Martinsburg statesman. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1869-1906, 1906-02-16
Calls Steve Bad. Bold Euecaneer.

dangerous as big Steve Hewill never
be any thing but Big Steve to those
who know and love him.
wv hat matters it that he has worn
legislative honors for many years; that
he mas been Secretary of War for a
whole administration; that he has been
an attorney General for a southwestern
territory, that he keeps private sec
r,tary, a butler, a first man, a second
man, valet and a string of automo-
| biles?
"'Uncle Steve he is to the younger
members of the crew, because he is so
gentle of speech, quick to put his arm
| about you andsay nice things and hint
at little things he might 10 to help
you along.
Stephen B. Elkins, Senator from
West Virginia, is the head of the rail-
road opposition to the Roosevelt rate
| bill.
Uncle Steve has constituents in
New York and Philadelphia wLo take
great interest in what he Is doing. They
think him fine. Baer, head of the an
thracite coal trust, regards Elkins as a
| statesman of high stamp. j. Pierpont
| Morgan and the Rockefellers. T.. K.
Hartman and George Gould know
that he is their Senator and they en-
dorse his craftsmanship from Alpha
to Omega.
"W hat has Elkins done to force the
railways to give the people Il square
deal? That's a fair question. 1t may
be answered that the present law
against rebates bears his name. All
right. no drew it? Judge Logan. gem
eral counsel for the Pennsylvania rail-
way now deceased No doubt about
this. The official records show it.
It's reform law drawn by the
Pennsylvania railway! That is great
source for reform, that railroad whose
trust characteristics are now under i'll
spection, whose baneful influences
have debauched the courts, corrupted
state and n ationaI legislatures, foster
ed child labor in the Pennsylvania
mines, tapped the public treasury,
through postotfice appropriations for
mail transportation TO the tune Of
more millions than can be known; a
road whichiis veritable whitened SEP
ulcher of pretended virtue, and liesfull
of dead mems bones and the reek of
corruption.
"Elkins is not the servant only of the
Pennsylvania Railway system. If any
one would know whom he really serve
let the inquirer turn to the five vol
umes of testimony collected last April
by the committee of which Elkins is
chairman. Look at the list Of 'constit-
uents' whom he called to appear beft r.
the committee to give advice on the
important topic of rate legislation.
If there is any name omitted from
that list which is familiar in the New
York Maelstrom of jobbery in stocks
and reckless, wild tinance-if there is
road whose legal department was not
represented, as likewise its stock water
| lag department and it's freight squeez-
| ing Experimentation the ommlssion
was certainly an inadvertance.
First crew of corporation lawyers
the best and highest priced in the land;
| 81 ,,f IF
the Hill, Hartman, Could Ramsey,
Morgan type; then the traffic men,
that is, men who are paid 5000 a
year to figure out how much the road
can squeeze out of the freight without
stirring the people to open riot; then
the subsidized special pleaders and
shippers favored ~ rate discrimina-
ton.
"The hearings before this com nit
tee of Elkins cost the country $4,000,
and if one single consumer was aske
for his opinion on the suhject-if one
man not a representative of some spec
lal interest was asked to give his 'ad-
vice to the committee; or if one wit
ness testified, or advised with the
pocketbook of the plain everyday, rent
paying salaried man in mind, it does
not appear in the fine bulky volumes
which contain the printed record of
those doings.
Stephen b. Elkins is good servant
of the interests which he serves. The
only trouble with Uncle Steve is that
| he does not know that John Jones, of
Spokane, is his constituent. He sees
public questions from the Wall street
point Of view only. He has grown 10
be very rich. He is large buyer and
seller of stocks. There is hardly an
hour of the day that he does not apply
his ear to the long distance phone con
nected with New York.
| He is dilipent in the business az III