Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-08-18
RAILWAY IRREGULARITIES.
LII: IOonnn /

"For corporations supposed to be
managed by entirely intelligent men,
railroads often do more small and fool
ish things than can be accounted for
by ordinary observers" says the Cedar
Rapids Republican. Evidence abounds
as to the truth of this observation. If
the railroads in some day unfortunate
for the public as we'll as the corpora
ton shall be subject to disastrous leg
islation born of popular vengeance 1t
will be due to their own folly.
Thoughtful consideration Of railway
policy must lead to the conclusion that
the basis of all mistakes and OF all UNI
reasonableness and such oppression as
exists is a determination to dominate
where they should simply seek JUS
tice In the legislature few men are
disposed to prosecute railways. A
large share of the legislation desired
by railway corporations is not much
opposed But the man who votes for
three of their bills and opposes the
fourth is just as much marked for po-
litical destruction as the man who OPP
poses all four. Except it be when a
storm of popular fury is threatening
the railway in politics demand not a
fair man who will fight the mob to see
that it has justice, but the man who
will come when he is called and stand
without hitching.
In affairs of business railways are
not content with simply square deal
they must have their own way re-
CARELESS of other claims. They will for
years turn a deaf ear to territory need
ing better service but when the day of
relief through other agencies comes
they will abandon every rule of bust
ness prudence to destroy weaker RI
val. A city or community may lam
guish under deadly discrimination but
while the traffic will bear the burden
imposed and there is no means of es-
cape, relief will be indefinitely denied.
1t would appear that as matter OF
ordinary prudence as we'll as of COM
mon justice the railway would desire
the confidence of the public. 1t nat
urally follows that they should respect
man brave enough to stand resolutely
for justice to corporations, but who is
enough Of a man to refuse to sacrifice
the public in just proceeding. It
appears that while the world is so
wide that all the railways are unable
to prevent congestion in the arteries Of
commerce they might not feel like sem
fencing to destruction a weaker rival
who would serve territory it has not
seen fit to afford proper facilities. It
would logically appear that in matters
OF legislation they would not insist
upon defeating every measure of rail-
way legislation proposed that does not
bear it's Q. K They have a right
through their legitimate representa-
tives to keep a watchful eye on legis-
lation, and except in times Of over
whelming popular indignation good
reasons given out in the open will de-
feat acy measure really unjust to rail-
ways. 1t is not necessary to organize
to defeat the persecution Of railways,
but to defeat the public when it is in
need of relief from corporate injustice
If railways would cultivate broader
spirit of mutually in their dealings
with the public they would have less
to fear from popular wrath. The peo
pie are slow to anger Intelligent
citizenship is So fair as. to lean to in
diligence rather than to persecution
except when smarting under irritation
needlessly caused by corporation AFRO
gance and injustice. 1t is unfortunate
for the public as we'll as for the cor
porations themselves that the latter
should tempt popular fury in the de-
termination to have their own way all
the time without due regard to well
defined rights, public and private.