Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1906-05-16
FROM WASHINGTON.

,osing in the attitude of Il prophet,
in this correspondence. but il is
human nature To bc pleased with
ones self when amy prediction
comes true. II was stated in this
CORRESPONDENCE nearly Il year age
and reiterated from time To time
that when the rub came on the
railroad rate bill the Republican
administration, that has been max
inc such brave front in the So
called interests OF the people on
that subject, would turn tail and
run like a scared dog, would lie
down like steer in the road,
would surrender abjectly and com
pletely to the railroads. That is
what it has done. Mr.. President
Roosevelt, the idol of the people, -
the man in whom they blindly be-
licve. the man who can do no
wrong, has given in tn the men who
represented the interests Of the
roads and has accepted the one
amendment TO the bill that they
want. An amendment to take the
rate-making power out of the
hands of. Commission and place it
in the hands of the courts, just
where the railroads want it placed.
According to this amendment the
rate fixed by the Commission does
not hold until the courts have adj
Indicated the matter, thus compell-
ing the roads to get busy and try
the case rs soon as possible, but it
stops the rate from being operative
until the courts have decided
whether or not it is a just rate, etc,
and so on to the end. Thus the
road can keep the rate in question
in the courts as long as they please
and wear the shipper to a frazzle.
This is what the roads want and of
course they will accept it and the
bill will pass with this amendment
and then this hypocritical admins
tration will sing out loud and long
that it has gained a victory for the
people and the people will 90 on
swearing to it and will never know
the difference. The only people
who will know the difference will
be the shippers of the country, and
and not one-tenth of the voters of
the country are shippers. Thus
nine-tenthS of the voters of the
country are fooled and will continue
to believe that this Republican adj
minstrrtion has gained a victory
for them over the railroad corpora
tions. Oh, what idiotic rot. am
rapidly losing faith in the saying
of the immortal Lincoln that You
can fool part of the people some
of the time, and all of the people
part of the time, but you can't fool
all of the people all the time 1t
looks very much like this admins
tratiOn is fooling all the people all
of the time and that it will keep it
up unless the people will begin to
believe what is told them by those
who know whereof they speak
that this Roosevelt administration
Is the rottenest fake and humbug
administration that ever attempted
to administer the affairs of this
government.
This whole railroad rate legisla-
ton is humbug and fraud. said
so a year ago and am sticking to
1t. The Democrats in the House
voted for the Hepburn bill because
it was the best thing they could
get. 1t is far from a complete
measure that will give relief to the
people. The only thing that will
give the people what they need
and ought to have in the way of
railroad legislation is something
that will to stop the rebate evil,
and this, the Republican Congress
will not give them. The people
arc not clamoring for lower rates,
but they are asking that unjust
determinations be stopped, that
one man shall not be given a lower
rate than another and that proper
punishment be provided for the
rebate giver and takcr. There is q
law on the statutes today, the
EIklns law, that provides a fine
Tor the giving Of rebates on freight
but what does Il railroad care for
line when they arc getting rich by
: paying them and continuing to dis
obey the lawg Again, the Elkin.
law is dead letter on the book,
Tor no attempt has been made by
the administration to enforce it
w hats tho ,,en fbo,, ,,;,.,,,. 4ho,,