The Caldwell tribune., 1905-12-09


ed than actually obtains on domestic goods
from the American seaboard to destination ex-
cept in cases where water competition Is the
controlling influence. There should be pub
ltcity of the accounts of common carriers: no
common. carrier engaged in interstate business
should keep any books or memoranda other
than those reported pursuant to law or regu-
iation, and these books memoranda should
be open to the inspection of the Government
only in this way can violations or eVaslons
of the law be surely detected. system OF
examination OF railroad accounts should De
provided similar to that now conducted into
the National banks by the bank examiners;
| few frst-clasa railroad accountants. II. they
had proper direction and proper authority to
| inspect books and papers, could accomplish
law. 1t would not be necessary for them to
| examine into the accounts OF any railroad un-
| less for good reasons they were directed to
| do by the Interstate Commerce Commia-
sion. 1t Is greatly to be desired that some
way might be found by which an agreement as
to transportation within state intended to
| operate fraud upon the Federal inter
state commerce laws could be brought under
| the jurisdiction of the Federal authorities. AT
present 1t occurs that large shipments OF in
| terstate traffic are conrolled by concessions
| on purely state business, which Of course
amounts to an evasion OF the law. The Com
mission should have power to enforce fair
treatment by the great trunk lines or iateral
and branch lines
| I urge upon the Congress the need of pro-
viding for expeditions action by the Interstate
Commerce Commission In all these matters,
whether in regulating rates for transportation
or for storing for handling property or
commodities in transit. The history Of the
cases ltigated under the present commerce
kact shows that its efficacy has been to great
degree destroyed by the weapon of delay, al
most the most formidable weapon in the hands
| of those whose purpose it is to violate the
| law.
Let me most earnestly say that these recon-
mendations are not made in any spirit Of
| hostility to the railroads. On ethical grounds,
on grounds of right, such hostility would be
| intolerable; and on grounds of mere National
| hat
| tility would tell against the welfare not mere
| ly Of some few rich men, but of a multitude
of small investors, multitude Of railway
employees, wageworkers; and most severely
against the interest of the public as whole
I believe that the whole our railroads have
done we'll and not i'll; but the railroad men
who wish to do well should not be exposed to
competition with those who have no such de-
sire, and the only way to secure this end is
power to see that justice is done by the un-
willing exactly as 1t is gladly done by the
willing. Moreover, If some Government body
is given increased power the effect Will be to
furnish authoritative answer on behalf of the
railroad whenever irrational clamor against 1t
is raised, or whenever charges made against
1t disproved. I ask this legislation not
only in the interest of the public, but In the
interest of the honest railroad man and the
honest shipper alike, for 1t is they who are
| chiefly jeoparded by the practices of their dis
honest competitors. This legislation should be
enacted in spirit as remote as possible from
hysteria and rancor. If We of the American
|
have inherited shall always scorn any ef-
fort to make us hate any man because he Is
rich, just as much as we should scorn any
| effort to make us look down upon or treat
| contemptuously any man because ne Is poor.
We judge by his conduct-that Is, by
his character-and not by his wealth intel
lect. II he makes his fortune honestly, there
| is no just cause of quarrel with him. In
deed, we have nothing but the kindllest feel
ings of admiration for the successful business
man who behaves decently, whether he has
made his success by building or managing a
railroad or by shipping goods over that rail-
road. The big railroad men and big shippers
are simply Americans of the ordinary type
who have developed to an extraordinary de"
| gree certain great business qualities. They
are neither better nor worse than their fellow
citizens of smaller means They are merely
more able in certain lines and therefore ex-
posed to certain peculiarly strong temptations
These temptations have not sprung newly into
being; the exceptionally successful among man.
kind have always been exposed to them; but
| they have grown amazingly in power as q result
| or the extraordinary development of Industrial
ism along new lines. and under these new con-
| ditions which the lawmakers Of old could
not foresee and therefore could not provide
against they have become SO serious and
| menacing Gs to demand entirely new remedies
| It Is in the interest of the best type OF rail-
road man and the best type of shipper no
| less than of the public that there should be
Governmental supervision and regulation Of
| these great business operations, for the same
reason that 1t is In the interest of the cor
| poration which wishes to treat it's employees
Alright that there should be an effective en-
ployers' liability act, or an effective system Of
| factory laws to prevent the abuse Of women
| and children. All such legislation frees the
| corporation that wishes to do well from being
| driven into doing ILL., in order to compete
| with Its rival. which prefers to do i'll. We
desire to set up a moral standard. There can
| be no delusion more fatal to the Nation than
the delusion that the standard Of profits, Of
business prosperity, Is sufficient in Judging
| any business or political question-from rate
legislation to municipal government. Business
success, whether for the individual or for the
Nation. is good thing only 50 far as 1t Is
accompanied by and develops high standard
Of conduct-honor, integrity, civic courage
The kind of business prosperity that blunts
| the standard of hond9 that puts an inordinate
value on mere wealth; that makes man ruth
less and constituencies in trade and weak and
cowardly in citizenship, is not a good thing
at all, but a very bad thing for the Nation
| This Government stands for manhood nrst
and for business only adjunct Of man.
| hood.
The question of transportation lies at the
root OF all industrial success and the revo-
luton in transportation which has taken
place during the last half century has been
the most important factor in the growth of
the new industrial conditions Most en-
iphatically We do not wish to see the man Of
great talents refused the reward for his
talents. Still less do we wish to see him
penaliZed; but we do desire to see the sys-
tenn of railroad transportation SO handled
that the strong man shall be given no ad-
vantage over the weak man. We wish to
insure fair treatment for the small town
for the big shipper. In the old days the
highway of commerce, whether by water or
by road on land, was open to ALL 1t be-
longed to the public and the traffic along it
was free. At present the railway Is this
| highway, and We must do our best to see
that it Is kept open to all on equal terms
Unlike the old highway it is a very difficult
and complex thing to manage, and 1t is
far better that it should be managed by uri-
yate individuals than by the Government
But 1t can only be SO managed on condi-
tion that justice Is done the public It Is
because, in my judgment, public ownership
or railroads Is highly undesirable and would
probably in this country entail far-reaching
disaster, that wish to such supervision
and regulation Of them in the interest of
the public as will make it evident that there
Is no need for public ownership. The op-
ponents of Government regulation dwell
upon the difficulties to be encountered and
the intricate and involved nature of the
problem Their contention Is true 1t is a
| complicated and delicate problem and all
| kinds Of difficulties are sure to arise in con-
nection with any plan of solution, while no
plan will bring all the benefits hoped for bv
| Its more optimistic adherents Moreover
| under any healthy plan, the benefits will
develop gradually and not rapidly FL
nally, we must clearly understand that the
public servants who are to do this peculiarly
responsible and delicate work must them
selves be of the highest type both as re-
CARDS integrity and efficiency Thev must
be we'll paid, for otherwise able men cannot
! in the long be secured: and thew rn,et
u rnhi