Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-05-14
IRONTON. MO, THURSDAY.
Quld pro Quo.

II some one should present you will
twenty-five dollars, and offer you nj
explanation, you would probably tr!
to recall the circumstances undel
whicn he became indebted to you il
that sum. Should you be satisfied
that there was nothing due you on pas
transactions, you would at once begir
to speculate upon what was expected
from you in the future. It would no
occur to you that you were the recipi
ent of a donation. Should you be con
vinced that this was the case. yor
would at once suspect the sanity of the
donor, were you in comfortable cir
cumstances. Your surprise would be
natural, for men do not part with mon
ey or its equivalent without the expec
tation, at least, of return for the ex
penditure. If it is unusual for an in.
dividual to give without an equivalent
except to charity, how much more un'
usual is it for corporation, called in
to existence for the sole purpose ol
making money, to do SO? 1t is safe to
say that there is no such thing as free
transportation. A railroad company
would never furnish legislator with
pass if it did not expect to profit by
it, directly or indirectly. 1t expects
his active Or passive support where its
interests are concerned. If it were on
ly to maintain legitimate rights and to
procure privileges to enable it to per-
form its proper functions, it would
seem that this largess is wholly unnec-
essary; if it is to secure7 more than
this it is in the nature of bribe. and
therefore corrupt. The fact is, the
managers of the pass department OF
our railroads are the shrewdest of men,
with the most comprehensive knowl-
edge of human nature. They under
stand that the man who accepts favors
from the company they represent is
apt to feel kindly toward it, and to
permit his feelings to bias his judg-
ment where its interests are involved.
The railroads have managed to create
the impression that no mans political
life is worth anything who incurs their
ill-will. AS consequence we find
their tools upon the bench, in our leg
islative halls, and sitting in our muni-
cipal assemblies. We see others, ma
turally honest and upright, who are
afraid to antagonize them in any way.
The politician may we'll fear to fall un-
der their displeasure. They never
always vigilant and merci-
less in the pursuit of an enemy-and
usually reward HIM who suffers in
their cause, so long as he can be made
useful to them. The man active in op-
position TO their interests is a lost man.
If his downfall cannot be accomplished
this week, it will be brought about
next month. If not next month, then
in the next year, or the next ten years.
His fate is sure to overtake him, un-
less he surrenders. He can usually es-
cape by this door, If he will.
So great has the power of the rail-
roads become that the judge, the leg
islator, or other official, takes his pass,
and, if he be honest at heart, does as
little as possible to incur their enmity,
and reposes in peace. Every time the
thoughtful man uses his pass, he real
ICES that his ride is not free; that it is
for past services, or that something is
of him in the future.
Our great transportation companies
are rapidly raising the question as to
whether this government can afford to
have such powerful servants. When
people behold their courts-creatures
called into existence by their act, and
theoretically, at least, their servants
managing thousands of miles of rail-
roads in the interest of corporations
that they created, they not unreasona-
bly, inquire, s'if one branch of this gov
ernment can manage railroad in the
interests of it's stockholders, why
could not another branch manage the
same railroad in our own interests?"
The great transportation companies of
this land are making the railroad
plank of the populist platform look ex-
ceedingly plausible. 1t would be a
good idea to compel the osicial who
gets the benefit of free transportation
to file copy of his pass. Atall events
there will be no harm in the travelling
public taking notice as to which of
their servants rides free, and as to
which pays the usual fare.