The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1896-08-27
RAILROAD RATES
ARE EXCESSIVE,
The Erorbitan, Charges For Trans.
PortaiiOn lnpOv.Eishiss The
South ard West.
PUBLIC DEMANDS RELIEF.


VIII t~es Atf~s th~iF W.N.r. 49, r~@a
Gssiss rrs.a rs- E.its-.s s----.I.
.ass. tn. sssi. ~f Fr~. r..---
EAIntUtt. y. q. Agx 1l-ah~ es-.-
has hr-n ofira A-krd xLsttsr tls~ .a.,n
axe at silver wuuid d. = VsuAo-a tas
III. depression aIorr ~bi.h ts~ sus.r
try nos dr.gs oui lingering I,f-
The fri-ni> 81 fr-- cssin insE- do t.ut s,s.n.
,isvr H uois'r~sl r~m-sy. hut an in-
itspensssl- t.ssr. Ih- .tt.css s..s.i
sfsnsiars - fb~ rrsk uttr's Ia. t.~p
placed sgAins. the dssor xhrrr .,ur
hopes have h~-n buried. aud until a.
l. rolled away th-r- rsn - ~ r~.ur-
r-ction of our Prosperity. isns-. o. ur-
gently opposed o. tic r-n.sal si th~
stone, but '-rtAinl, Lazarus .annal
come forth uniil ii hs. h--n rAk-n
away.
Among tie mauy opprrs.ions ,i.iira
upon the mas,-. b, thar prr..rt
masters who have ~IAGrn the r--t. :.
with burdens sr'rsous to b- hurn.. lat
which they Viii nut touch wan o.,
much n one of th-ir little fncsr.-
are the freight rate. aud 1A..-nf..
rates which have hot a~cr-a.-d asth
the decrease ia the value of eur t.s...'-
ucts, but have enhanced with
the enhanced value of the COLLAR at-
owners of the gr-Ai railway line. i-r-
ing among the mo.t active agent. in
procuring the adoption oi tn- geld
standard and they are the larg-.t con
trisui"rs Ia the cAmpsig gn fupd "a i--
used against the rr.i"raiion nf sii.-r
To free coinage.
j. Pierpont Morgan. who Wa CON
.picuous In procuring Mr.. Cleveland
TO issue tLe sssa ,sns1 oi houd. aud
whose firm shared largely in the sls.-
"n..b0 o: profits the syndicate made
10y handling thst i.su-. a. the rrtnrt-
pal owner of the southern Eailwa,
Company lin--. " hen cotton wa.
cents n pound as IL siili remains in
Mexico one pound of cotton would
pay for ny. miles of passenger fare
on his railroads; now. though TO aud
his combination haye increased the
value of money till cotton bring. only
10 : cents n pound, he hAs not re-
duced his fares nor fr-ighis aud a
pound of cotton will only carry it,
producer two miles instead of fis-, n.
formerly. Freighis remain ~ high a.
ever and trucking. which shoule b- a
very profitable business, has been re-
duced To the same ,.y-i as other farm
ing business, and ia both nlik. all the
profit is absorbed br the transporia-
tion charges.
INTERSTATE COMMISSION
IL there no protection for the p~o-
pler Certainly there IL, but n 10 ia
their own hands. IL cannot De found
in the railroad commissions. The In
ter-state Commission has proved .a
utterly inefficient that two of tie greA;
parties have put into .ACir platform,
demands for its being made really -f-
| ficient. In fact. the Int-r-stat- Com
mission has practically restricted it.eIi
10 protecting the corporations against
| hurting each other by reducing
| rates, with no protection 10 the people
against exorbitant rates. nor against
secret rebates TO large or favored ship
pers which were the objects in view ia
creating the commission. Whenever
that commission has shown any di.ro-
sition 10 serve tile object Of its cr~a-
tion il has been promptly shackied by
injunctIons, or highly technical rui-
inga, 10y the Federal Judges, hoiding
thsir positions for life, aud q large
proportion Of them having secured
their Appointments by the influencs
OF the corporations i'm whose behalf
they extend their powers by ey~ry
possible construction. Besides, if &,
not certain that all the appointment,
To the Interstate Commission it.el
have been made without the nfiuenc.
more or lees active OF great rAilroa,
SYSTEMS interested in the futur. actioi
OF such appointee-.
| STATE E. d. COMMISSIONS.
After this result " ith the Inter-siat.
Commission could the record of IA.
state Commission ts. other than die
appointing In some cases, d
a Western railroad president Gym
ically and openly declared. ia.
railroads have simply added the rail
road commissions To their ns.et-." Ia
the majority of instances. however
the members Of the state Railroas
Commissions have been gentlemen %
unimpeacbable character. hut eiecf-.
by legislatures instead OF the peopl,
IN radical defect which the corpora
fions carefully looked toD they have IL
rare instances had q ma jority of pro
gressive members in close sympath,
with the people. They have been in
tensely conservative, listening to IN
assertions OF impending ruin, liberal
ly made by railroad managers IL rat~
were reduced, and not seeing th
patent ruin TO the people if they w~r
not. AZ a rule railroad commissfon
have limited themselves TO a cbees
pairing reduction OF one-fourth @
one-eigbth osa cent per mile on pas
! senger fares, and n similar microscope
reduction on freight rates, and witt
ordering few railroad stations buiIi
where the corporations were not owe
much disposed To build them. SON,
times they have somewhat raised In
valuation Of railroad property for tar
alton over which those corporation
have raised q sham battle KNOWN,
that the extra taxation would reall,
be- paid by the people, by quietly rails
! ing the freight rates on certain ar
ticles. when the Standard Oil Com
pany was assessed for part OF the faxe
, il justly owed, Rockefeller said '-ad
: one-fourth OF Q cent TO the price O
oil till the people have paid our taxes
The only way to reduce the burdei
on the people is by bVna fde genuin
! cut in passenger and freight rates. 4
, may be said OF more than one railros
commission that at q respectful dis
tance they initiate the ways OF Provi
, dence ia one particular. IL has hee
SAID He taxes q etep-ano ages hav
rolled away" All railroad commis
sions probably when first appointe
, have made . show Of reform By cut
] ting of some infinitesimai amour
r from railroad charges as an one-eighf
Y or one-iourth Of cent from passen
ger fares and then-two or three gen
eratiOns hence, il the people wait Q
! long. they may possibly cut of anotbs
one-eighth Of q cent. In the ulss
: time, the muIti-millienaires who ow
these roads, living in their marble pa
8 aces in London and New York, Wit
e their yachts, fast women and fal
: horses, have gone on with their felio'
. conspirators enhancing the value {
. the dollar, reducing the value OF pro
duce and there by more than doublin
their passenger and freight rates.
II INJECT or EYcEasIyE RArrs-