The Savannah morning news., 1903-08-11

SENATOR TILLMAN's PASSES.
Two incidents of the past few days
afford a study and a contrast in the
transportation. The first was the send
| ing back to the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad of a free annual pass which
it had issued to Congressman
Baker of Brooklyn. In returning the
pass Mr.. Baker explained in elaborate
detail why he did not believe it to be
right for a Legislator, charged with
the duty of making laws to protect the
people, to accept valuable favors from
corporations that might be the subject
of legislation. Mr.. Bakers argument
was perfectly clear, and it justified his
position in the matter. In substance
he held, quite correctly, that the pub
lie official. and especially the law
maker, should not lay himself liable
to the charge of having been influence
ed by the acceptance of something
of value from corporations.
The second incident was the loss by
Senator Tillman on a Burlington train
of what was described in a Kansas
City special to a New York paper
as being a wallet filled with annual
passes over railroads covering prac-
tically the whole of the United States"
Another New York paper had a spec
ial from the same city saying that
the Burlington road had advertised to
it's employees the loss of Senator Till
mans annual pass, and also containing
an interview with the Senator on the
subject. The Senator was quoted as
saying it was true that he had lost
his wallet containing the Burlington
pass, but Indignantly denied that he
had been robbed. THE wallet must
have slipped out of my pocket" he
said.
But what have you to say, Senator,
of free railroad passes being in your
possession" queried the reporter
"Oh. well, you just have to take them"
replied the Senator from South Caro-
lima. THE railroads keep poking them
at you until you have to accept them.
But they do not influence my vote"
Those who have followed the career
of Senator Tillman will have no diff
ficulty in recalling how, in the early
days of it, he charged the 'old re-
gime" in South Carolina with being
corrupt, giving as one of the so-called
evidences of corruption the fact that
certain of the officials rode on free
passes. 1t was one of his favorite ex-
pressions that members of the Legis-
lature had been 'bamboozled" by the
railroads with their free passes and
wine suppers; that, as a matter of
fact the whole administration of the
state had been similarly "bamboozled."
At the same time he was very bitter
towards the railroads, apparently find
ing nothing too hard to say against
them. The New York World recalls
that over his own signature, on March
1, 1896. he published in that paper
the following statement:
"Three-fourths of the railway mile
age of the country is owned and con-
trolled by a few score of men, most
of whom have their offices in Wall
street. They simply stole them, that
is all.
very few exceptions, the decisions of
the Supreme and Circuit Courts have
been uniformly against the people and
in furtherance Of the aims of those
who have stolen under forms of law
the larger portion of this railroad
property from its original owners"
Has Senator Tillman changed his
views with respect to the "bamboozl-
ing" of Legislators by railroads, or
with respect to the moral attitude of
those who control the roads? If not.
then it is a queer circumstance that
he should have had in his possession
"a wallet filled with annual passes on
railroads covering practically the whole
of the United States" or even one an
nual pass, over the Burlington system.
Such passes in the possession of a
lecturer travelling all over the coun-
try would be worth thousands of dol
lars a year.