The record-union., 1893-08-07
GIGANTIC IDEAS OF POPULISTS.
RAILROAD SCHEME FOR GOVERN
MENT OWNERSHIP.
Proposition to Issue Bonds for Two
thirds of the Indebtedness and
Notes for the Balance.
Special to the REcoRD-UN1oN.

Special to the RECoRD-UNIoN.
CHICAGO, Aug. 6.-Since the close of
the Silver Convention George f. Wash
burn, Chairman Of the Eastern division
of the National Committee of the Popu-
lists party, and A. c. Fisk of Denver.
President of the n-American Bi-
metallic Association, together with other
prominent Populists of the West, have
been in consultation with bankers, capt.
talists and railroad men of the West de-
vising a gigantic railroad scheme for
Government ownership, which they
think will afford financial relief to The
country, and make at once an issue of
the two pet planks of their platform.
j. H. Davis of Texas, who was the
Populist candidate for Attorney General
a year ago, is legal counsel for the Popu-
lists.
1t is alleged that the money stringency
has affected transportation so greatly that
the receipts of many Western roads have
fallen off fully a third, and receiverships
for some of them have already been asked
for, which would also mean the ruin of
the commercial and industrial interests
in every Western and Southern State.
Washburn states that most of the stock
of these roads is held in New England.
they being Boston enterprises, and 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 bimetal-
lism. The plan proposed is for the Ma
tioual Government to issue bonds for
illegal and just Indebtedness, being
governed by the same tenure and con-
tract which now exists. The amount is
estimated to be about two-thirds of the
value of the railroads and the issuance of
legal tender treasury notes or silver GER
tificates for the remaining one-third.
Objection was raised to the Populists'
plan to pay one-third in treasury notes.
which would greatly increase the price of
products in the country, Dut it is claimed
that this issuance of treasury notes will
afford immediate financial relief and in
augurate period of prosperity un-
paralleled in the history of the world.
The Populists do not propose that the
Government buy all railroads at once.
but so gradually that no shock will be
felt in the money market.
Populists say that while their party is
opposed to any new issuance of national
bonds, no objection could be offered to an
even exchange of the bonds which al
ready exist, and the bonds could be grad
ually paid, and in a few years the Gov
ernment would own the railroads. 1t is
claimed that the plan would not antago-
nize existing railroad interests. and if the
Government owned all railroads west OF
the Mississippi River, instead of being
competitive to Eastern roads they would
be distrbutive, and could be used by the
Government to move crops to the mar
kets at cost, and in this way would devel-
op the resources Of the great Western
country, and thereby stimulate trade.
The uninnabited section could be colo
nized, thus relieving the cities from their
present congested state. Several addi-
tonal arguments are adduced.
Washburn Will leave for Washington
tomorrow to have the matter presented
to Congress,