The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1906-11-13
BY WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN.

school is spreading in China may be
known from the fact that 1900 public
schools have been established within
five years in the district of one of
the ViCeroyS.
Municipal ownership presents an
other phase Of this subject; q century
ago comparatively few cities IL THIS
country or Europe owned their own
water works: now it is the exception
that any city Of any size relies upon
a private corporation for it's water
supply. City lighting is having the
same history. although municipaliZa-
tion began later than with the water
works. Now comes the question Of
street car lines, AND as the same prit-
ciples apply. the same inevitable
trend toward municipal ownership Is
noticeable. The experience of all the
first, liberal frdn.4lsc5 to induce the
establishment Of water. light or street
car plants; second efforts at regul9-
tiOn and restriction, made futile b.
the corrupt influence Of the franchise
companies: third. municipal owner
ship as protection To the people and
as means of purifying politics. In
the extent to which municipal owner
snip has been carried Great Britain
leads the world, although in other
countries. some cities like Vienna
have rivaled the cities Of Great Brit
ain.
In nearly al of the countries Of F,u-
rope and Asia the telegraph lines are
now owned by the government. and il.
most of the cities the telephone SE5-
tenn is also owned by the public. It IS
hardly necessary to say that in all
countries of any standing the mall
service is now in the hands of the
government. There is very noticeable
growth in the government ownership
of railroads. Many years ago the
government ownership Of railroads
was tested i'm various European ma
tiOnS. and the tendency toward the
extension of government mileage and
the diminutiOn Of the mileage Of
privately owned roads has been con
stant. In some countries there IS still
competition between the government
lines and the lines owned by private
corporations. but experience leaves no
doubt that the lines owned by the
government will ultimately Supplant
the roads in private hands. SWitzcr-
land has within four years purchased
the main railroad system within her
territory; Japan has within a year
extended the government railroads ny
purchasing some of the roads in pfI-
Vate hands. and the Indian govern
ment IS planning 10 absorb more 81
the privately owned lines. In France
a number of the railroads hold 50-yedI
charters. which have now more than
half expired, and which provide f1I
the surrender of the lines to the gov
eminent at the end of that period
the government I the meantime guar
anteeing q fixed interest and an an
! nual contribution to the sinking fund.
While local considerations and local
conditions have much to do in the de-
termination of each case, there IS one
general principle which is becoming
more and more clearly outlined as the
question of government ownership Is
discussed namely. that when mo-
lnOpoly becomes necessary 1t must be eX-
tended in the government of railroads
to government monopoly and not mo-
nODOly in private hands. In other words
the principle now most Familiarity at
piled is. competition where cOmpet-
ton is possible; government monop-
DIV where competition is impossible.
/ have not space for the discussion Of
details; many different methods have
been employed in different countries
for the acquiring of private plants by
the city or State, and different meth
DDS have been employed in different
countries for the elimination Of the
political element from public service.
Those who have faith in the intelIi-
gence and capa CITY of the people have
confidence that they viii be able u
reduce to minimum any danger
attendant upon q course which thev
believe to be necessary to their own
welfare. The fact that after more
than a quarter of a century Of expert
ence. no Tetrogade movement is -
he observed furnishes some proof that
the dangers anticipated have not in
practice been shown to be insurmount-
able.
An other world problem is TO be
found in the effort to fix Woman's
place in the social economy M one
can travel around the world without
noting the wide difference that 1N-
lists between the treatment of women
in different countries In the orient
woman has. until comparatively recent
years. occupied very inferior posi-
ton. In no respect has the influence
of the west upon the east been more
marked than in the elevation of Wo-
imam. Even in Japan. where for half