The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-10-10

& N. W.; Judge Helsell. of Cedar Rapids,
general attorney in Iowa M. & st. L..
and about twenty-five other railroad
LAWYERS, not to speak of over hundred
lawyers of corporations other than rail.
road who actually assisted Mr.. Cum.
minis in downing attorneys Hubbard
and Blythe at Cedar Rapids. By the
way, that was great corporation pow
WOW at Cedar Rapids. Even the Des
Moines Register, the leading corporation
organ of the state, was forced to com.
ment on it in the following language:
"'The man who paid his fare to Cedar
Rapids was the exception. Every dele
gate was supplied pass by some of the
roads. 1t was noticed that some Of the
Cummins men from Clinton county
went over the Milwaukee or the B. c. r.
u n. roads, willis the anti.Cummins
forces took the Northwestern. Up in
Jackson county Bartholomew had the
regular delegation taken care of by the
Milwaukee, while the contestants, as
led by Murray, came around by the way
of Clinton on the Northwestern. Dele.
cations of the state were taken care of
by the various roads, and it is doubtful
whether there was single delegation
which attended the convention that did
not ride on pass. And yet 1t was
stated that this would be reform"
movement against the railroads.
Dealt With But One State Question.
"No wonder that the republican rail-
road politicians don't want to discuss
state issues. l observe that Mr.. Cum
Minis in his great opening speech at
Centerville last Saturday evening, a
speech containing probable 10000 words
and requiring perhaps two and one half
hours i'll its delivery, did not deal with
single state question but one, the tax
alton of personal property-and that is
not platform issue. He barely touched
upon the taxation of railway property,
and he did that in very vague language,
but he went off on long dissertation
upon the villainy of the taxpayers of
the state in Withholding from the asses
sors their personal property. This is
the stock argument made every year by
the railroad lawyers Who appear before
the executive council of the state for the
purpose Of manipulating the assess
ment of railway property.
''The idea of the railroad lawyers, Mr..
Cummins included, seems to be, that
many schoolboys of the state fail and
refuse to disclose to the assessors the
fact that they carry jackknives, and
that the girls and young ladies Of Iowa
Systematically secrete from the assessors
the fact that they own hat pins and
bracelets and pinolas and one thing and
another Of more or less value; and that
laboring man has 500
slowed away in sock and he doesn't
the fact to the assessor; and
these railroad statesmen apparently en-
terrain very grave suspicious that now
and then an Iowa farmer reports to the
that he owns seven hazle.split.
tiers, when, in fact, he has hidden down
in the lot behind the barn twelve Duroc
Jerseys and four thoroughbred Poland
Chinas.
Certainly Mr.. Cummins must mean
like this if he means any
thing. 1t cannot be possible that he
has reference to any of the millionaire
bankers, railroad managers, building
and loan magnates, insurance officials or
merchant princes who are actively sup
porting him for the governorship. Mr..
Cummins is nice man personally
knows that. All the leading
milllonaires of Iowa are
nice men. Governor Shaw is a nice
man. Whoever heard of q real nice
man like Mr.. Cummins insinuating that
a nice millionaire banker like MIR. Shaw
or nice insurance president or nice
railway president didn't honestly, and
in Christian spirit, return to the asses.
sor all his property for taxation?
"Somc Things to Explain.
''It is to be regretted that Mr.. Cum
minis, in his great opening speech,
didn't devote at least hundred words
to an explanation of the fact that for
the last eight years the great railroads
which he has ably represented as coun-
sci IN Iowa have paid taxes on only 49,
per cent of the real, actual, market
value Of their property; while the own
ers Of farms, the owners of small stores
and city and town property-all the
common taxpayers Of the state-have
been compelled to pay taxes Oh 25 per
cent of their actual value of their prop.
erty. He might also have devoted a
few hundred words to each of the follow
ing subjects, to-wit: His honesu opinion
in detail of the mulct monstrosity; his