The Globe-republican., 1894-01-05
FRIDAY, JANUARY. 5. 1894.
Government and Railroads.


Read by L. G. Grobety before the Repub
Iican Club, December %, 1888.
Interest in the Ford County lRepub
lican Club is not waning by any means
At the meeting Thursday night of las
week the club was favored with som
interesting and entertaining thought
from different iuembers. Justice Gro
betty was the principal speaker. Tn
committee had Mr. Grebety deIiyer al
address to the members eoE goverpmen
ownership of railroads. They were 81
well pleased with it that a resolution
was adopted demanding that it be pub
.ished in this paper which we cheerful.
~ do. 1t is as follows:
The government ownership of rail
8 roads is question that has recently Ell.
tered politics, having been precipitated
in the pool by declarations of the pee.
: pies party that the same is a practical
5iidea.
The possibility of such a scheme is as
earnestly argued by that party as any
idea advanced ty it. asd is urged as a
great innovation in the policy of our
government concerning these arteries of
commerce.
l am ut a loss to determine from what
standpoint to argue this question. as it
is. susceptible of consideration from
many positions. do not believe that
ifdhe government owned the railroads,
it's too feeble to operate them, but to
the contrary believe that if the govern
meat had control of them the public
would be as efficiently served in all that
pertains to transportation as it is BY its
postal department or any other exeeu-
tive department Of the government. But
the government is not in possession or
control of them, and certainly the re-
publican party cannot be held RESPONSE
BILE for this lack of assets. The policy
OF the government in regard TO railroads
;antedStes the existence of the republic
an party. and when that party ,,o0k
sthe reiHs OF government "a condition
and not theory confronted it,
The condition was that all railroads
we're rightfully owned and operated by
private indivuals and corporations and
the policy was to take no part in the de-
velopmsnt' Of the railroad, trusting that
entirely to private enterprise. 1t was
thought taat the public interest would
be protected BY the natural laws of.com-
petition.
When the sailrOad was first introduced
in the United States, the world lacked
the knowledge and experience 10 COM
prehend its destiny, to foresee the influ.
ence a would exert, or to forecast its
wonderful future. Had there been this
knowledge it would no doubt have been
considered :..public property, add as
public improvements been built and
operated In the public interest,"" 1 be-
lieve that If the government had been
put in centrol OF the railroad at the Be-
ginning, Che greater part of the conflict
between labor saps capital would have
been averssd, not. by the use of force.
but by liberal policy toward employ
ees and JUS remuneration of labor aud
hazard OF ls1e. Rut 1t is now too late to
bewail about what should have been.
and the question mast be considered
from present and existing conditions.
Under existing conditions private cor
poratiOns and individuals own and oper-
ate all the railroads. Now, let US in
quire-how ca. che government acquire
such a vast amoCut of property? There 4
are only two ways: One by purchase,
The other by seizure or comiscation. One 8
Is as impossible as the ether is repug-
1ant to the genius Ct the sAelerican PEG. I
,le. There are 2506E miles of railroad =
n the United States which cost nine q
'ilEons of dollars. How can the gov =
'rnmeut purchase the0s Estimating a .
'opalation of so millioas in this country.
o bug them wonld incur a debt of $50
'er capita. The national debt as re- !,
'orted august let 1866, after the long A
nd costly civil war. was 81 ,997 1856 ,2O3, Z,
r sS2.ss per capita. r
The peoples party would probably S
aggest that we could grind out enough s.
reenbacks to pay for them. In the year a
sS6 gold wss worth as high As 81 1874 $,
That would gold be worth in United In
tates greenbacks if nine billion Of dol 81
rs in paper xere issued to purchase "
'ilroads, even # such an unjust appro- TT
ration of property could be denomi- of
ated purchase. VI
# seems to me that II railroads can be NJ
,rchased in that way. the mill could be
pit going and with as good moral right r
could buy the territory of Mexico BY Oh
ndering to that govemmeat our green RI
cks and sending our armies down n.
ere to make the paper legal tender, me