The Irish standard., 1910-08-13
Farming and Commerce Both De-
pend on Transportation
Conditions.
People Have Power But Are Less
Active than the Special
Interests
The US is Equipped to Handle by
Parcels Post all Small
Packages. ....

The following able article from the
pen of James Mnnnhan, Il leading at
trrncN of Minneapolis appeared in
the August number of the National
Monthly. Mr.. Manahan has taken an
active part in the fight against excess
sivc railroad rates and is we'll uual-
fled to speak on the subject.
1t takes a lot of courage to he an
Insurgent now, but ii took more in
and Moses was the first Insurgent.
Under considerable obligation to the
system, tho Kings own daughter hav-
Ing reared him. SELF interest suggested
a sane career for him along the lines
of party solidarity and financial re-
spectability, but the bondage of his
people hurt, and his conscience called
aloud like the voice of God. Further
more. Aaron talked, as only a great
Democrat can talk, of the hopeless
ness and vanity of trying to reform
tIlc cSldpllSIlcN oIucI ol d lO1lE COns
tinued tyranny. Moses and Aaron
worked together and finally decided
to get their people out of the coun-
try at any cost. 1t was big under-
taking, for the system controlled the
highways and all the boat lines on
the Red Sea. Like the true Insur-
fl,n,r Cor
the water without boats, for oblivion
has no terrors worse than slavery.
The sea receded. They found the
promised land and left us a brave his
tory. Meanwhile, in Egypt the sys-
tenn and it's victims King, boss, stand
pat citizen and laborer alike. persisted
in spite of the productive Nile be-
cause commerce was prostituted to
the passion of taxation. The fields
and the roads. the body and blood Of
business, were taken and wasted by
murmurcd dcgcncratcd, and finally
Quit. leaving fields teilantcss, roads
freightless. and the nation dead.
The Importance in our day of prof.
table farms and an unhanlpercd com-
mercc cannot be overstatcd. Both
propositions depend on transporta-
ton conditions. The magnitude OF
the movement Of property and people
in this country staggcrs the mind.
Railway, express and Pullman COM
pnnies do the work. Annually the
railroads carry over billion and q
half tons of freight and about 9O0,-
100000 passengers. The express COM
panies handle over 4O0,0OO,0OO pack
ages, and the Pullman Company make
about ten million beds for travellers.
Last year the reports filed with the
/ Interstate Commerce Commission
operating revenue $2,494,115, 90,
averaging s1O,7O4 for every mile. The
express companies made in 1907,
! s12s.117,176. and the Pullman Com,
pany s29,23 ,s96.O5.
Altogether transportation costs the
people annually in round numbers two
billion six hundred fifty million dol,
lars This makes an average tax Of
about SIS a month for every family
in the United States. One of the
ablest examiners in the service of the
commission declared at a recent hear
ing. that approximately one-half Of
what the people paid for what they
bought, represented the cost of trans-
portation. Fl
The power for making freight rates
is the greatest power in the world
today. 1t controls commerce and the
supply of food, clothing and shelter.
1t is sovereignty under present social
conditions and the division of that
control. between the government and
the corporations makes us subjects Of
both and weakens our allegiance to-
each, for good citizenship Cannot
serve two masters"
To the degree that one certain house
can control commerce across the
continent, 1t is royal family with
power as kingly and absolute over the
Lives Of men as Pharaoh had in Egypt