Natchitoches populist., 1898-07-01
PROPOSED WAY OUT.
HOLT" RECOMMENDS BUILD
ING PUBLIC RAILWAYS.
A Policy Designed to Break Up the
Monopoly of the Present Railway
System and Create Good Times--Is a
New Idea.

AAere is out one praCtlcaDle way
by which we can make a halt on our
road to utter ruin, civil war and mill
tary despotism and begin reform that
Will eVentuate In other desirable re-
forms. That one way is for US to force
our governments, state or national, to
begin the building of transcontinental
railroads, paying for the work and
equipments with stock or greenbacks
made receivable for all transportation
by rail. In this way the roads could
De completed and in running condi-
lion without one dollar of debt. The
English people built and operated
roads for years by issuing stock in
payment without one dollar in money.
they built roads, says Lord Beacons-
held in an extensive note to chapter
OF Endymion, to an amount equal to
the national debt of Great Britain, and
carried 1t on in very reckless, un-
systematic manner. With greenbacks
made receivable for all government
dues and debts, and limited issue OF
stock receivable for railroad services,
there could not be a dollar of debt
left soon after the completion Of the
roads. This policy would soon break
up the monopoly of the present rail-
road system and would create good
times. To purchase their old roads
would be wrong. The companies have
so burdened the old roads with debt
and fraudulent issues that they can
never be purchased. If we wait and
Keep preaching for the referendum and
single tax, ETC., all good and absolutely
necessary reforms, 1t will take so long
chat one Of two things must occur:
FIRST, all the present and growing evils
will concentrate such a power in the
hands of few persons who are now
secretly preparing to act that the
masses will be virtually enslaved.
These few have the power Of the gov
eminent In their own hands-the army, !
the navy, and sWarms of hirelings. |
They will within the next ten years,
IN fact they must absorb so much |
land that their tenants and laborers
VIII add to this army force great |
enough to keep down "the enemies OF
law and order, the strikers, anar-
chtsts and Socialists" as they call
those who do not belong to them. A
little violence viii give them the ex-
cpss to re-enaet the Chicago anarchist
tragedy and the Lattimer massacre in
every state. This will put an end BIZ
terror to all thought Of resistance
Tor, contrary to the general belief, It
IS an easy thing to enslave a people
Oy terror This is what will prob
ably occur, as the trend of events
shows.
But II, on the other hand, enough
d the people, desperate under the in
,olerable burdens of labor, will rise up
armed, civil war, with its inevitable
'esult, despotism, will follow.
How easy, before our war, it had
'een to compromise by purchase OF
laves and prevent the war. But none
lardly would listen to that one only
olution. How comparatively easy
low for this people to unite and force
government to begin this one reform
nd prevent all the horrors that are
astening upon us. Why will this one
eforrn do this? Simply because, the
Ihole system Of the evils rests on the
abroad monopoly and the money mo-
opoly. The monopoly of money first
J usury gave such enormous wealth
a few that soon one or two men
ere able to own a railroad-an in
redible phenomenon once. Out of tho
abroad monopoly grew the Standard
II giant, and out of 1t has grown
hers Were the government to go
II with as much earnestness as II
war, and begin building two great '
Iiiroad lines as suggested, and issue
q greenbacks, in six months the very
ct would be such lesson and woula
axe such a change in the ideas and a
rcurnstances Of the people that moth
g could resist their march onward t
ward all the reforms desirable. And a
th such blow at the keystone to n
g arch OF that whole pernicious sys- IL
"a the railroad power would come to
cir knees.
u 10 sad to hear people talk Of buy
8 up their old roads, knowing that W
anticipation of some such move the al
ADS are burdened with debts and
ntracts for 80 years in some cases. d,
RateYer we may think about the ST
Hiding Of roads as herein proposed, 1t
wever conteDnptuously so many OF OF
may discuss the proposal, am sure lie
u the first step toward 1t will be ed
'arded by the railroad emperors with D.
lsternation, and before 100 miles vi
re built we should see another Dl
Indard OIL warfare. Courts, legisIa- be
Is and armies Of men would be en- te
yed to interfere. Even that could til
'dly be done without a war And
alternative OF not doing 1t is war
increasing slavery. HOLT.