The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1905-05-25
Railroad. and Progress,

In his testimony before the Senate
Committee on Interstate Commerce at
Washington on Mey 4, Professor Hugo
R. Meyer, of Chicago University, an
expert on railroad management, made
this statement:
"Let us look ut what might have hap
pened il we had needed the protests
of the farmers Of New York and Ohio
and PENNSYLVANIA Tin the seventies
when grain from the West began pour
ing to the Atlantic Scaboard) and acted
upon the doctrine which the Interstate
Commerce Commission has cnunciated
time and again, that no nan may be
deprived of the advantages accruinS to
him by virtue Of his geographical po-
sition. We could not Lave west Of the
Mississippi a population Of millions OF
people who are prosperous and are
great CONSUMERS. We neyar shoald
have seen tie years when We built
10000 and 10000 miles Of railway, for
there would have been no farmers
west Of the Mississippi River who
could have used the land that would
have been opened up by the building
OF those railways. And, if We had not
seen the years when we could build
10000 and $4,000 miles Of railway 4
year. we should not Fave to-day, east
Of the Mississippi, steel and iron
producing centre which is ut once the
marvel and the des2ai" OF Europe, be-
cause we could not have built up a
steel and iron industry il there had
been no market for its product.
I'VE could not have in New Eng
land great boot and shoe industry;
we could not have in New England a
great cotton milling irlustry; we could
not have spread throughout: New York
and Pennsylvania and Ohio manuf&c-
turing industries of the most DIVERSE
fed kinds, because those industries
would have no market among the farm
crs west Of the Mississippi River.
And, while the progress Of this
country, whiie tine development Of the
agricultural West Of this country, did
mean the impairment Of the agricul-
tural value east Of the Mississippi
River that ran up into hundreds Of
millions of dollars, 1t meant, incl
dentally, the building Up Of great man.
ufacturing Industries that added to
the value of this land by thousands Of
millions of dollars. And, gentlemen,
these things were not foreSeen in the
seventies. The statesmen ana the pub
lie men Of this country did not see
what part the agricultural develop
ment OF the West was going to play in
the industrial development Of the East.
And, you may read ;he decisions of
the Interstate Commerce Commission,
from the Grst to the last, and what is
one of tie greatest characteristics OF
those decisions? The continued in-
ability to see the question i'll this large
way.
The Intcrsta.1 Commerce Commits
sion Fever cap see anything more than
that the farm land Of some farmer
is decreasing in value. or, that some
man, who has -four mill with pro-
duction Of lifty barrels day, is being
crowded out. it neTcr can see that
the destruction or impairment Of farm
values in this place means the building
I'D of farm values in that place, and
that that shifting Of values is IeceS-
sary incident to the industrial and man.
ufacturing development Of this coun-
Try. And, if we shal, give TO the Inter-
state Commerce Commission power to
regulate rates, We shall nc longc: nave
our rates regulS ted o3 tie statesman
like basis OH which they have been
regulated in the past ~ the railway
men, WHO really l:ava .'2en great states
men; who really Eavc Ecra grcat build
crs of empires; who have had an i'm
agination that rivals tie Imagination
of the gr2atr@t poet aad Of tie great
est inventor, and. wEo have operated
with :: courage AID daring that rivals
tic courage and daring OF Tie greatest
military general. Eut W. shall have
our rates regulated Dy boiy OF civil
servants, Gurcaucrats, whose DeSet-
ting sin TIC world over, is that they
can uevc- grasp Il sit1atioI in large
way and with the grasp of the states
man; that they Ecvcc can see the fact
that they are confronted with a small
evil: tnat that evil is relatively small,
and that it cannot be corrected except
by the creation of evils aud abuses
which are infinitely greater than the
one that is t. be corrected"