The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1893-09-06
GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS.

GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS.
Il May Yet BE Found That Populists Are
Not Wila and Fanatic visisnaries.
Since the close of the silver convon-
tioa, George r. Washburn, Of Boston.
Mass, chairman of the eastern division
Of the national committee Of the peo-
pies party, and Col A. c. Fisk, of DEN
YER, Col, president of the Pan-Ameri-
can bimetalic association, together
with other prominent populists Of tho
west, have been in daily consultation
with leading government officials,
bankers, capitalists and railroad men
of the west devising gigantic railroad
scheme Of government ownership,
which they think will afford financial
relief to the country and make at once
an issue of two of the pet planks Of
their platform J. H. Davis, of Texas,
who was the populist candidate for at
torney-general year ago, and
who during his campaign pro-
posed similar plan, is the legal
counsel for the populists- It is al
alleged that the money stringency has
effected transportation so greatly that
the receipts on many western roads
have fallen off fully one-third and that
receiverships for some of them have al
ready been asked for This would al
SO mean the ruin of commercial and in
dustrial interests in every western and
southern state. Mr. Washburn. who is
a prominent business man in Boston,
stated that most of the stock of these
roads is held in New England, they
being Boston enterprises, and that the
loss of dividends and threatened ruin is
rapidly changing the sentiment in that
section in favor of government owner
ship of railroads as well as for bimet-
allism.
The plan proposed is that the nation
al government shall issue bonds for all
legal and just Indebtedness, being gov
erned by the same tenure and contract
which now exist The amount is esti-
mated to be about two-thirds the value
of the railroads An issuance of legal
tender treasury notes, or silver certif-
Gates for the remaining one-third is to
be made. The objection was raised to
the populists' plan to pay one-third in
treasury notes that it would greatly in
crease the price of products in this
country, but it was claimed that even
though the full amount of one-third
should be issued, sixty-ive millions of
people could better absorb two
billions of treasury notes now
than twenty-five millions Of
people did in 1867, and that
this issuance of treasury notes would
afford immediate financial relief and
inaugurate period of prosperity un-
paralleled in the history of the world.
But the populists do not propose that
the government shall buy all the rail-
roads at once, but SO gradually that no
shock would be felt in the money mar
ket. Beginning with the western roads
they would be taken in the order of
their application, some being ready
now. The populists say that while
their party is opposed to any new issu-
ance of national bonds, no objection
could be offered to the even exchange
of bonds which already exist, and that
the bonds could be gradually paid, and
that in a few years the government
would own the railroads.
1t is claimed that the plan would not
antagonize existing railroad interests
and that, if the government owned all
the railroads west of the Mississippi
river, instead of being competitive to
the eastern roads they would be dis
tributive and could be used by the gov
eminent to move the crops to the mar
kets at cost, and in this way develop
the resources of this great western
country and thereby stimulate trade.
1t is claimed also that uninhabited Sec
tions could be colonized, the low fares
being an inducement to immigration,
and in this way the cities could be re-
lievea from their present congestea
state an additional market for the
manufactured products for the people
who remain could be provided. mas
much as a commission only would be
high salaries would be enormous. It is
claimed that the bondholders like the
idea because they would receive nation
al bonds in even exchange for huctuat-
ing bonds of uncertain value, and the
stockholders would be saved from loss.
The bankers take kindly to the scheme
because it solves the problem how to
get more bonds.
The employees would advocate the
plan because they would then have
tenure and stability of employment
and through election and civil service
laws be able to protect themselves
against injustice By superior officers as
we'll as against removal.
1t is further alleged that merchants
and shippers favor the plan because
there would be no discrimination in
transportation rates in favor of trusts
and syndicates, and that it would re-
duce the aggregate of fixed charges
fully one-third; that the farmers favor
1t because they would get freight rates
which would not be all the traffic
would BEAR" and thereby absorb all
their profits. Mr.. Wash burn is now in
Washington arranging to have the