Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1894-10-17
ION. greatly increased their net reve-

- In summarizing the results Of
government ownership in European
countries, Mr.. Larrabee says:
For the past fifteen years there has
been a decided drift on the European
continent toward state ownership of
railroads.
The principle upon which the de-
mand for government ownership rests,
that railroads are public highways
necessary to the public welfare and
convenience the same as our public
roads and water ways, and as forming
too important factor in the COM
merce and exchange of the country to
be left to the whims and caprices of
individuals.
BUYING THE RAILROADS.
1t is amusing to see our friends, the
then proceed to demoli7h them. 1t is
more like the action of school boys
madly charging the mullen stock than
anything else, except the mullen
stock is more tangible object than
our opponents usually conjure up in
their Imagination.
These elegant gentlemen, the squir-
rel-tailed politicians who are so de-
voted to the dear peoples interests as
to be willing to make the great EacrI-
flee of accepting an Office at salaries
ranging from $500 to $4,000 year,
take peculiar delight in supposing.
In their fertile imaginations they
suppose a plan, charge it up to the
Populists, and then jump onto it and
demolish it. Of course they take great
care to suppose plan that is weak
enough in Its structure for them to
demolish. Some of these COMPUTATIONS
are as silly as the supposition that we
are in favor of shoeing the horses
tails
The Peoples party declares in favor
of government ownership of railroads
and telegraph lines But nowhere in
its platform does it indicate plan to
secure this end. If our opponents are
disposed to act fair why not concede
that we favor some practical plan for
carrying out our declaration? Why
charge that we are in favor of pur-
chasing all the railroads at once at
their capitalized value, including the
watered stock, and issuing bonds for
the amount and taxing the people to
pay the bonds? No Populist has ever
proposed any such thing There is
no necessity for doing any such thing.
The railroads could be bought
and paid for within twenty years out
of their net earning and savings with
out taxing the people one cent, or in
creasing the present rates of freight
and passenger tariff But the people
are already taxed on every dollar of
capital represented by railroad bonds
and stocks to the extent of $40, ,00O,-
OO0 600. They are taxed in the freight
and passenger rates which they have
to pay the railroad companies. What
the Peoples party desires is that the
money which now goes to pay divi-
dends on stock and interest on bonds,
shall go toward purchasing the rail.
roads and eventually owning and
operating them at greatly reduced
rates. In an able and we'll written
article in the Arena, Mr.. c. Wood
Davis, a practical railroad man and
reliable statistician, figures the actual
savings by government ownership of
railroads as follows:
Savings from consultations of
depots and staffs fs........S 10000, 600
Savings from exclusive use of
shortest routes. eS............. $4,000, 900
Savings in attorneys salaries
and legal expenses. ........... $4,000, 900
Savings from abrogation of the
pass evil. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 10000, 600
Savings from abrogatiOn of COM
mission system ............. 10000, coo
Savings from dispensing with
high-priced officers and stats 1000, 900
Savings by disbanding traffic
associations ns............... 100000
Savings by dispensing with
presidents, etc. tc........,....... $4,000, 600
Savings by abolishing (all but
local. officers, solicitors, etc.. 15,OOO, 900
Savings of e-sevenths of ad-
vertising accounts. .......... 5000, 600
Total $3.50, ,OOO, 600
In addition to this there would be saved: :
The annual political corruption
fund. ............... 81 3O,OOO, 900
Secret rebates TO directors, etc,
VINO compose various trusts
and combinations. ...... 5O,OOO, 900
All dividends and surplus. ..... 134, 900, 600
Total Observation-Disclosures. .$214, ,00O, 900
Add Mr.. Davis figures ...... 100, 900 900
1olh. ............. f0f4,OVOUUp
Suppose that the government should
purchase the railroads at their actual
cost and issue bonds bearing 9 per
cent interest per annun. The best
authorities concede that at least one
half of the present capitalization of
the roads is water. But, we will allow
The annual interest charge on this
sum for the first year would be Sl2O.
600, 900. We have already figured the
net savings and dividends from the
roads at 1914, 900. 900. Deduct the in
terest on bonds from this amount and
it leaves s254, 900, 900 to go into sink.
ing fund to pay the bonded indie bted-
ness The interest would grow less
each year as the principal was being
paid and within twenty years the en-
tire debt will have been discharged
and not a dollar of paper money
issued for the purpose. and not cenl
In taxes collected from the people.
other than that which they now pay
and which sgoes into the pockets
of rich railroad magnates. The
question is not whether the people
will assume the burden of debit is
already on them-but whether they
will make DrOyiSiOns 70 Oet from nm.