Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-08-25


come milli Jnaires in the public service |
at he expense Of the people. 1t is not
too late to heed the warning of jack
son and Webster who protested against
any partnership between The govern
ment and any corporation. 10 such
ombinatioD the government is always
worsted because private interests are
always more vigilantly prosecuted |
than public duties. Su:h unions of our
national Samson and the sbrewd be-
witching Delilah Of private interest
must always breed the offspring Of
corruption in our politics and set up q
race of saIraps who will manage not
only our politics but the great branches
of transportation and monopolize the
principal products Of our land, like
wheat, oil, cIrn, cotton, live stock end
lumber by getting them into their col
troll directly st first hands, paying the
producer as little as possible and then
forever after controlling the delivery OF
those products to tbeir ultimate con-
sumers. They not only become the
middle men Tut the complete masters
of the sweat and toll of the producer
and laborer who is thus made as much
AN industrial slave as was the African
IN the south chattel slave before the
war that freed him. When you place
government behind capital you en-
danger the existence of both whenever
the united force becomes oppressive to
| the masses.
1 shall not go into details to answer
every argument why the government
should or should not acquire and oper-
ate the Pacific railroads. UDlss the
government is prepared to give up it,
first leius OF this great national high
ways that were built by the aid of ne
government subsidies, issues of govern
ment bonds, grants of the government
lands to the extent of many times the
value of the total cost of the entire
properties or the entire value
of them at present,-unless
we are prepared to advocate the sur
render OF several hundreds of millions
# dollars in money value to individuals
.iready rich beyond the power Of the
government to cope with them Ia pub
'ic inatters,- and give over these great
military post roads to three millioDsires
made 20 by their partnership with the
government throuAb ahd by means of
these very public corporations, aud say
70 them, these are your private estates
to enjoy for yourselves and your heirs
forever. Then say, must consider the
control and management Of these great
properties. If the government keeps
its interest, and it must keep it or give
it away, for these corporations are now
quasi-public organization of capital to
render public service ia its very ma
ture a monopoly, but owned and man
aged by partnership between the
the government and the corporation.
The franchise, the land subsidies, rhe
financial guaranty Of bonds, the right
If eminent domain, the government
directors and the attempt at regula-
ton and control by the interstate COM
merce commission are the work of gov
ernment. The management, the dis
) position of securities, the handling OF
the financies, the salaries of officials
; and employees, the extension of new
branches aud making of traffic arrange
ments and operation OF connecting
lines aud steamboat lines and even
ocean steamer lines, the fixing OF rates
and fares are the more lucrative part of
the business conducted by the corpora
ton managers. In addition to doing
all that | have mentioned, the United
States Is at present running the Pacific
roads under receiverships.
While the great Northern and Can
adian Pacific have been paying diYi-
dends the past two years, the Pacific
roads in our country have been bank
rupt and in the hands of receivers, al
though the paying lines parallel them
and are competitors. The Jim Hip
road was built by private enterprise,
bought its own right of way, fioated its
own bonds and divided the territory of
the North Pacific. But it was built
without watered stock, upon an actual
outlay of capital, and is conducted
purely as private business enterprise.
There are no princely salaries, pickings
and stealing of millions, boodllng of
legislatures and congress. The govern
ment has absolutely nothing to do with
it. Contrast with this, the Pacific
roads Of our country paying no divi-
dends, bankrupt and in the hands of q
receiver, Henry Willard having wrecked
the Northern Pacific as Huntington
has wrecked tile Central Pacific, the
former cleaning $1,000, 900 in one year
and going to Europe with it, the latter
now in Washington trying to induce
congress to cancel debt of over hun.
dred millions or put off the payment
fifty or hundred years, all of these
Pacific roads tied up for weeks in the
recent strickland you have contrast
of between railroads run on business
principles and corporations managed
under government partnership.
Well may we cry out, spare our coun-
try from any more partnerships with
the Pacific or any other corporations.
Ii ruins the railroads and corrupts the
government. These corporations have
today more revenues tnan the govern
ment, pay their officials bigger salaries,
and exercise a greater influence and
control over the fortunes and the hap
piness of the people than the federal
government itself. We must establish
tho principle in our domestic affairs
that Is ennnciated In the Monroe doc
trlHe-no partnerships for Uncle Sam
in anything in which he has to play
second fiddle. In partnership with
the Pacific corporations, the railroads
interest or the peoples interest must
control. The government must run
the corporation or the corporation will
run the government.
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NV