The Delta independent., 1919-01-24
WILL MeApoo's BLUFF
BRIGHTEN CONGRESS

Washington, Jan. 20.-The Repub-
lican Publicity association through its
president, Hon. Jonathan Bourne, Jr.
today gave out the following state
ment from its Washington headquar-
ters.
"Unless Congress Immediately en-
acts legislation continuing Govern
ment control of the railroads for
period of five years Mr.. McAdoo has
threatened to send advice by wire
less to Mr. Wilson to turn .nem back
to their private owners at once. 1t
is part of the democratic plan that
the public particularly the stockhold-
ers and employees of the roads, should
throw up their hands in horror at
Mr.. McAdoo's plan and feverishly
write their Senators and Representa-
tives in Congress to get busy on the
five year legislation. The chaotic con-
dition in which the roads now are,
with their immense burdens of in
creased wages and tremendous equip
ment bills to meet, is enough to strike
terror to their owners when they are
suddenly threatened with the with,
drawal of the financial support of the
United States Treasury
But let us study the situation, and
see if the McAdoo threat is not case
of pure bluff The first immediate
result of throwing back the roads to
their owners would be to send them
into the hands of receivers. The
prime duty of receiver is to reduce
expenses, and inasmuch as there is
hardly a road in the country that
would find it possible to meet the
enormous drains upon it with it's pres
ent operating income, drastic curtail-
ments would go into effect at once.
would be the sufferers from reduction
in the number of trains, the impossi-
bility of collecting judgments for
damages, the prompt cessation of all
improvements that may be under way
and loss of other benefits customarily
extended to their customers by solvent
roads. Dividends, of course would
cease at once, and the hundreds of
thousands of stockholders would seek
a means to reek vengeance on the in
dividuals and political party that had
been the cause of their loss. One of
the first acts of the receivers would
be to apply for court order reduc-
ing wages of employees to point
conforming with ability of the roads
to pay. Such an order would make
enemies of the men it affected. They
would promptly forget the raise in
pay the administration granted them
by the administration, and think only
of the reduction forced upon them
by the REIMBURSEMENT of the roads
by the government. The officials of
the roads, upon whom would fall the
tremendous task of bringing order out
of chaos, would see to it that every
thing possible was done to bring dis
cimfiture to the men responsible for
the prediciment of their properties. In
short, to throw the roads over board
at such short notice would bring such
storm of condemnation about the
heads of Wilson, McAdoo and the
democratic party that they would not
have chance at the elections in 1920
or for the next fifty years.
And they know it. If there is one
thing above others to which the ad-
minstration has devited itself it is
the attempted cultivation of popular
approval of it's official acts. To sud-
denly reverse their policy in tltat
direction and bring down upon them
countrywide flood of indignation
such as Mr.. McAdoo's rash act would
entail, is the very thing above all
others of which more democrats will
never be guilty. The leaders of that
party know that the best thing tor
them is to let congress work out some
sort Of legislation providing means
for the return of the roads with the
least loss and disorganization possible
1t matters not If the next congress is
republican. If such legislation is of
republican authorship it will divert at
tention. equally as II it came from a
democratic hand, from the mistakes of