New-York tribune., 1918-02-23
ortrait of a New Senator

VX7ASHINGTON, Feb. % = The
wv Hon. Hiram Warren Johnson,
Of California, is a forceful and
aggressive man. Much will be heard of
him from time to time, and many will wish
for that reason to take q measure Of
the man.
His recent speech in the Senate will be
helpful. 1t was in advocacy Of the gov
crnment ownership of railways, but before
plunging into his subject Senator johnson
waved a fc" words upon current topics
Speaking Of the work at Hog Island, ne
declared:
"ln one OF the contracts entered into BY
fhe government with the American
International CompauN-a state OF affairs
LegCaring description has been developed
The evidence demonstrates a wild satur-
MALTA OF extravaganza. brilliant phantas.
m;.eoria of patriotic pretcnco. And the pity
and the shame oi it arc that those Who
With cheerful and almost studied disre-
card for every principle OF economy. are
wasting the money OF Taxpayers are some
the great captains OF industry Of the
c;.ton.'
1t is a tlillc that Admiral Bowlcs, uow
at Hog Island, and Chairman Hurley OF
the Shipping Board state that no evidence
Of graft has been found. But the Senator
has the "evidencc,' and proceeds TO use II
in his temperate and convincing way.
With this beginning one is admirably
prepared for the keynote of the Califor
mia orators address. 1t was this:
''llr President, the distinguished sen;,-
who has just interrogated ne seems to
labor under the delusion chat in dealing
Nith great interests and railroad proper
ties there must he some sort Of logic but
think, Nr. President, the history OF rail
roads for all past time VIII demonstrates
S..t logic is a secondary considerations"
The Senator has scant patience with
logic; equally so, it would seem with
the verites. This is his statement Of the
terms OF remuneration to the railroads:
at means that upon every watered issue
that has been wrung from the people OF
the United States in the past, that repre-
acnts not a dollar OF value q penny OF
zeal Investment, we pay in excess Of s per
cent per annum; It means that during this
tin.e OF crisis and OF peril, When the su-
llomc sacrifice is demanded of those We
love and the maximum service from those
who remain at home, wc pay upon
Waterea stock, estimated at almost 80 per
(cnt O. the total stock OF these corpora
tiora stock representing nothing but the
greed and the aHalicc of railroad mag
natos-this huse dvidcnd.
There is, perhaps, but (; single large
railway-thc Union Pacific-whch under
the terms Of the bill viii be able to pay
as much as s per cent on its stock, watcred
CT otherwise. The average will not much
exceed per cent
And here is the careful and guarded
statement Of the performance of the rail
roads last year:
The payment Of this vast sum to the
railroads proceeds as il the railroads were
efficiently and thoroughly performing their
function, but it must be remembered they
Yeve utterly unable TO perform their tasks
and that it was only after they had demon
,trated conclusively their inability as pub
ilo carriers to render the proper service to
tbs public and to the government that the
government finally seized them
Equally q trihc that the roads were
carrying one-thrd more than their highest
pre-war volume OF freight, and at a rate
unknown anywhere else in the world.
The Senator is not bothered with the
thought that government priority orders
had anything, 10 do with the "mudcllev nc
describes. lie says
., do not for one moment believe chat
nc railroads We're prevented from per
tornlins their full duty to the government
b' the priority orders issued b. different
departments. recognize that. owing TO AN
Wttel lack Of system, orders we're issued Inv
one. then another. and then another OF the
departments Of the government, and that
tAesc orders were difficult of enforcement
and lnterferod in some degree with celeyitv
transportation. Such Il system as has
feen developed in respect to these priority
orders is intolerable"
1t is not surprising TO find the Cali
fornian strenuously opposed to any return
OF the roads 10 their owners. He says:
Il object 10 the eighteen months period
as substantially establishing a. this time
1ri,n