New Iberia enterprise and independent observer., 1906-02-24
The Treason OF the Senate.

The Treason Of the Senate.
Continued From First Page.
cept the few real estate and mining
accumulations.
A RAILROAD LAWYER
Depew became n "lawyer' for th'
New York Central, with headquar
ters at Albany, of course. In view
of the true nature of old Com
modore Nauderbilt's "buslneSS
activities. Depew's fairly accurate
description of his own position be
comes interesting. "My duties,
says he, covered everything otii
cial or personal in which the com
modore was interested. For The
last eleven years of his hfr | was
in daily consultation with this re
markahlc man. Farther: IVAN
derbilt cared lttle for details aud
speedily wparitd ot them lie sta.
ted in general terms tn" results he
desired, and then expected the off
GERS of the companies to work then
out.
Read Alright, this last Is a wonder
full picture of the FIRST typical plu-
tocrat-iguorant of business, lndlf-
ferent to it, rich and growing ever
richer by boarding the property OF
the people which his agents stole
for him, and treating those agents
as a Fagin treats the clever boys he
sends out to pick pockets. Depew' S
picture of old Vanderbilt belongs
beside Rockefeller's self-painted
portrait in his famous sentence, 81
don't know anything about those
matters; | am a clamorel for dlvl-
dendS. -
1t would be a mistake to suppose
that Depew had not good brain.
On the contrary. his brain was, and
perhaps still is, far superior to the
first Vanderhilt's, or 30 any Of the
Nanderbilt's successors as chief
custodian of the millions he got hv
robbing the people aud by "milk
ing" the New York Central system
Why then should superior serve in,
ferior2 For the same reason that
the great lawyers of to day, with
their splendid brains, are yet mere
fetchers and carriers to the pluto
Gratis who are like huge, soft grubs
mere feeders.
A POLITICAL CHANGE or HEART.
Depew left the Republican party
with the Greeley movement which
looked very promising until election
day. He took, with his owners
hearty consent, the nomination for
lieutenant governor In those days
the lieutenant governor was ex-
officia the chief power in control of
the Erie Cannal 1t has been a
fixed pat of the Vanderbilt policy
to inllict upon the canal, the one
restraint upon It's monopoly, all
possible damage If Depew had
been elected, he wouId have had the
chance to 'depopuIate' it But he
was overwhelmingly beaten. His
mt that lilnA would alone
have been enough to wreck the
ticket.
In no one of Dppew's own ac-
counts OF his career will You find
thai hr was II commission
er of the state capitol from 1871 to
1878. 1t was during this period
that the plans We're adopted aud the
works undertaken which have made
the capitol the mostexpensive build
ing for Its size In the world. 1t
ought to have cost about 4 millions.
1t cost more than - millions and
IS not yet finished. The scandal
over the doings of Depew was SO
great that the legislature was forced
20 appoint a committee to "white-
wash' them.
THE vANDERBILTs' CREATURE.
Now followed a quarter of a cen |
ury of arduous and most adroit
obbying, as counsel and then as
igurehead president of the Wander
,ilt road, and finally as "honor-
Try" chairman of it. He got for
he Vanderbilts, with ever iucreas-
ng facility and ever decreasing
public clamor, free franchises large
nd small, large free grants of
and, Immensely valuable shore
lights aud rights to land under
water. authorizations of more con
olidations aud of more issues of
gatered stock, exemptions from
axatlon, etc, etc, etc. Also he
fas always on hand to cover the
perations of the bribe. bridge with
1