The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1905-05-26
Rsi,roaa. and Progress.

Railroads and Progress.
In his testimony before the Senate
Committee on Interstate Commerce at
Washington on May 4, Professor Hugo
r. Meyer, of Chicago University an
expert Oh railroad management, made
this statement:
"Let us look at what might have hap
pened if we had needed the protests
of the farmers of New York and Ohio
and Pennsylvania lin the seventies
when grain from the West began pour
ing to the Atlantic seaboard) and acted
upon the doctrine which the Interstate
Commerce Commission has enunciated
time and again, that no man may be
deprived Of the advantages accruing 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 never should
have seen the 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 12,0Oe miles Of railway a
year. we should not have to-day. east
of the Mississippi, steel and iron
producing centre which is at once the
marvel and the despai: of Europe, be-
Il hl htrtt nm 9,
steel and iron industry if there had
been no market for its product.
eve could not have in New Eng
land great boot and shoe industry;
we could not have iii New England a
great cotton milling industry; We could
not have spread throughout New York
and Pennsylvania and Ohio manufac-
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. while the 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, it meant, Incl
dentally. the building up of great NAH
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 and 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 the decisions OF
the Interstate Commerce Commission,
from the first to the last, and what is
ono of the greatest characteristics of
those decisions? The continued in
ability TO see the question i'll this large
way.
1.-The Interstate Commerce Commits
sion never can see anything more than
that the farm land OF some farmer
is decreasing in value, or, that some
man, who has -four mill with 4 pro-
duction of fifty barrels day, Is being
crowded out. 1t never can see that
the destruction or impairment of farm
values in this place means the building
up Of farm values in that place, and
that that shifting of values is neces-
sary incident to the industrial and man.
ufacturing Development of this coun-
try. And, if we shall give to the Inter-
state Commerce Commission power to
regulate rates, we shall no longer have
onr rates regulated on the statesman