The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1913-06-03

OaN u DoA c"hL
people Of this State. against the people
of no other State-because it seems to
me that the people OF North Carolina
have been set apart as the people VINO
will bear the injustiCes lnf1lcted by the
comomn carriers. Our records show
that he general assembly of North
Carolina enacted a statute that would
adjust the interstate feight rates that
is within the supervision OF this state.
But we can enact no statute tnat can |
Compel the Southern Railway, the At
lantic Coast Line and the SeabOard Air |
Line Railway to grant to the people
of North Carolina freight rate from |
Lynchburg to Greensboro or from
Greensboro to any other point outside
of the State, for the reason that n
supervision does not reach beyond her
borders.
Sovereignty Of the State Supreme.
The sovereignty Of the State is SUI
preme unless it conflicts with h con-
%stitutiOn or some of the laws Of the
nation n there is nothing in the con-
stitutiOn Of this country that would
compel the State Of North Carolina to
submit tamely to an injustice when
she knows the injustice and when it
is inflicted upon her people. l say we
cannot leigslate beyond Our borders,
but within our borders we are supreme
within the limits Of the constitution.
Conference after conference has
been held with the OmOmn carriers
and from these conferences thus far
nothing has cOme-nOthing has come
to our disappointment and sorrow. We
want peace with the railroads. The
railroads are a great part Of the great
common development of this State.
Their welfare are a part of our indus
tries and no right thinking citizen of
North Carolina would lay one fingers
weigh Of injustice to the common car
riers Of North Carolina. l feel as
friendly tOWard the railroads as an en-
terprise as l do toward the manufac-
turing industries or the agricultural
enterprises and we would inffict no
wrong upon them. In fact, North Car
Olina has been kind to the common
carriers Of this State. She has built
railroads at the expense of taxation
and from the mountains to the sea and
she has turned these great transporta-
ton lines over to the railroad COM
panieS to operate and serve the people
Of North Carolina; she feels no IN
friendly feeling towards them. But
We come to them today and say we re-
greet that You treat us with injustice.
We ask that the railroads give us the
same terms that others are given. All
We ask you to do is to give us the very
same terms that you give to other PEG
ple-that is all. All that we ask OF
you is to accord to the people OF
~ Tx VCIJ odIA1O III
that you have accorded to the people
of Virginia, Georgia and South Caro-.
lima We wish to be treated with
| equal justice-that is all. We do no
} come to you to beg Justice; we come
to you and demand Of you justice ant
we tell you that we are going to havt
justice and will have nothing less thai
: justice and want nothing more. I hap
e pened to be in Washington the OtheI
: day at a meeting Of the common car
riers. l did not Participate in the con
1 ference, but l would be always glad t.
I participate in any conference lookin,
o to the peaceful settlement of this mat
n ter.
Rather Have War Than IgnOminOu
- Peace
W do not want war but we ha
rather have war than an ignominOu
peace. 1t would be ignominous in tn
people Of North Carolina to submit t
e the conditions that have existed in thi
,f State for more than twenty year:
They tell us Why if you are dissatis
fled with the freight rates Of Mort
Carolina. with the treatment accord
IN ed you this government has provide
q tribunal to which you can appeal.
is open to you. present yOu claim
IA My friends in reply TO that, waivin
- for the moment that they themselve
no have clOgged the docket Of this gres
# court to which they would have US al
M peal in which they themselves hay
or filed five thousand cases so that TT
a. people of North Carolina can get L
hearing. waving that for the mOmen
or | say that if the interstate COmmert
RS commission were to decree that Nor,
IN. Carolina should continue to pay a tril
st ute upon her greater thu
any other State, then North CarOliI
ought not to submit to it. Why wa
for a decision in a ribuna who
OF docket is CongeSted by their actor
or when if the decision of that tribunal
tie against us it will lot be the n
ar the matter with us.
~ We Must Go Forward.
NV have put our hands to the pic
-. IL the fight and We will not turn bac
The people of North Carolina ha
heen aroused: they have seen tt
IN wrong and they never intend to ST.
this contest until we have won ju
ass tice for ourselves and for our CHI
,c- dren. say that any other course
are the people Of North Carolina won
be- be an ig~nominious course. We a