Evening star., 1899-02-02
II congressional campaigning in the

SOUTH
The Loud commission will have its hands
full in finding anything out about the cost
OF railroad transportation" said L. S. Stan
ton Of Knoxville, formerly general man.
ager of the Knoxville and Fountainhead
railroad, at the Riggs. Railroad experts
have for many years been figuring upon
this problem, and they have not solved Il
yet. There are no two railroads in the
United States whose books show the same
cost for carrying a passenger or a ton of
freight mile. One railroad COMPANY will
go into bankruptcy upon a rate and a orIau-
tlty of business that will make another
railroad company rich. There are no two
roadbeds that require exactly the same
amount of work in order to keen Them i'm
repair There are no two roads with ex-
actIy Inc same proportion of bridges and
tIeStIeS. The difference in soil makes n
very considerable difference in the cost of
maintaining and operating a railroad. The
ulHerence In the topography of the country
through which the line passes has a grea I
deal to do with the cost of transportation.
Ihe nature of the other lines it crosses and
the nature of the business at the terminal
points mas great deal TO do with the aver
age cost OF Transporting a passenger or a
ton OF freight. Railroad companies keen
all OF the records possible and their staris-
ucians prepare careful tables for the Dur-
pose OF arriving at the cost of transnorta- =
non. no railroad yet has ever succeeded
ih HhclhS out what is the average cost of
hauilng passenger or a ton of freight a
mile There are plenty of tables showing
th1s cost, but one railroad would make a
great zeal or money upon the averages
given while another railroad would lose
money
L would not be surprised if Gen. Wheeler
OF Alabama occupied second place on the
national republican ticket in 1900, said r.
A. Gratz, prominent lawyer of Decatur
Ala, at the Ebbitt Gen. Wheeler is NOT
now seeking such a position, and in a re
cent interview he said that he was still q
democrat, which declaration. [ think was
honestly made. The fact is however that
under the new lines the parties are taking
Gen Wheeler is distinctively a republican.
A great many of his friends in the demo-
cratic party will be glad to see him honor
ed by the republicans. No section of the
country needs new alignment of parties
more than does the south. When President
Hayes appointed Judge D. NJ Kew a life
long democrat from Tennessee. TO the DO
sltion OF Postmaster General he took a step
which caused Judge Key to become A re-
publican. The judge always explained that
he had not changed any of his principles
put only his OPINION as to policies. This
Is Gen. w Wheeiers attitude today. He is
no longer in sympathy with his party as to
policies. If he should be nominated for the
second place on the national ticket IL would
result in breaking the solid south The
republican party, before Ii became known
as the republican party, had its principal
strength in the southern states The de-
scendants of those old-time republicans
have only been kept in the democratic
ranks by reason of sectional Questions
Eliminate those
men will divide in the south about as euuaI-
ly as they do in the north.
Il hope the bill giving a form of govern
ment to Alaska will pass" said c. L. Burns
of Sitka at the National IF the people of
the United States could know more of the
native Alaskans a very different policy
would be pursued toward that race They
are a very intelligent people. / know one
little girl, five years old, who can read and
write as well most children six or eight
years old, and can count to 1000 They
are possessed of great family affection and
domestic troubles are almost unknown
among them. They are industrious and
obedlent. They are totally unlike the Es-
quimaux of Labrador and Hudson Bay
Ihey have all of the characteristics of the
Japanese without the cultivation or learn
ing of the Japanese. The theory thai
Alaska was peopled by vessels from Japan
borne on the japanese current has some
very strong facts to support it. There has
never been riot or a disturbance among
the natives of Alaska in the generation
that the United States has owned it, They
are wholly unlike the American Indians
ana II they were properly educated and
furnished with proper instruments for work
they would not only be self-supporting
but would add very greatly TO the material
resources of the United States"
II was surprised at the eheapness with
which l could buy certain supplies in
Washington" said D. H. Smith, civil en-
gineer of New York, at the Metropolitan.
There has seemingly never been any ef-
fort to push Washington as a manufactur-
ing or commercial city. ! presume that the
people have preferred to have it remain a
residence town and have discouraged enter
prises rather than encouraging them.
happened to want a catalogue in hurry of
materials used in building sewers and wa
ter works. / called upon a local concern
to get a catalogue. l not only got the cata-
logue. but was astonshed to find that I
could buy some of the goods here at lower
figures and have them delivered in larger
States. The concern was not seeming to
try TO do a great deal Of business but IL
was amply prepared to do business and
willing TO do it upon very close margins.
If the manufacturing and commercial lines