The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-12-06

of honor that puts an nordinate value on mere wealth, that makes man ruth less and conscienceless in trade and weak and cowardly in citizenship, is not a good thing at all, but very bad thing for the nation. This government stands for manhood first and for business only as an adjunct of manhood.
 The question of transportation lies at the root of all industrial success, and tho revolution 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 emphatically we do not wish to sec the man of great talents refused the re- ward for his talents. Still less do we wish to see him penalized; but we do desire to see the system of railroad trans- portation so handled that the strong man shall be given no advantage over the weak man. We wish to insure as fair treatment for the small town as for the big city; for the small shipper as for the big shipper. In the old days the high way of commerce, whether by water or by a road on land, was open to all; it be- longed to the public and the traffic along 1t 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 man.
 
 be managed by private individuals than by the government. But it can only be so managed on condition that justice Is done the public. It is because, in my judgment, public ownership of railroads Is highly undesirable and would prob- ably in this country entail far-reaching disaster. that I wish to see such super vision and regulation of them in the in . terest of the public as will make 1t evil dent that there Is no need for public ownership. The opponents of government regulation dwell upon the difficulties to be encountered and the intricate and in- volved nature of the problem Their con- tention is true. It Is a complicated and delicate problem, and all kinds of diff faculties are sure to arise in connection with any plan of solution. while no plan will bring all the benefits hoped for by it's more optimiAe,c adherents. Moreover under any healthy plan, the benefits will develop gradually and not rapidly. Fin ally, we must clearly understand that the public servants who are to do this pe- culiarly responsible and delicate work must themselves be of the highest type both as regards integrity and efficiency. They must be well paid for otherwise able men cannot in the long run be se- cured; and they must possess a lofty pro- bity which will revolt as quickly at the thought of pandering to any guest of DDDuidT pTCJuulte dEIlHSt ITCH men as at the thought of anything even remotely resembling subservency to rich men But while I fully admit the difficulties in the way, l do not for a moment admit that these difficulties warrant us in stop ping in our effort to secure a wise and just system. They should have no other effect than to spur us on to the exercise of the resolution, the even-handed jus tice and the fertility of resource. which we like to think of as typically Ameri- can. and which will in the end achieve good results in this as in other fields of activity. The task is a great one and un- derlies the task of dealing with the whole industrial problem But the fact that 1t Is great problem does not warrant us Il, shrinking from the attempt to solve it. At present we face such utter lack of supervision. such freedom from the re- straints of law, that excellent men have often been literally forced into doing what they dcplored because otherwise they were left at the mercy of unscrupu- lous competitors. To rail at and assall the men who have done as they best could under such conditions accomplishes little. What we need to do Is to develop an orderly system and such system can only come through the gradually in- creased exercise of the right of efficient government control.
 Safety Appliances.
 In my annual message to the Fifty eighth Congress- at its third session called attention to the necessity for leg .slation requiring the use of block sig nals upon railroads engaged in interstate commerce. The number of serious col lisions upon unbocked roads that have occurred within the past year adds force to the esommendation then made The Congress should provide, by appropriate legislation for the. introduction of block signals upon all railroads engaged in in- terstate commerce at the earliest prac- ticable date as a measure of increased safety to the travelling public.
 Through decisions of the supreme court of the United States and tine lower federal courts in case brought before them for adjudication the salty appliance law has been materially strengthened, and the government has been able to secure it's effective enforcement in almost all cases. with the result that the condition of rail- road equipment throughout the country is much improved and railroad employees perform their duties under safer eond- tions than heretofore. The governments most effective aid in arriving at this re- suit, has been it's inspection service and that these improved conditions are not more general is due to the insufficient number of inspectors employed. The in- spection service has fully demonstrated it's usefulness, and in appropriating for