The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-07-27

inhabitants of ireland are not now and
| never have been oppressed like you are
today" This assertion will be found to
be like all the other assertions of Mr..
White, and the gentlemen whom Mr..
White represents,
Alabama's Phenomenal Prosperity.
In 1876, as shown by reports of the
State Auditor, the value of the entire
property as assessed for taxation, in Def
ferson County, Alabama, was 81, 952, $40
In. 1901 the property as assessed for tax
alton in Jefferson County, Alabama, was
assessed at 81, 776,114 Poor. Birmingham!
Poor Ireland!
In 1876 the entire property in the State
of Alabama, including the railroads. was
assessed for taxation at $1so,S35,192 In
1901, as shown by the State Auditors re-
ports, the entire property OF the State OF
Alabama, including railroads, was as
sessed at 1884, 622,9S7. Poor Alabama!
Poor Ireland! Would to God that Ire
land could be prosecuted in the same way
Alabama has been.
In 1876 the railroads paid only 5.n per
cent of the taxes in Alabama. In, 1901
the railroads paid 1765 per cent Of the
entire taxes of the State; but thiso per-
centage does not include the taxes paid
on depots. section houses. tanks, slands,
shops, wharves, tools and machinery
With the taxes on these properties in
cluded. the several railroads pay over 20
per cent Of the entire taxes of the State
OF Alabama. W -
In 1876 the entire railroad properties In
the State amounted to about 81, 1888. $50. In
1901 the railroad properties proper, not
including depots, section houses. tanks.
lands shops. wharves, tools and ,machin-
NA, to- Of a
$50
Up to 1888 there were only two railroads
in Jefferson County. Alabama-the Ala
bama Great Southern and the South and
North Alabama Railroads, and yet be-
tween 1876 and 1888 the properties in JEFF
ferson County, as shown by the Auditor 8
report had increased from a little less
than So, 900 to nearly 100000. So much
for the oppression of the people. of Ala
bama and Of Jefferson County by the
railroads.
Prior to the building Of the South and
North Alabama Railroad, the Tennessee
Valley was practically cut off from other
portions Of the State. To reach Decatur
from Montgomery one must go through
two other States-from Montgomery to
Atlanta, and from there to Chattanooga
and from there to Decatur Birmingham
was not in existence, and was only made
possible by the building Of the South and
North Alabama Railroad and the Ala
bama Great Southern Railroad, and with
out these and the other great arteries Of
commerce which now reach birmingham,
Birmingham would die from stagnation
in forty-eight hours.
Jealousy of Rival Commercial Gen.
tiers.
In my boyhood days the market town
for nearly all the Eastern counties in
this State was Columbus, Georgia. I'M
mense number OF cotton wagons in the
fall and winter came through Roanoke.
Lafayette, Opelika and on to Columbus.
Finally a road was extended from CO.
lumbus. Georgia, to Opelika. Alabama,
and Columbus merchants looked with
horror to the fact that Opelika would
take away a large amount of what she
called her legitimate trade. Opelika was
built up and became an important COM
mercial centre, and finally the Central
of Georgia Railroad was extended to La
fayette, and Opelika was greatly con-
cerned at the fact that Lafayette was
| taking away considerable portion of
| opelika's trade, Again the Central of
Georgia Railroad was extended from La
| fayette to Roanoke and Lafayette looked
| with equal concern at the fact that her
trade would be materially diminished by
| the building up, OF Roanoke. This Is but
| q sample Of what has been going on
| throughout the state of Alabama as rail-
roads have been built. Certain CONNER
cial centers have had their trade mate
rally changed, but the people have been
benefited. and Will continues to be benefited
| just as the, railroads are extended into
the interior. and this is what has caused
this tempest IN a tea pot The gentle
men at Birmingham who are waging this
war upon the railroads claim to be dis
| tributors. They do not recognize the
| right of an importer or manufacturer to
\ sell directly. under any circumstances to
| the consumer. But on the contrary the
| importer or manufacturer must sell d.
rectly to the distributor, and the distrib-
utor to the retailer, and the retailer to
the consumer. Each one taking ont his
legitimate profits, to which he claims he
| Is justly entitled and that no man has
| a right to buy, unless first the profit of
| the manufacturer or importer is taken
out, second, the profits OF the dlstribu-
| tor; third the profits of the retailer.
| These gentlemen are opposed to what
| they term little picayune jobbing' CEN
ters." These soEcalled jobbing centers de-
sire such a rate of freight as will pre-
vent any other place from reaching what
they call THEIR TERRITORY. and
thereby opening up competition against
| them. They want ''DIFFERENTIAI, -
as they term it, which will prevent 9TH
ers from reaching trade which they
claim legitimately belongs to them.
Benefits of Railroad Extension.
1t cannot be true. as claimed by Mr..
Conner and Mr.. White, that the people Of
Alabama are interested in this move
ment, unless it is admitted, as claimed by
these gentlemen that they are the peo-
pie. The great mass of people in this
State are greatly benefited every time a
railroad is extended, notwithstanding II
may to a certain extent cut off the trade
of some particular city or other jobbing
center. But just in proportion as that is
done. improved facilities are extended to
the people.
Only a short time ago the Birmingham,
Selma & New Orleans Railroad was pur.
| chased by the Louisville & Nashville
Railroad, and extended to the Tombigbee
River. There is no question but what
| the trade of such towns as Uniontown
and Demopolis was, to a certain extent
injuriously affected by the building OF
this road. but how about the benefits to
| the people at Linden and other towns on
the B. s. & N. or This road, as is well
known, extends through a prairie coun-
| try. where the people in the winter were
| practically isolated for four or five
| months in the year. Could the people OF
Uniontown or Demopolls justly claim that
| Linden, for instance, was not as much
| entitled to railroad facilities and to the
| trade and trafic resulting therefrOm as
either of them? 1t therefore follows as
a truism. that If a great mass of the peo-
pie In the State of Alabama are benefited