The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1912-10-31
DANGER AHEAD!
SIGNALS A FAKE
Republican Circular Warning
Railroad Men Is PaIpabIe
False Alarm.
EASY TO MAKE FIGURES LIE.
Old Trick Of Setting Red Lights on
Clear Track-Facts Presented So
Railroad Men May Judge.

0A|Todo wen NAY Juo0e.
The Republican national committee
Is distributing circulars among rail.
road men predicting panic and hard
times In the event of Democratic vic
tory. Among their statements intend.
ed to mislead railroad men is this:
RAILROAD MEN,
STOP! LOOK! LISTENl
LEST YOU FORGET
s71,33S,S79
Big sum Of money, isn't it?
Nevertheless it's exactly that much
more paid to the railroad employees
of the United States under the admin
1stration Of President Taft in 1910 than
was paid in 1907, the year before Mr..
Taft became president.
This is a sample of the old time Re-
publican habit of claiming credit for
all natural progress-credit even for
good crops.
1t is true that in 1910 the wages of
railroad employees amounted to some
$71,000,000 more than in 1907.
But that represented three years.
progress. .....
In 1906 the amount paid to railroad
employees was s90O,801,653. In 1907
it was $1,072,3S6,427. This was an in
crease Of $171,5S4,774 in single year
preceding the Taft administration,
amounting to more than double the in.
crease during three years Of the Taft
administration.
Isn't it obvious that they are pre-
Stunning you won't have theastat:stics
at hand to inform yourself and that
therefore they viii fool you into be
lieving that the Teft administration
made railroad mems bfospar1ty?
Then stop, look, listen again!
In four years preceding Taft,s adj
rlinistration 1893 miles Of railroad
we're sold under foreclosure The
stocks and bonds Of these roads
amounted to $47,031 900
Under three years Of the Taft ad
ministration 5,115 miles were foreclos
cd, involving $3S4,434,562.
The Tariff Humbug Again.
A still more palpable presumption
by Republicans that railroad men are
fools is the following statement IL
their circular: -7--sg-.s-1. 'ss.-is
The total number Of railway em-
ployes in 1895 was 7sS.o4.
The total number OF railway en-
ployees In 1911 was 1858, 800.
Under Republican "a administration the
number OF railway employees has in
creased. from 7ss, oS4- Turing q Demo-
cratic administratlon-rto t1.ss9.sos. an
increase OF ~ neafly 100000 msn.
Do you want L DeNaocratic president
and return tesT anditicns and number
Of employees d 1852
The TAFT people take 1895 because
the last Democratic low tariff bill
known as the Wilson bill. went into
fierce III 1894. and they would like to
have railroad men believe that Dem.
ocratic tariff revision made the hard
times.
What the Facts Prove.
Now, what are the facts?
The hard times" began back In
1890, right after the Republican high
tariff, known as the Mckinley tariff,
went into effect. Grover Cleveland,
the last Democratic president was
elected in 1892 The panic came on In
1893, not as a result of Cleveland's
election, but as a result of conditions
that had been growing steadily worse
under Republican rule. The panic was
over before the Democratic tariff bill
was passed in 1894, and after that
prosperity began to return.
Now let us make fair comparison
Of these railroad figures.
In 1898, under the Republican high
tariff, and with the panic on, there
were 873,602 railroad men employed.
or 515 per 100 miles. "
In 1894, part high tariff and part
low tariff, the number fell to 779,608.
or 444 for 100 miles-decrease II per
100 miles. .eG@
From this year on, SO long as the
Democratic administration was in pow
or, conditions improved steadily.
In 1895 the total number of railroad
men at work was increased to 785,034.
In 1896 it was S26,620.
In 1897 Mckinley came into the
presidency, and the Republicans set
about to redeem the country with
HlEQ II. AMI IAN 1915 AAG - ~
tai NUMBER OF RAILROAD EN-
PLOYES FELL OFF TO 823,476. II
Republican Panic Of 1907.
Then in the fall of 1907 there waAs
another panic under. the Roosevelt Il
1ninistration and under a Republicdh
high tariff. Were the railroad md
protected from loss Of jobs? Search
ly! The next year. 1908 the number
Of railroad employees fell OF by
235,799, a decrease OF 112 per 100ss
miles against Il per 100 miles IN 1884, y
the year when the results Of the panic,
Of 1893 were felt most severely.
So what is. the use of trying to
make FOOLS Of railroad men or Of any
other Americans by distorting hgures7s
The truth II that these fluctuations,
were not due to high tartR or low
tariff. n