The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1907-03-06
bic WAGES
Big Wages
For railroad laborers. See l.. H
Olsson, 312 Front street.
The Narrow WAY.

Chicago Chronicle: In these days
OF moral revival, when so many people
are rcpenting bitterly Of other peoples
sins and when reformers are running
sanity amuck among the wicked cor
porations, the average member of the
state legislature thinks he sees the
narrow way in which he must walk il
| he does not want politically to die and
| go up Salt river
| He feels that he can never go home
1 and face his constituents unless he
4 slashes the railroad corporations with
| in his reach at least once and very
deeply The favoritS slash this year
, is ,at passenger rates. From all sides
| arises stridenf crv tfor IA maximum
rate of cents per mile In response
state legislatures, east and west, north
{ and south, are rushing bills prescrib-
!, ing the 2-cent rate as though there
/ could be no. doubt that this rate was
! as sacred rs was tho ratio of 16 to
to the cross Of gold crusaders of '96.
/ Last Thursday the lower house of
the virtuous Legislature of Pennsyl-
vania passed a bill of this kind unani-
1 Imously 1t is intimated that the reas-
on for the indignant unanimity was
/, because President Baer Of the Read
ing railroad, with the approval of the
tother railroad presidents interested,
sent a letter to the members of the
Legislature suggesting that prediction
| promises were subject to reconsdera-
\ tion by members after assuming legis-
lative responsibility
i Probably other legislatures will be
moved to like unanimity because the
Representatives of railroads have pre-
sumed to submit reasons why such
legislation would not only be unjust to
the companies but perhaps disappoint-
ing to great many of those who Ad-
vocate it and even injurious to public
Interests.
But the validity of the reasons is
not impaired by the presumption of the
z men who make bold to state them. II
/ 1t is true that there is very little profit
4 on the whole in passenger traffic and
: that there is none at all but, on the
contrary, loss in much of 1t, it is
II none the less true because railroad
2 men say so. Nor is it any the less q
reasonable conclusion that sweeping
cut of one third to one-half in the rate
would subject the roads to a great loss
and force them to take measures foi
the protection of their stockholders.
In some of the eastern states where
! there are many large towns at nj
7 great distance apart along the railway
lines a two-cent rate may be remuner.
ative But in more sparseiy settled
states it certainly would not be so
ell This has been admitted by advocate:
: Of the proposed legislation in some o.
Ell them and they have proposed to dis
crminate within the limits of thei
: states between roads traversing dense
8 ~ and those traversing sparsely settle,
e regions The tendency, however, is t
n treat all alike.
$ Where this Is done the railroads viii
$ have to protect themselves They arr
: running many trains on branches at :
y loss as a matter of accommodation o.
in the hope of promoting settlemen
e and enterprise and thus eventual.
building up profitable business. Her
is one place they will have TO eeono
9 mize by cutting off service.
For another thing they may be ex
i pected TO cut off all special excursion
I rates and all round trip reductions
They may also be expected to make ul
# their losses on general passenger traffi
> by advancing their suburban commut
!. alton rates and their long distance
through rates. For still another thing
4 we may look for q deterioration Of tn
service.