Willmar tribune., 1903-12-09
ISSUES SHOULD sE DISCUSSED.

ISSUES SHOULD sE DISCUSSED.
It is getting rather tiresome to read
the editorial pages of the state pap
ers nowadays. Candidates, candi.
dates, and nothing but candidates.
A person is forced to the conclusion
that the party has no principles to dis
cuss. 1t is only a question as to who
shall distribute the pie and what
crowd shall eat 1t.
OF course the administration crowd
try to make people believe that the
merger issue is at stake; but this will
hardly work. The people know, or
ought to know, that that question will
be settled by the courts before the
campaign opens in earnest, and no
matter which way it Is Sc tied the ques-
tion Of railroad regulation will be
just as far from settlement as it is
now. If the merger is found legal
Hill and his associates will openly
control the railroad situation in the
greater part of the state. If it is
found illegal Hill will secretly control
the situation. 1t is the question be-
tween tweedledee and tweedledum.
Hill will in either case be able to
charge all that the traffic will lear.
He will make cheap through rates to
draw traffic away from the other trans
continental lines and make the people
pay for the loss in heavy charges for
short hauls.
The question then Will be, no matter
how the courts decide the merger is.
sue, as to what the state can do to
regulate rates. We have . commits
sion to attend to that business, but at
present it is composed of men favor.
able to the roads, and unless q change
can be made in the personnel of the
commission there is no hope from that
quarter. The makeup of that COM
mission will mean more to the people
with regard to railroad regulation
than who is governor of the state. II
the anti-merger howlers wish to do
samething to convince the people that
they really wish to regulate railroad
fares and t,riffs they can do so by
pushing candidates for the places ON
that commission who are known to be
on the side of the people as against
the roads. To shout against the mer-
ger and still leave the railroad COM
mis- sion in the hands of the railroads
savors strongly of q desira to humbug
the dear people.
1t may be that the present law needs
strengthening in order to meet new
conditions. Ia that case the candi-
dates for governor as we'll as for the
legislature will have something to say
about the matter, and the only way
to get them to say it is for the press
to take up the matter before the nom
nations are made. Let us have . rest
on candidates for q while and let us
find out what the people want done,
and then hunt for candidates who will
promise to do it, and whose past rec
ord Is such that we can place some
confidence in their promises.
Another matter of vital Importance
to the people is tax reform. We
heard great deal about this some
time ago, but the question seems for
the present to have been relegated to
the rear. This question calls for
settlement, and it will not be settled
until it is settled right. II tho repub
Iican papers have any opinions on the
subject let US hear from them. Don't
leave these matters to the hurried
work of committee on resolutions q.
the next st.te convention. Take 1t
up for discussion; let the people and
the politicians give suggessio1s Is to
methods of equalizing the tax bur-
dens Let the discussion 60 on go
that when the people meet in caucuses
and county conventions they will ex-
press tteir views on this matter and
the delegates to the state convention
will know what the people want and
be ready 70 make . plstf,rm that il
repre-. entative Of the wishes 81 the
rank and file Of the party.
4 msy be that the republican boz { .
feel thst they don't need platform
thst mesns any ythir 8. Thsy may C.