The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-04-14

NiClOFV dCH1eNeQ LnuS TAR IN the
United States for the cause OF muni-
cipal ownership and Judge Dunno,
who led the Democratic forces to
victory on this platform, was one of
the organizers of the Jefferson Club,
under whose auspices this banquet is
given. Can any one be so ignorant of
the aims, arguments and principles
OF Jefferson as to quote him in sup
| port of a corporation which monopol-
ICES the highways of this great city?
! Can any one believe that he would
subordinate his objections to monopo-
/ ly in order to defend the right of a
few monOpolists to reap an enormous
profit from the use of streets made
valuable, not by the capitalists, but
/ by the people OF Chicago? If Jeffer-
son was loath to endorse a patent
which gave man a limited monopoly
/ of thing which he actually invented,
would he be likely to favor the giving
/ of a permanent monopoly to men
i who invent nothing except new
| methods of evading taxation or of
| corrupting councils? Nothing is more
! consistent with support of Jefferson
| ian principles than the ownership and
/ operation by the public of every in
| dustry which is in its nature
monopoly. Where competition is inn
| possible, the benefits of monopoly
must accrue to the whole people, not
/ to q few l am glad that in the city
! of Chicago the Democratic platform
was broad enough to include not only
| the public ownership of the street car
/ lines, but the public ownership of
! lighting plants and telephone systems
| the Chicago water system, I believe,
has for many years been owned by
the city. The natural results of pri-
vate monopoly are, first. extortion as
! to the price of the product: second,
] OnnrngGtOn q n 10 oH
| in production; third, reduction Of the
| price of raw material, and fourth,
| the corruption of the power which at
/ tempts to regulate monopoly in the
| interest of the public. When the
| English parliament grants a franchise
| for a private water plant or lighting
/ plant, it generally fixes a maximum
| income, and requires reduction Of
! rates when the maximum is reached;
| but in this country the advocates OF
monopoly are bold enough to resist
| all limitation and to demand a free
| hand for those who are in control
OF the quasi-public corporations. In
| the matter of water plants, the cities
| have made great progress, but q small
| percentage of the water plants being
nov owned by private corporations.
| The taking over of the lighting plants
has not gone so far but the move
ment is now we'll under way But
! few of the cities have undertaken to
| establish telephone exchanges but
this is a necessary step, and, unless
| it is taken soon, we shall have the
same struggle that we have gone
through in regard to water plants and
lighting plants. The sooner the cities
begin to establish their own telephone
exchanges, the less they will have TO
pay for watered stock, and in COM
pensation for so-called vested
rights.
The third Jeffersonian doctrine that
| is now being misinterpreted and mis-
applied, is his argument against long
| time debts He took the position that
the earth belonging in succession to
each 1eration, and that a preceding
generation had no right to mortgage
the earth beyond it's occupancy of it,
ii his doctrine had been adopted it
would be much easier to deal with
the problems of today, but it is mani
testify unfair to permit railroads and
municipal corporations to mortgage
the public for generations, and then
to Quote Jefferson against the issue
of bonds when city attempts to rid
itself of private monopoly.
1t is better for q city to issue bonds
at q low rate of interest and for ac-
! tual improvements than for a city
! to permit private corporations to is
sue bonds, based not upon investments
! but upon the power of monopoly to
extort an income from succeeding
| generations Then, too, there is
| very clear distinction between a debt
/ incurred in the establishment Of
municipal plant which will yield an
income to the city, and the mourning
! of debt which brings no specific
return Mr.. Bird S. Coler, late comp
/ troller OF the city of New York, has
brought out this distinction, and it IS
one that is useful to the discussion
! of municipal ownership. A father
who leaves to his child an incumbered
plant which yields an income in ex-
cess of the interest upon the incum-
| brance, leaves him q richer Inherit
ance than he would if he left him
unimproved land. And so a city can
! justify a large Indebtedness if the
/ money borrowed is expended on
| plant which not only pays an interest
upon the investment, but creates q
sinking fund sufficient to discharge
the debt in q reasonable length of
| time generation would thus be-
queath to the succeeding generation
not an incumbrance, but an annuity.
And so the teachings of Jefferson,
when studied in the lioht of his con-
! trolling purpose, furnish guidance for
us now, and will furnish guidance
for ages to come. He built not for
a day or for century, but for all
time, because he built upon the solid
rock Inspired by the love of his fell
| lows. he turned the training of q
master mind and the energies of a
! still greater heart to the service of
/ mankind. And although his contem-
| poraries showered upon him the high
! est honors that man can rive, he left
| the world his debtor beyond our pow
or to calculate. No words or figures
can measure the value of the gift
| that he bestowed upon the race.
| Wherever men contend for human
rights his words strengthen and en-
/ courage; wherever patriots devote
themselves to the investigation of
| problems of government his re-
/ searches and his expostions illumine
and direct. Every great forward
movement bears the impress Of his
thought his words his work. He
stands before the world as the grow
/ ing figure in the sphere of politics.
| Warriors have won fame upon the
battlefield and have rearranged with
/ their swords the maps of nations, but
/ history affirms with Carlisle that
thought stronger than artillery
| parks" at last rules the world, and
4 that 6haolx Of tbouobf ie love -