The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-01-23

Not if we know it, was the repiy'
 Mir. Lusk wanted further to know:
 Have you any means of Knowing whethen your road has or has not made money contributions to any political campaign or for any political purposes in Alabama in recent years?"
 q have not" was the response, such a thing would not touch my depart ment."
 Senator Gum of Clarke. asked.
 'Is there any discrimination between your rate to Pensacola and your rate to Mobile?'
 There is not" responded Mir. Smith.
 People Have Spoken.
 As an advocate of the pending rail road bills, Captain Frank S. White ap- peared before the committee.
 Tt occurs to me that this matter has been thoroughly discussed" said Cap tain White "The last campaign offer ed the finest opportunity in the world for the discussion of this question. The people of Alabama have spoken and spoken emphatically--the people who sent the members of this committee here"
 Captain White said that there was still some information lacking in set tling the question. The men who had been nable to tell how many passes had been issued. That was informa- ton that should be given.
 It had been stated. he said, that nler- chandse had been hauled through Ala bama to New Orleans at a cheaper rate than they had been hauled to Ala bama points This was building up New Orleans at the expense of the Ala hama cities. It seemed to him that there was something wrong and the people had declared for a remedy to meet this condition.
 Nesbit Advocates Bills.
 Captain White was followed by w. D. Nesbitt. a close political friend and advires or MT. Conner. MT. Nesbitt explained the development of railroads in Alabama. As a general thing the earliest railroads had been built from interior points to parts. These lines were in most eases main lines. vBut some fifteen or twenty years ago, new development In railroad building took placA in the building up of great CT and larker systems. The lines which had been main lines. became in the big systems. feeders, while the system se- Iected its own main line. which the oth- CT lines fed.
 Now a great deal is being said about the congested systems. Uf the great congestion of cars. of terminal facili- ties" said Mir. Nesbitt. At the same
  .ion on these feeder lines, with four or five cars running a day. Now do not say this is true, but you might find if you investigate this that these main lines are getting the great amount of the traffic at the expense of the feeder lines"
 General Th0m Closes Debate. General F. P. Thom, of Washington, General Counsel with headquarters at Washington was presented to the com mittee by Major K. E. Steiner. to close the discussion for the railroad inter- ests of the State. It was then o'clock and the committee had been in session for three hours, but MT. Thom, who has decided gifts as an orator. succeeded in arousing the interest of the tired committeeman.
 one of the gentlemen who has pre- ceded me has said that this Is a set- tied question, that this question was settled last summer. Then, MT. Chair man, the invitation you sent us was misleading" said MT. Thom. "If the issue has been settled. if the verdict has been made up. gentlemen, why are ! we here2 Why did you bring us here? But take it, gentlemen, that you want to hear all the case. I take 1t that you want to hear the arguments | and the facts with your eyes wide open and shall submit my argument to you"
 Mir. Thom declared impressively that what Alabama wanted was not reduce ed rates so much as it was increased facilities for the handling of Its mer- chandise and its products. If this were not true. Alabama was different from all other States of which he had any knowledge.
 The interstate rates meant more to Alabama than did her intra-state rates. 1t was of more importance that her products could be shipped Into the outer world to make it's markets than that they should be hauled at cheap CT rate than they are now being hauled within the State. What the State wanted was increased facilities for meeting competition.
 "Is a single track sufficient to carry the produce of this vast empire of the South?" Colonel Thon asked. There should be at least four" he answered tho South needs more track facilities; IL should be able to have cars when 1t needs them and to move them promptly. It was not wise to curtail the railways and impair, perhaps de- stroy them, but far better to assist them to furnis sh the best facilities pos Sible"
 EncOurage; Do Not ImpaiK.
 Colonel Thorn pleaded that the lcgis- lators should not strike in the dark. Let them first. he asked. make stllem selves acquainted with the condition of the railways and not in ignorance strike them through their rates. im- pair and decimate their revenues. pre- vent the public from investment in their stocks and so bring Improvement to stand still. LegiElate for en- .couragsement rathe: then Impairment, was Colonel Thom's advice.
 He spoke at length of the record of the Southern Railway Company. It had not bea1 idle. he said. but had steadily advanced for its betterment and the pubIic,s convenience. Tn the twelve years of it's existence it had spent pr contracted to spend $96.00O,- 900. &Rhence came this vast sum? From the lenders of the country Would the lending be continacd if the com pany had to operate in an enemy's country-where the statute books bris- tie with drastic Legislation against the railroads7
 A lack of knowledge. Colonel Thoru declared. could never be the just basis of an affirmative policy He asked that the legislators should not act with out knowing how much their act would hurt the company. They should know the resour 'es and the revenues and the income of the company. He then read statistics as to the increased cost of labor and ot material required to make the railroad.
 The inequalities or injustices In rare instances of rates, he argued. should have specific remedy, not universal leg islation for the overthrow of the rail-