The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-01-12

house, otherwise a railroad attorney. to. dominate and wise our laws. The statel
 within the constitution has maintained as|
 far as possible its integrity.
 The railroads of the country are now
 conspiring to advance freight rates over
 all interstate roads. The Caesars, in
 their edict levying worldwide tax,'
 never dreamed of such vast loot as thisj
 contemplated increase of freight taxes.
 It is said to involve many millions an-
 nual increase tax on the production and
 consumption of America-nearly as much
 as it takes to run the government.
 The railroads, anticipating a general
 disposition to have their charges reduced.
 made a counter move to increase their
 charges.
 At the climax of a battle Napoleon once
 ordered drummer boy to beat retreat
 The young fellow responded that he did
 not know how to beat a retreat, but that
 he could beat charge. Bonaparte or
 dered the charge and won the battle. The railroads are beating a charge, making the claim that the advanced cost of liv- ing, of supplies, of labor, the necessity
 of double-tracking. building extensions, increased transportation facilities, etc..
 make it necessary to increase their freight charges.
 And now to secure from the interstate commerce commission and from the ind terstate commerce court permission t increase their freight rates the railroad/
 have formed a combination. trus which IS tiie Biggest 'afid most compfUX hensive trust ever formed. Evidently tn first agreement among them was thaN they should buy as little as possible or
 every necessary supply, lumber, iron and general equipments, so that they could
 distress business. They recognized the|
 fact that business has no virtue and that it will cohabit with any proposition that {
 will bring 1t quick returns and increasa dividends. All of the above and many other lures
 and coercions are being played and pared | ticed on the people at large for the pur-
 pose of influencing the interstate com-j
 merce court to allow this increased tax levy of many millions of dollars upon the shippers and consumers. The money to meet this annual levy of | many million dollars, and which will mul- tiply into billions as years go by, will have to be taxed from the people and from labor. Money, unlike railroad SC Il curities, cannot be manufactured over night; it cannot be set af1oat by a meet \ | ing of half a dozen men from Wall | street; it does not pour down like tho | golden sands of Pactous; nor is 1t tol i be secured like Solomon's treasure bY sending ships to Ophir. It must be taxed | from the labor of America. Labor and l land are the progenitors of production. j 1 The farm industry is the genesis of bus& | mess and the nursery of labor. In thU l last analysis the question is not how { l Wall street, how are the railroads, bu/ how arc the crops? The farmer boy an | irving at young manhood becomes dis satisfied with farm conditions and leave1 | the farm to go out in the world strikina l for a higher success. From the naturd | of his environment and development hG excels the city boy or man and takes his place. Every distress possible should be taken from the farm and the farmer in order that tbase conditions should not prevail They should have the utmost protection and encouragement of the 1aw1 and should be made as prosperous al possible When such conditions prevail