Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1896-03-05

Kansas City.
NUMBER ENLARGEMENT OF GOVERN
MENTAL FUNCTIONS.
In the current number Of The Arena
Professor Ely asks and answers the live
question, "Should the government con-
troll the telegraph" His answer, which
is squarely in the affirmative, is strong
ly supported by an article from the very
able pen of Judge Walter Clark Of the
supreme court Of North Carolina, in
which the latter meets and overcomes
every objection seemingly which can be
urged against the constitutionality OF
such public control. Judge Clark plants
himself on tho act Of congress of 1856,
chapter $50, and the opinion Of Chief
Justice Waite in the case Of Pensacola
versus Telegraph company, 90 U. S. l,
He also quotes sparingly from an address
delivered to the graduating class Of
Yale Law school June "a, 1896, by
Judge Brown of the United States SUI
preme court, and published as the lead
ing article in The Forum for August,
1895. To my mind the reasoning OF
Judge Brown is unanswerable and con-
elusive, and 1 therefore reproduce his
exact words on that occasion, thus:
eff the government may be safely in
trusted with the transmission Of our
letters and papers, / see no reason why
it may not also be intrusted with the
transmission Of our kilograms and par
cells, as is almost universally the case
in Europe, or Of our passengers and
freight Through a state ownership OF
railways), as in Germany, France, Aus
tria, Sweden and Norway. If the state
owns its highways, why may it not also
own its railways? If a municipality
owns its streets and keeps them paved,
severed and cleaned, why may it not
also light them, water them and trans
port its citizens over them, so far as
such transportation involves a monopoly
of their use? Indeed, wherever the
proposed business is Of a public or semi
public character and requires special
privileges from the state or partial
delegation Of governmental powers
such, far instance, as the condemnation
of land, or special use or disturbance
of the streets for the laying Of rails,
pipes or wires--there would seem to be
no sound reason why such franchises,
which are for the supposed benefit Of the
public, should not be exercised directly
by the public. Such at least is the tend
ency Of modern Legislation in nearly ev-
cry civilized country but our own,
where great corporate interests, by put
ting prominently forward the dangers
of paternalism and socialism, have sue
ceeded in securing franchises which
properly belong to the public.
1.-THE fear, too, that these monopolies
may be used for political purposes has
hitherto proved an insuperable objection
to their exercise by the state, but the
development of civil service reform has
been so rapid and satisfactory that its
introduction into this new field Of use
fulness would follow as a matter OF
course and would obviate the most for
midable difficulty in the way of the
proposed change.
] "Should the assumption of these nat.
ural opportunities by foreign states and
municipalities prove as successful as
they now promise, the question which
will confront the legislators of the
twentieth century will be, not whether
these extensions of governmental func-
lions are socialistic in their tendencies,
but how long this country can afford to
lag behind others which we have been
taught to look upon as conservative and
inert. "
In all thoroughly we'll informed cir
Giles it goes without saying that Judge
Brown is among the most conservative
federal judges, yet there is no mistakine
the significance of the above language,
and it may be accepted as fair indica.
ton of the present trend of judicial
opinion. GEORGE BULLOCK.
st. Louis, December, 1895.