Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-09-06

rejoice that the President has had the
courage to press this question Upon Con-
gress. While the law, as 1t was finally
distorted by the Senate, is not all that
could he wished 1t deserves a fair trial.
Rate regulation was absolutely neces-
sary, and 1t furnishes some relief from
the unbearable conditions which previous
ly existed; but we must not forget that
the vesting of this enormous power in
the hands of a commission appointed by
the President introduces a new danger. If
an appointive board has the power to fix
rates. and can by the exercise Of that
power increase or decrease by hundreds
of millions of dollars the annual revenues
of the railroads, will not the, railroads
feel that they have a large pecuniary in
terest in the President friendly to the rail-
roads? Experience has demonstrated that
municipal corruption is largely traceable
to the fact that franchise corporations
desire to control the city council and
thus increase their dividends.
RAILROADS PUBLIC PROPERTY
l have already reached the conclusion
that railroads partake so much of the
nature of a monopoly that they must
ultimately become prblic property and
be managed by public officials in the in
terest of the whole community. in ac-
cordance with the well-defined theory
that public ownership is necessary where
competition is impossible. l do not know
that the country is ready ror this change.
| do not know that a majority of my
own party favor it, but | believe that
an increasing number of the members
- ~ 49, %k0
sure remedy for determinations between
persons and places and for the extortion-
ate rates for the carrying or freight and
passengers.
Believing. however. that the operation
of all the railroads by the federal gov
crnment would result in a GENERALIZATION
which would all but obliterate state lines,
[ prefer to see only the trunk lines oper-
ated by the federal government. and the
local ines by the several State govern
ments. Some have proposed this dual
ownership as impracticable, but inves-
~tigation in Europe has convinced me that
it is entirely practicable.
AS to the right of the governments,
federal and State to town and operate
railroads there can he no doubt. If we
can deepen the water in the lakes and
build connecting canals in order to
cheaper railroad transportation. during
half of the year, we can build n rail-
road and cheaper rates the whole year;
If we can spend several hundred mil
lions on the Panama canal to lower
tran~s-continental rates, We can build n
railroad from New York 70 San Francisco
to lower both trans-continental and To-
cal rates. The United States mail is in
creasins SO rapidly thar We shall soon
be able to pay the interests on the cost
of trunk lines out of the money which
we now pay to railroads Ior carrying
through mails.
have referred to the railroad question
ns part of the trust question because they
are SO interviewer that It is difficult to
consider one without the other.
MORE ABOUT THE TRUSTS.
Just a word more in regard to the
trusts. Some defend them on the ground
that they are an economic development
and that they cannot be prevented with
out great injury to our Industrial system.
This may be answered in two ways: First,
trusts are a political development. rather
than an economical one; and. second, the
trust system cannot be permitted to con-
tinue even though it did result in a net
economic gain. 1t IS political because II
rests upon the corporation and tho cor
poration rests upon a statutory founda-
ton. The trust. instead of being a nat
ural development. Is a form OF legalized
larceny. and can exist only so long as
the law permits 1t to exist.
Socialism presents a consistent theory
but a theory. which. in my Judgment,
docs not take human nature into ac-
count. It's strength Is in its attack
upon evils the existence of which IS
confessed. It's weakness Is that it
would substitute a new disease--if not
n worse one--for the disease from
which we suffer.
The socialist Is honest in The belief
that he has found remedy for human
Ills and he must be answered with ar
gument, not with abuse. The best way
to oppose socialism is to remedy the
abuses which have grown up under in
~dividualism, but which are not a neces-
sary part of i~ndividualism. and the
one the remedy is applied the bet
ter.
NOT ENEMY OF PROPERTY.