money value.