Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1897-04-01
The Railroad Question.
AaRA, KANs Mar. q, ,97.

AuhAi hANb mbI' AlJ o.
EDITOR HERALD:-A great deal is
being said, pro and con, in regard to
railroad legislation. AS / am one Of
the body whose work is now subject
TO criticism beg leave to offer few
suggestions through the columns of
your paper. First:
/ have no excuse to offer for my
actions or vote on railroad legisls-
ton neither do / blame other mem
bers Of the Legislature, / grant them
the privilege of acting according to
the dictates of their honest Judgment,
and all | ask is the same privilege
and for every man to be sure that he
thoroughly understands the situation
and the provisions of both bills that
we're before the house before render
ing judgment.
| find that railroad maximum
rate is much easier talked about than
enacted and that there ia likely to be-
more satisfaction IN pursuit than in
possession and that it requires men
equipped with something more than
theories and versed in French to take
possession OF the business of about
5000 miles Of railroad in Kansas and
fix a rate that would be practical, fair
and just to all concerned, in day or
two, to stand for two years until the
next Legislature meets.
With all the clamoring l have
heard for the Brown maximum bill,
[ have yet to see the first article set
ting forth the merits of the bill To
be brief I will give the substance,
life and space are too short to give
all of it): 1t is a bill Of no recent
origin having been gotten up some
six years ago by one of the present
railroad commissioners, It first pro-
vides that the railroad companies
shall have fair compensatlons for all
monies actually expended and oper-
ating expenses and then fixes rate
on every article the company is likely
to handle from q needle to a steam
thresher aud then provides that 1t
shall be adjusted by the railroad
commissioners. My first objection to
the bill was, that / could see no sense
in the legislature foollng away time
fixing rate that could be adjusted
Immediately after we adjourned.
Next l found out by reports that
the earnings Of the railroads in Kan
sas for the last three years barely
paid expenses, which according to
the first provisions Of the bill, eft
us nothing to work on, all that could
be done was simply to make the live
competing roads carry the dead ones
by raising the freight on such as the
Rock Island. It would make car
of stock from Agra cost from $l50
to $500 more than it does at present
with no assurance of anything else
being lower All summed up l con-
cluded that my constituents had more
practical sense than to want such a
measure. And again all posted men
know that the greater part of the
profit in railroads go into sal8res SO
it would be an easy matter to make it
appear that railroad was not paying
expenses by raising the salaries or
creating few new officers and canse
raise in the freight according to the
first provisions of the bill. The Gov
ernor admitted In his veto message
that the Harris bill provided a way
by which maximum rate could be
established. but bis objections were
that 1t would take too long. 1t pro-
vided that on complaint of any ship
Der to the railroad commissioners it
was made their duty to notify the
company and after q hearing to fix
the rate, constitutional provision