The Daily Missoulian., 1912-10-30
Edwards on the Issues


receive from the hands OF the public I
other than a square deal
This big business knows, but big /
business wants more than square |
deal. and Is getting It. It may be said
without fear of successful contradic-
ton, that were big business satisfied |
with q square deal. and were to be re-
tired from politics. that 1t would not
range within possibility for legis-
lative body to be elected that would /
not have the very highest regard for
every interest, whether large or small.
or whether owned by individuals or
From speech at Miles City on
1T is estimated that for the year
bushels OF wheat. From an average
distance from Montana to ST. Paul the
freight rate Is 35 cents per hundred or
81 cents per bushel. BY calculation it
may be seen that the tonnage of our
1912 wheat crop will give to the rail-
roads for transportation a sum equal
to more than $4,000, 900. In this state
the .Amalgaanated Copper company Is
given ~ TdIS Oh 10 CclIIS u lOL 1lOHl
Butte to Great Falls, distance Of It's
miles. BY calculation It win be seen
that such a rate Is equal to three
sevenths of cent per ton a mile.
BY calculation also 1t win be seen that
If this ore-hauling rate. which is for q
short distance were made applicable
to the transportation of our wheat
product for the year 1912, such wheat
product would have been hauled to the
markets for the difference between 81
per ton and $3.50 per ton, or. in other
words the farmers OF Montana would
have been required to pay for such
transportation more than $2.00O,O00
less than was exacted from them by
the railroad companies"
From speech at Great Falls on New
Railroad Construction:
"The railroad construction during
| the past five years was capitalized at
$139, 600 per mile. Are the people of
| Montana to understand because of
this capitalization that hereafter there
| Is to be no railroad construction in
this state unless it can be shown in
advance that the railroad companies
will be able to secure by its earnings
q sufficient return on a capitalization
! of $4,000 per mile? Railroad con-
struction in this state Is greatly
needed, as there are many million of
acres of arabic land that could be
and would be made to produce and to
yield abundantly were such acreage
given transportation facilities. Under
present conditions our vast acreage of
unimproved land has only a specula-
tive value, and will never have a real
value, except for grazing purposes,
until put under cultivation. Such cul-
tivation can only be encouraged by af-
fcr6ing the proper transportation ia
c!lities. There are many places II
Montana where branch lines of from
il to rs miles in length may be con-
structed at a cost of not to exceed
$4,000 per mile, and where In each
instance there may be given transpor-
tation facilities to from 10000 te
100000 acres of land. Such transpor-
tation facilities will be the means o
encouraging an annual production tha
will add many millions to Montana
wealth, and, as well, would add mil
lions of dollars to the real value o
such land. Such increase in valu
would not only add to individual own
ership, but would add materially t
the assessable value for taxable pur
poses, thereby giving to the state. a
weIl as to the owners, direct bene
fit. Such branch construction will b
justified from an earning capacit
viewpoint, should the railroads be sat
isfied with fair return upon tn
actual cost rather than an earnin
capacity that would justify the issu
ance of $4,000 of bonds for each mil
of railroad SO constructed"