The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-02-05
The Third Days Hearing.

The Third Days Hearing.
The closing day Of the hearing ~
railroad argumenD u.on pending leg
fisiation brought the JOINT commit.
tees the usual amount of work. but
afforded them kewis a pleasant yari
alton upon the mopotony into which
the Sc sion had fallen.
In the persons Of President Frank 5
Cannon. Of the Norfolk x southern
and Assistant General Counsel George
Elliott. Of the Atlantic cast Line, tn,
members % the committee FOUND the
men for whom they have been search
ing with tn" lantern Of desire as arr
dupusly as Diogcnes Investigated th-
dark corners of the streets of ancient
Athens.
Not that the gentlemen who haa
preceded MeSsrs. annon ana Elliott
We're not honcst-far indeed from dis
honesty they were. In fact they never
tired Of telling how far they Werc
away from that r~eproach. NJ matter
that the committee conceded il all in
the beginning. again and once again
had the tale been tod. Win Mr.. rIu
ley 1t was patriotism" with Mr..
1hom il was the quality Of earnestnrS~
and patriotism; With Mr.. Henry Page
1t was honesty which suggested a mo-
nOpOly; with Mr.. Caldwell that honesty
which is inseparable from beau
as being the counterpart Of loneliness
"nlcn - truth-or te-ruth: with Judge
Watts it was honesty impaccable. saht
as obtains among gentlemen,
Let il be whispered, the committee
was tired-not Of being honest. but Of
being abjured TO be honest: OF being
cautioned TO be honest; and of being
ken into the Of the honest
upon the lark contingency that
while, of course they wouldn't do it
if they should happen to do any or
the things they had been considering.
which the people had been demanding.
they would be not only dishonest to
themselves. but the dishonest murder
erS of honest men.
At this point Mr.. Thorn would go
tap-tap upon his heart: Mr.. Finley
would wave a hand suggestive of the
destruction of the worlds within the
realm Of space; Mr.. Caldwell would
spring forward in q flying leap for the
support of some hyperbolical Rock of
Ages floating in the air; ana Mr.. Page
would smile a bitter smile and MUIR
the wreck was coming, let her
smash.
onuer all of this a patient COM
mittee has sat. and, catching its
breath amid the blast of talk. has ven
tured questions, which acted like oil
IN "a, 4 VI ipI ' D., al.
sought to check the flood. to change
the figure, only to raise fresh sluice-
gates upOn which it was carried with
gurgling protestation; again TO change
the figure-it was always changing
the committee has found itself nicely
buried IN the dead leaves of
able statistics and, putting up a head
to scan the lay. has been again mum
dated with shower after shower of
other figures: its eyes have swum with
the water Of pathos: its ears have
tlnklad with the music of words. its
brain has been added with the inter
minable progressions of higher math-
ematlcs: It's mouth. when ever it open
ed II, mas been StOnped-it might as
wei have been with lust. Generally
X was star-dust. sometimes poetry and
sometimes the refinement of logic to
to the logarithm nth plus n.
IN the end these facts emerged,
which the committee recognized.
whether they knew how they got out
of the woods or not.
To reduce rates was %ruinous:
To reduce rates was idiocy:
To reduce rates was unpatriotic.
To reduce rates was dishonest.
The committee remembered with
pang that the speaker had called
them honest men. that the speaker
was an honest man. And they shud-
dered to think what so honest a maa
woul think of their honesty. If they
were honest with themselves. Is II
to be wondered that the committee
was in a frame Of mind to welcom.
the appearance of q man who permit
ted the termination OF a doubt. who
left them the saving grace Of honest
intentions, however mistaken they
might be; who was ready to admit
that it might not be depravity after all
F. and that maybe there was a division
of such d~epraVity as existed.
Mr.. G"nnon. a Glad Surprise.
The first of these bearers of COM
fort was President Frank :. Cannon.
introduced by Mr.. POu as desiring TO
| speak TO the committee on new lines
aWay from the question Of whether j
road was large or small, short or long
| weak or strong-xho was 10 ak OF
| the effect of the legislation
upon roads which we're in process Of
construction When Mr. cannon
| stepped onward there was a %gener0i
settling into seats. He looked the
railroad president. In fact. he WAS
| almost the heavenly twin Of Judge
Watts. the same gray chops. only n
his case they violated the sherman
law BY committing a merger OF pa
allel lines into a closely clipped
mOustache. He was short and am
| lie. with plentv Of chin. as the fash
ion seems to run in railroad presi-
| dents. But he was different. Cniv IN
| parts. even. did he fulhlI Mr.. Pou
| promise Of his novelty. But he eY-
| ceeded that promise. Mr.. Cannon was
direct. There is little of quick fui-
! inmate in his character. When ne
! does go off he is in sure enough earn
i est, SO earnest that he realizes his
| own explosion and cools. He has z
most beautiful idea IF What he wants
to say. And at times he has a tiers
M parchment method Of saying il
that crackles with fun. II came out
that before he acquired sufficient
weight TO become a president he hal
been a dispatcher who worked six
teen hours a day III managed 70