The Frankfort roundabout. [volume] (Frankfort, Ky.) 1882-1908, 1901-05-18

| well no O6Ilutu bub OOI IJOldbIOu
Age," and it will 60 down in his
tory as the greatest of all ages
renowned for the advancement of
Christianity, the development of
morality and intellectually, the
growth of literature, science and
art, the era of commerce and in
vention, and to corporate wealth
will all of these grand achieve
ments be accredited. The State
that fails to recognize the age that
confronts it will be a laggard in
the onward march of nations, and
her citizens will he left in poverty
by the wayside.
1t is popular though senseless
fad in Kentucky to denounce cor
porations. The politician or man
who bespeaks them fair treat
ment is termed "hireling. "
The man who introduces unfair
laws to drive them out of the
State, or to con fiscate their prop
erty by exorbitant taxation, is
deemed a statesman, and the local
politicians and many of the coun-
try newspapers Immediately
boom" him for Governor or
Senator. Such statesmen have
effectually stopped all corporate
wealth from coming into the
State, and have we'll nigh throt-
tied all that was so unfortunate
as to be located there already.
The Louisville & Nashville Rail-
road seems the pet object of at
tack, and several statesmen have
risen to eminence by shaping
legislation so as to cripple the
usefulness of that and every
railway in the State, so that rail-
way corporations are afraid to
lengthen their lines or build new
roads, and corporate capital out
of the State dares not come into
it. Quite recently a foreign cor
poration leased a Kentucky rail-
way, and though it has been pay
ing taxes upon every mile of the
leased road at valuation twice
what it would cost to built it, and
a franchise tax" Of nearly as
much more, estimated upon it's
earning capacity, yet the State is
now trying to collect 5000, 900
for back taxes, based on the value
of the lease"
No wonder that corporations
have to enter politics and try to
elect officials who will legislate
fairly and administer the laws
Justly. If the mineral wealth of
Kentucky is to be developed cor
porate wealth must be invited into
the State. There is not a resident
of the State who has enough to be
considered a good liver" in New
York or Chicago, and yet if the
corporations in the State had
been treated decently there would
have been a rush of corporate
wealth to Southwestern Kentucky
to develop the coal, iron and oil
interests sufficient to have added
$500, 100000 to the tax duplicate.
Capital to construct two import
ant railways in that section has
been ready for five years, and has
been kept away by adverse legis-
lation, and the threat of the pas
age of laws still more stringent.
Even the Standard Oil octopus
is afraid to tackle the Kentucky
statesman or run the gauntlet of
his antitrust laws. 1t would be
very fortunate for the State if
that corporation should under
take to develop the oil fields,
but if it did some cross-road poll
tician would certainly seek to en-
join or restrain it. The people
are becoming restless, however.
and there is still hope that the
old Commonwealth may be aroused
from it's lethargy, that some
brainy business men may forge to
the front and lift the State from
the rut in which it has so long
moved and place it upon the high
road to prosperity, alongside of its
sister States.
individuals and corporations
select men of energy and capacity
to conduct their business affairs
and quickly weed out all persons
not thoroughly fitted for the posi-