The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-08-03
HOW RAILROAD MEN VIEW IT.
THINK FREE SILVER Would
HURT THEIR INTERESTS.

| ter TO the Railway Age on the Eff
feet of Free silver on the Rail-
roadside Speaks of the Effect
| Especially Upon the LabOrer and
the Observation-Disclosures and La
BOrers in savannah Railroad
shops Who Strongly Oppose the
Free silver Movement.
There seems to be a general feeling
| among railroad men Of the south, as wen
Of the north, that the success of the free
! silver movement will be generally de-
! structive Of and disastrous to their inter-
ests
! To make practical observations Of the
! truth Of this fact the student OF the gem
eral political situation Will not have to
| 90 away from home. This does not ep-
! ply 10 the high officials altogether, but
to the railroad laborer and the mechanic,
and the man in the shops who earns his
stipend by daily toll.
! Il have talked with a good many Of
| the men in the mechanical department"
a well-known Savannah railroad foreman
| said yesterday, "and as far as 1 can see
! they are going to vote for Mckinley. II
| is true at least in our shops, and 1 am
| informed that it is generally so with rail-
! road laborers and mechanics. They feel
| that their interest lies in the monetary
| system that viii make dollar buy a dol
! lars worth of stun. They are all left
| free to vote as their opinion dictates, and
1 may say l nave never heard of a rail-
! road official giving any instructions to his
employees in that respect"
This seems to be the feeling with rail-
road men generally. The railroads they
say are dependent upon a sound financial
system. much more so perhaps than many
other forms Of industry One railroad Off
cial, whose headquarters is in Savannah,
when asked how the country will go the
other day said:
IT'S either going for Mckinley or it's
| going to h"
one great reason for this is that fixed
charges are always payable in gold. The
mortgages given to secure issues of rail-
road bonds specify this. and if railroads
have to receive silver for services perform
ed and pay their obligations in gold they
| argue il would require more money to do
| so than they could possibly earn, hence
| creating an excellent opportunity for nu-
| merous receiVerships.
| President II. NJ. Conner of the Central
| OF Georgia Railway Company has an ex-
| cellent letter on the effect of free silver
| on railroads in the current issue of the
Railway Age. In his communication he
| says:
Central of Georgia Railway Company.
| Savannah, Ga, July IA, 1S96-To the Edi-
| tors: Recognizing that the units of value
! are in abor, and that all values are Great
ed by labor, and that money is the de-
FnominatOr, measure or standard of val
| ues, and the medium by which values are
| exchanged it follows that any radical
| change In the value of this denomnator
| measure or standard, will greatly inter-
fere with the entire commerce, industries
and business of the country.
As the relative value OF silver to gold
| is about thirty-one of silver to one of gold
| II Is evident, If silver is freely and unlim-
| ltedly coined at the ratio OF 16 TO l, that the
silver dollar will be worth but little more
than half the value of the gold dollar
and as the silver dollar would be a legal
tender for all debts not specifically made
payable in gold it is easy to foresee the
| effect upon the railroad COMPANIES and
other corporations and individuals whose
opllgatons are payable in gold.
II is assumed, of course, that with the
free and unlimited coinage of silver, as
stated the government could not, as It
does now, and would not longer even at
tempt to keep and maintain the silver dol
lar of equal value and eXchangeable for
the gold dollar. 1t follows, therefore that
we would have as a circulating medium
only silver money, or paper money based
on silver, and that gold would become a
commodity TO be bought and sold, as corn,
wheat and other merchandise The first
and immediate result of this would be a
contraction of the money of the country
by the amount of gold and paper money
redeema pie IN gold now in
would be to lower the value of propertv
generally, check enterprise and depress
| trade, if, indeed, it would not result in a
most disastrous panic.
When the vacuum thus caused by the
withdrawal of gold is supplied by silver
theh a rise in values of commodities
= 81 FGan sill I've
occur, but this would not materia iiN-
increase railroad earnings thev could
neither increase the wages of their eNy-
charges.
There being only narrow margin be-
tween the earning capacity of railroads
ana their nXed charges, nearly the entire
amount OF winch Is payable in gold the
result is evident. Either earnings mus
be increased by a considerable advances
OF freight and passenger rates, or inso;-
Is it practicable, is it possible TO M
once advance rates to meet and offset the
deprecated value of money? If it is NOT.
then we would have another period marx.
ed by receiverships and reorga mutations
resulting IN the adapting of the capital
lzatlon or the properties TO the new order
OF uhlngs, and by which enormous sums Of
invested capital, which at best has re-
celved meager returns, but which has
been most instrumental in developing the
resources of the country, would be wipea
|
As is always the case when danger an
proaches, railroad managers would. at the
! outset endeaVOr to reduce expenses in ev-
| cry way possible. The effect of this unon
employees who, like their employers, would
| be obliged to accept dollars of half value
| IS picture which, while true is TOO sad
| to contemplate. 1t is true that the rail-
| road employe of to-day can with his daily
| wages, buy more of the necessaries ana
! comforts of life than ever before. BIlt
does this argue that his wages are too
hiigh and That he is being paid more than
| his duties and responsibilities deserve
| and should therefore be reduced one-half
! by being forced to accept fifty cents in
| stead of a dollar?
The service the railroad companies and
! their employees are giving to the couutry
| Is better than ever before, and is con-
| stantly improving. Both the companies
anu their employees are being held to
more strict accountability to the public
! Tor prompt and reliable service which 70
/ the users of railroads. is of far greater
! Importance than the wages paid EMPLOYEES
| such reduction in the wages Of rail-
road employees would not only be n great