Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-03-09

or Its gross transportation receipts and
then 1t will only pay om-half the rate
that You pay ON your property in the
State of Maine, | mean the average
rate, Of all the cities ami towns Within
| the State The average rate is 2047 of
cent Oh a dollar, and If you raise the
| taF on the Maine Central Railroad to
SIX per cent on its gross transportation
receipts they wont pay then onc-half Of
what you are paying. Is there injustice
III tiiat, even though they we're not able
to pay their seven pr cent dividends
To these stockholders? Why should the
stockholders Of the Maine Central re-
| cciFc seven per cent uiIOl their STOCK
| aid you, gentlemen. who own a little
stock in Il bank should get six per cent.
and pay two Of it out? You get four
and they get seven, then. Not only that,
gentlemen, the Maine Central Railroad
rot only increased their rate OF diVi-
dend to seven per cent during the year
| ending June 30 1904 but they put into
| their pockets, 1 mean added to their as
sets. 81 500 600 in addition to their diVI-
| dcnds, and ! can show it to you from
| the report OF the Maine Central Rail
| read signed by its President, Lucius
| Iuttlc. Now there is a good deal IN
| keeping books, and the railroad cor
porations doin:; business in this State
understand perfectly how to keep
books and tell She truth in way, and
yet Without careful investigation ana
study, conceal the fact. They go TO
work and indka a permanent improve
nent and they put il II t. operating
expenses. They do not Increase their
a, tI,fi,
rescts, but they are building up their
property ami putting SO GEO into OPP
Grating expenses. 1t is no more operal-
ing expenses than it would be if |
should go home and buy a pair Of OK
en- to put upon my farm. Is that opcr-
ating expenses! Isn't it enhancing my
capital? 1t is s;IGply hanging the mcn-
| ey into the pair of oxen; it is not OPP
| Grating expenses by any means. Sup
| rose there is some merchant here and
| he started Il year ago lest January
| with $-0G0 of stock in MS store, and Oh
| January first, 1906, h" has $4,000. What
is that extra 1900? Isn't it an increase
t." that capital stock there: Here the
| Maine Central have nut in Si42 900 OF
! row rolling stock and they call il OPP
! .>rating expenses. And they 20 on max
| stock and Improvements to their capi-
| tai stock, and the who'll amounts to
81 SOS. alba Then they figure it out and
| they appropriate. in one place. and one
item that is supposed to make up that
| 81 500. 900 is Sass eco appropriated to buy
nrW rolling stock Tor the coming year
They put that into operating expenses.
So | say to YOU, Mr.. Speaker and gen-
the end of the year Jat.nary 30th. 1904
put aside. besides their dividend of
seven per cent, they put aside to the
good $2.o0o,G00. Pray t"ll me, are they
able to nay one-half the rate that you
pay upon your property" And if this
report of the minority should be ac-
ccptcd and Ii should bee ONE law.
they are not paying one-half of what
you Pay ana Of wha- I pay.
AT the hearing before the taxation
committee it was claimed by gentlemen
representing the various railroads. that
the railroads built up the State OF NJ line.
| that our prosperity depended uron tho
| railroads and the railroad interests OF
tho State. Now, that is true There is
no man hut will say that the railroads
help tho State of Maine; but ten me who
helps the railroads. Isn't il the peonl"
of the State of Maine? Did YOU over
know q railroad to so where the people
had not already gon" before? Never.
They go there rs business proposition.
They 90 there for til" purpose Of max
| ing money and for no OTTER purpose
| When they tell You that they ran Il line
Of railroad into the forests. as one gen
tlcman did before that committee. that
himself and Governor Hill We're running
a road 1f miles into tho forest OF Northern
Maine whore there wasn't IN inhHbitant
nothing but = waterfall there. they wcr"
going there to develop the State of Maine.
| We'll. it will hay" Il tendency to develop
that section. hut what was tho moving
motive mower that impcllcd them to build
that railrold' 1t WAS to make money be-
cause they own hundreds of thousands Of
| lumber thor" right along the lire of that
road. and instead of driving that lrnlhcr
down the stream they run y it'll" track
| mp into the forest ana they load their
| humber and haul it to the water power.
and they will have Il mill there. and they
| will connect that line of road with the
Somerset and then with the Maine Con
| trail and 50 on to BOSTON. They arc do
ing il to make money. True. thcv develop
tho state. Int. Mr.. Speaker ev"rv labor
| inc man in tho state Of Maine is helping
today to develop the State Of Maine. Ev-
| cry honest days work that is laid ont in
tho state Of Maine is Il means or develop
| ing our State. Tho lahorcr works for his
hire: tho railroad builds its roads for the
moHcv that is to he made Tell me what
| kind of property it is that the mon Of
| great wealth Of this country seek every
where. 1t is railroad stock above every
| thing else. I was reading in the paper
Il few days ago Of m asScmblagc Of men
ut u club in New York city and the Uu"S-
| ton came M rs to the wealth of the
| Rothschilds OF England. and one member
Of tho club said: "Whv. wn have richer
! mcn that the Eothschilds in tho United
States Tho Rothschid family contains
about 1G branches and is only worth about
| 500 000, 900 We have men in the I-nitcd
States. ono man almost worth that And
| they went over tho list starting with
| Rockefeller with S5Oo.O00Oo0. AMI then
| r., 8. 20. NaO A.