Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1910-08-02

prosperity OF Georgia as IL mas HAu " w
with the prosperity of the other sectlohs
to which / have referred.
| But they say, cotton is selling at loc IN
Georgia and for this they claim credit.
7 Well it is also selling at 15c In Texas. AS
well might l charge the present admins
! tration for the high prices of meat, OF the
| high prices of clothes, or the excessive
rain that has injured the farmers crops
during the past few months, or for the
visit of Halley's comet.
The prosperity which has come to Geor-
ga, to the extent that Georgia has had
prosperity, has come under the laws pas
sed by the progressive Democracy. 1t is
| true that The PRESENT ADMINISTRA-
| TON SOUGHT TO EMASCULATE
YOUR RAILROAD COMMISSION, TO
| CUT DOWN THE NUMBER OF ITS
| NUMBERS. TO ABOLISH SOME OF
| ITS OFFICES, TO TAKE FROM THE
| COMMISSION SUPERVISION OVER
| STREET CAR COMPANIES. ELEC-
| TRIO LIGHT COMPANIES, AND 9TH
| Err LOCAL COMPANIES, AND ALSO
| TO TAKE FROM 1T THE RIGHT TO
| SUPERVISE THE STOCK AND BOND
| ISSUES OF PUBLIC SERVICE COMPA-
| MES. This attitude of the present admin
istration was reactionary in the extreme.
1t was contrary to the accepted view of
| progressive craftsmanship whether found
inside the Democratic party or inside the
| Republican party. 1t was contrary to the
| Views of Governor Hughes of New York,
| OF LaFollette of Wisconsin, and of every
| Democrat with national standing.
| l congratulate you that the members of
your house of representatives were not In
accord with these reactionary views and
\ that they have stood as a bulwark in
/ defense of the legislation which the pres
| ent administration sought to destroy. The
| people of Georgia today are saving over
| N,OOO,OC0 a year in lessened charges for
! passenger transportation, the immediate
| result of the work of the progressive De-
| mocracy the present governor having
| himself voted against these reductions
The public service companies are pay
ing over 100000 year of increased taxes
as a result of the work of the progress
sive Democracy, and yet they cannot COM
plain that their assessments are higher
| in proportion to the value of their prop
critics than the assessments placed upon
| the property of the individual citizen.
| In matters of convenience of transporta-
! ton, innumerable have the benefits been
which the public has received as the re-
| suit of our new railroad commission law.
! / RAILROADS HAVE PROSPERED.
| And yet the railroads have prospered
under the law. During the fiscal year,
from July l, 1907, to July 1, 1908, at the
very time they defeated us at the polls
| two years ago, with the cry that the rail-
roads had been ruined, the railroads of
Georgia were making more profits under
our new legislation than they had made
| before and were more prosperous than
| railroads in other parts of the United
States. 1 shall not stop now to give you
| the figures. have published several times
in the press the reports OF a number of
railroads for their fiscal year ending July
1, 1908, which showed an increase of net
profit over their profit for the preceding
year.
THE BUSINESS OF THE RAIL
| ROADS HAS BEEN EXCELLENT UN-
! DER THE LAWS MADE BY THE PRO
| GRESSIVE DEMOCRACY IN SPITE
| OF THE FACT THAT THE PEOPLE
| WERE RECEIVING A SUBSTANTIAL
RETURN AND SUBSTANTIAL BEN
| EFITs FROM THESE LAWS.
| 1t has not been our policy to injure rail-
roads or public ser-Ss~ Companies of any
character, it hag simply bNen our policy
to destroy the political power of the ma
chine politician and the hired political
agent, to bring these public corporations
| before body of men honest and capable,
who would settle issues between them
and the people with conservatism and
| Justice, passing upon each case accord
| ing to it's merits and not a result of
| political pull
| We may question the good faith of
some of those who have attacked the
railroad commission, charging that under
! the new law 1t was too expensive, when
we turn to the work of the prison COM
mission, and find there during the past
twelve months ten inspectors instead of
! three, with an additional expense far in
excess of the increased expense of the
+, railroad commission, and expense without
any service to the public. Three inspec-
| tors were sufficient when the convicts
were in the hands of lessees, but now
with the convicts in the hands of public
officials of the state, when inspection is
practically unnecessary except in rare in
stances, ten men instead of three are en-
poyed to do the service, each costing the
state approximately $2,4O0 a year. The
prison commission should follow the law
passed during my term as governor.
There should be no inspectors but super
visors, each competent road engineer
capable to inspect convicts and assist in
road building.
| GEORGIA RAILROAD STRIKE.
| I desire to refer to the manner in which
the Georgia railroad strike was handled
| by the administration which carried the
flag of the progressive Democracy. t. A
number of white hostlers. really flremen,
were discharged from the Georgia road
4
tie reduction of pay. The firemen on the
road believed that movement was on
foot to displace them and to substitute
for them negroes. A strike followed. The
race issue took possession of the people
/ from Atlanta to Augusta along the line
of the road, passion ran high. The presi-
dent of the road called on me
for aggressive interference. COM
municated with the snsriffs and the may
ors along the line of the road. Not one
of them requested military help, and
did not call out the military. 1t is the
duty of the mayor of the city, 1t is the
duty of the sheriff of the county, 1t Is the
duty of the local authorities, to preserve
| law and order, and 1t Is the duty OF the
| governor to stimulate them in the re-
4 sponsibilities which the law places upon
ithem and not set them aside.
| No Judge along the line of the Georgia
railroad no mayor and no sheriff asked
| for troops. They were on the ground
| they were the civil authorities, and so
| wisely and conservatively did they bear
themselves, that in spite of the fact that
the president of the Georgia railroad
seemed almost crazeo at the time with
fear, not a life was lost and not piece
! of property destroyed. But finally by ar
bitration the differences were adjusted.
| The two years administration OF the