Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-05-07
WHY RAILROADS HATE HIM.
(rrom cummins' Campaign Address)

railway company. This Is the advance
| that we have made In the passage of
| this law.
"The great problem of the future,
and this Is but a part of 1t, concerns
the distribution of wealth. l suppose
am speaking to many men whose en-
| ployment is with railway companies. l
ask you whether, when railway COM
panes prosper, and they ought always
to prosper, when their net earnings
grow, as they will grow, whether it is
better for you and for your family to
| live under an administration that VIII!
prevent these companies from absorb
| ing their earnings in the issuance of
| baseless stock or whether it is better
| to preserve those earnings upon exist
| ing capitalization, leaving you a fair
| chance at least in your struggle for
higher compensation and better condi-
| tons, and to secure your share of the
| fruits of honest labor.
| The governor reviewed the history Of
| the fight by the railroads against him.
dated from his veto of the Molsberry
bill in 1902. The New Jersey North
ern Securities company was under
questionable railroads planned to
make Iowa the home of the Shame
less corporations which were intended
| simply to multiply stock and indebted
ness" So the proposal by the Mols-
berry bill to repeal the Iowa law fix
ing the limit Of corporate debt. The
| speaker said
81 said to somebody that could not
, favor that measure. And then began
vic Of
think that was ever made upon an
executive of a state. My office swarmed
with representatives, not only of the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway
company, but nearly every other rail-
way company in the state. They came
to argue, they remained to cajole, they
stayed longer to threaten. vetoed that
bill, and from that time until now ev-
cry railway company in the state Of
Iowa, make no exception whatever,
every railway manager in the state Of
Iowa has been engaged in doing what
your esteemed townsman thinks I
should do for myself. They have used
all the power they possess to eliminate
me from public life. But I am still
alive. And 1t is one Of the queer things
never could understand, that in this
territory, thru which this railroad
runs. nearly every newspaper has been
opposed to me-"
The governor alluded to the charge
that had been made that he was not
sound republican and was an unsafe
leader, disturbing the public mind and
drawing the people into dangerous
paths. This he thought an issue which
tot 10 H,n
charge were true he ought not to be
invested with the senatorship, there
fore he could discuss II.
Railroad Taxes Up.
when I became governor the rail-
roads were assessed at S47,00000 tax
able value, and s1sS, 600, 900 actual val
ue.
Now they are assessed at $685.
600 taxable value.
"That is 34.5 per cent increase.
Tn 1901 they paid s1.500.o0o taxes to
/ the counties Of the state. In 1907 they
paid $2,20O,000. That Is 100000 in
crease.
IT have nothing to do nor has the
executive council anything to do with
the assessment Of farm property. We
equalize as between counties, but we do
not fix the value of farm property or
personal property within a county. But
nevertheless when I became governor
the average actual value Of the farm
property in this state for taxable pur-
poses was 1883 an acre. 1t is now
s4142 an acre, an increase of 1914 per
cent as compared with the increase Of
34.5 per cent upon the railway proper