The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-06-14
SAVANNAH STANDS STRAIGHT.
The South Atlantic Ports Must Stand
Up For Their Rights.

From the Charleston News and Courier.
The business men of Savannah are in
dead sober earnest. They feel the artificial
restrictions which have been placed upon
the commerce of their port, the out
rageous determinations which have been
established against them, and they have
gone to work in a spirit OF determination
to assert their rights. At q meeting of
the Savannah Board of Trade on Monday,
resolutions were adopted appealing to
the city authorities to abolish the quaran-
| tine charges upon vessels arriving at that
| port, and declaring that the abolition
of municipal port charges would attract
vessels to the port, lessen freight rates
and increase the traffic of the railways
and the trade of the city.
In commencing the resolutions to the
! approval of the board and to the careful
| consideration of the city authorities
| President Purse called attention to the
| fact that the quarantine service at
| Brunswick is conducted cat the expense
and under the control of the federal
| government" and said that whining
ton and Charleston are taking steps to
align themselves with Brunswick
through the same agency" How
ever it may be, the burden
of President Purses appeal was
that Savannah should abolish the
quarantine charges at that port and de-
pend for sanitary protection upon the
watchful and efficient quarantine service
of the national government. The resolu-
tions were unanimously adopted, and we
| take it for granted that the municipal
| authorities will comply with the wishes
of Savannah's principal commercial body.
But the most important action taken by
the Savannah Board of Trade, regarding
it from q local and selfish point of view,
| tEa 11naniT,apuc and ant nufo ir,
| dorsement of Charleston's demand for the
IL cent dlfferential. In this case Charles
toms interests are Savannah'S interests,
and Charleston has in Savannah a most
determined and plucky ally. The Savan-
nah people not only go with Charleston as
far as it has gone, but declare that they
are ready to take any further Joint action
/ that may be deemed necessary to obtain
the relief sought from the present rail
way rates, so damaging in their effects
to the South Atlantic ports" More than
this, they do not intend to stop with cot
ton-they insist that the determinations
against the South Atlantic ports on all
other products shall be removed And
better still, they do not intend to accept
tn e judgment Of packed court, unless
that Judgment shall be equitable and just.
They declare in no uncertain way that
they will go to the extent ''even of appeal
ing the matter for final arbitrament 10 the
highest tribunal"
All this is very encouraging. Right
and justice and equity are on the side of
Charleston and Savannah in the present
contest, and both cities have enlisted for
1.-The war" AS the SAVANNAH MORNING
News says: The time has come when
there must be a change and standing
together and fighting together, Savannah
and Charleston are bound to win. We do
not believe in legislating against corpora
NrroI 10 uof hal in Grb II
tai, we have always protested against en-
couraging railroad litigation, but the
South Atlantic seaports enjoy certain
natural conditions and are entitled to pro-
lection in their natural rights. They may
not win their present struggle for recog-
milton and honest treatment, but tn ey
will win soon or late. There were cotton
ports on the South Atlantic seaboard
ports that We're placed here by Provi-
dence, ports that were shipping cotton
and other products of the field and forest,
before Commissioner Stahlman was born,
and long before the Southern Railway
and Steamship Association was organized,
and these ports must and shall be re-
garded in the distribution of freightS and
in the charges for railroad service.
We are glad that Savannah has asserted
itself so Enthusiastically, and in this con-
test we feel that Savannah and Charles
ton represent not only themselves, but the
people and the interests Of the states of
Georgia and South Carolina. The people
of the interior, the farmer, the merchant,
the miner, have stake in this fight.
Their natural trading places are the sea-
ports of their respective states, and they
will join the ports as we believe, in
their just and reasonable demands.
Moreover, the United States congress
has an interest in this fight. The
millions of dollars expended by the gov
eminent in the Improvement of southern
harbors for the benefit of commerce will
be worse than wasted if a syndicate OF
railroad owners are permitted without
restriction to establish artificial channels
of trade, to undo the work of the Almighty
i'll the interest Of the "long hauln Sa-
vannah and Charleston ask only what is
right, and will be satisfied with nothing
less. And if they cannot obtain what
they ask for in one way, they will get it
in another.
"Ah said Watts as he saw tho old col