The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-11
EIGHTGOVERNORS OF ALABAMA
1874-1901
No. 48-The Alabama Railroad Commission
Rufus w. Cobb Governor
18741901


! lated by knowledge of the recent fate of
one of the earliest chartered and most
valued of all the roads, that now known
as the Selma, Rome and Dalton. This
line was sold in 1880 in front of the court
house of Dallas county for 81, 100000 and
was bought by one bidder. The average
price per mile for the road and equip
ment and all appurtenances was $4,000.
A separate sale was made of the lands
granted by congress. Lapsley bid these
In for New York party at $4,000.
The legislature proceeded with
marked care and deliberation. few
weeks after the body assembled the
venerable and accomplished represen-
tatfve from Mobile Charles c. Lang
don, introduced bill to create a rail-
road commission. The bill went to a
committee There were 2000 miles OF
railroad in the state against 760 at
the birth of the Confederacy in the
capital of Alabama Every dollar OF
the stock of the $50 miles was owned
| in the state. Every dollar of that
stock had been lost TO the original pos
SCISSORS.
The gross income of the railroads
operating in the state carried to Wall
street an amount of money annually
ceived in the vaults of the state treas
ury year by year. True, the roads
themselves paid taxes to tile state the
roads enhanced the tax paying ca
pacity of belts of territory through
which they passed but, like the circus
they drained the pockets of the people
| to remove irrecoverable cash.
The navigable streams and the ante
bellum limited mileage of railroads had
built up within the state limits, the
( port of Mobile with an export trade of
s35,000,000 year. The export trade
, of New Orleans in that era of limited
railroad mileage stood first New York
second, Mobile third in value of the
ports of the United States.
Railroad control passed to Wall
street. The floating palaces Of our
rivers disappeared as mirages The cot
ton trade left Mobile as ghost would
vanish. The interest, commissions. and
profits of the Mobile cotton trade had
been returned in the old era to the
country to make more cotton. Now that
source of support had left the cotton
planters without recourse
The final American market for cot
ton having been removed by abnormal
political action from contact with its
| logical market place the business faint
ed and dissolved
The plantations felt the first shock
when Wilson's raiders burned and the
invading army stole, In the spring and
summer of 1855, even later than Appo-
matoox, some 100000 bales of cotton
worth at the port of Mobile, say s6O,-
10000 The loss of this cash asset in
stantly reduced the plantation to a
partnership cooperation with ignor-
ant freedmen that drew the line on
the cotton planting business Farm
wages We're impossible.
Finally the splendid old plantations
that had been the basis of credit in
Mobile for liberal system of cash
advances to their owners were mutil-
ated by negro tenantry who lost for
ever the methods of operation under
which the past had flourished phenom-
enally and the fields had been made
glorious The negro tenantry produced.
approximately, the old time yield of
cotton but the village merchant nearby
held a crop lien on the crop, support
ed by aswaive note. The village mer-
chant bought the cheap goods his GUS
toners required from drummers, from
far away cities. The railroads trans
ported the goods to him and the rail-
roads took far away the crop lien cot
| ton, interest, commissions and profits
from the cotton export trade of the
| port of Mobile were lost thus to the
cotton planting business and ii fell.
! marvellous resourcefulness of en-
| terprise has measureably restored the
receiving and shipping business of the
| city but we must grant the fathers of
the present generation of restorers
| the simple mead of justice to remem-
Der their aims and the works they
set in motion. Every railroad char
tered in Alabama, three grand trunk
lines. to tap the land locked mineral
counties prior to 1866, terminated at
Mobile or "the waters that empty into
Mobile harbor."
The project was comprehensive and
well digested 1t contemplated the cot
ton item of trade III it's entirety, re-
inforced by the products OF mines and
mills. 1t is puerile to shout new
south" in discrimination. The SOUTH
new or otherwise, is of native crea-
tion, Ammo Domini 1913 is new" in the
experiences of legislation at Washing
ton and administration of the federal
government because it marks the Pc
riod of recovery of ancient southern
influences and works there.
The legislature moved tediously and
circumspectly with the great problem
of providing a regulator of the power
full force for good. the railroad Mr.
Lungdon's motion of early December
tarried with committees throughout the
the whole winter. On February 26 the
perfected bill passed the house. So to
20; passed the senate 2S 40 0. Governor
Cobb promptly approved.
In the house Mr.. John II. Bankhead
from a western county, awaiting anx-
iously bitter communication, spoke at
length in opposition to the bill Mr.
Long of Walker was most earnest in
opposition. He said a line of railroad
was then being constructed through
vast fields of coal In his county. He
would do nothing to check that enter
prise. He had heard Mr.. L.angdon
speak of a ground swell" of public
opinion in favor of the commission.
Some years before he heard Of aground
swell that put Lincoln in power He
must be pardoned for want of faith In
all ground swells.
On February 2S, the day preceding
the final adjournment, Governor Cobb
sent message to the senate in execu-
tive session. The governor sent three
names. as the act required, from which
list the senate must select a presi-
dent of the commission. He sent in
other names from which list two asso-
ciate commissioners must be selected to
complete the board.
Peter Hamilton and Walter l. Bragg
were two of the names on the list for
president. r. b. Clark and Levi w.
Lawler of Mobile. Col. Charles Pollard
Ball of Montgomery and Capt James
Crook of Jacksonville were four of the
list of six e1igibles for associate COM
missioners.
The commission chosen from the gov
ernor's list by the senate were Wall
ter L. Bragg, president: Col. c. p Ball
and Capt. James Crook associates. The
presidents salary was s3500; the sal
airy of his associates $4,000 each with
clerk at $500.
Georgia had put in office already
Its railroad commission. The roads
went into court. The commission ON