New-York tribune., 1919-08-30
Tells House Committee of
His Plan Of Government
Owned Trunk Railways
and State-Owned Feeders
Puts Cost at Z or 4 Billion
Does Not Discuss Report He
May Run for President
as Candidate of Labor
Nom York T,1burs
WASHINGTON Bureau


WASHINGTON. Aug. William
Jennings Bryan advocated government
ownership and operation of the rail
roads as the solution of the present
transportation problem before tho
House Interstate and Foreign Com
merce committee to-day
Without at all touching upon the
report that he may be a candidate for
the Presidency upon a labor ticket.
Mr.. Bryan indicated that he would give
the Plumb plan preference over any
plan TO turn the roads back to private
ownership and operation. He refused
TO lndorse or dlsapprove directly Of
the Plumb Pan. however, and criti-
clsed 1t severely on several counts.
The pan sugg ted to the committee
py Mr.. Bryan involves dual scheme
by which tle government would own
only ore trunk line in each state n|-
lowing the various states to own and
operate eli other roads within the
state; Alr. Bryan would make it op-
lional VITA the state, however. whether
there should be state ownership of
such roads, leaving the roads with
thelr private owners until the state
saw mt to own them. The cost of the
trunk lines, Mr.. Bryan said, would
probably not amount to more than
TOUR or five billion dollars.
Prefers 1t to Private Control
MY. Bryan stirred the committee
WIN .ne statement that nationaliza-
aion OF the roads under the Plumb plan
would create a dangerous tendency
toward Capitalization in government
but that anything was preferable to-
allowing Capitalization of the roads
INTO one or few big systems under
private CONTROL
government ownership of the roads
would mean certain danger of the
roads beng used for political pur-
poses,' he said. "but the government
could not possibly be worse in that
respect than the railroad magnates.
mere mas n9t been day in twenty
hve years that the railroads have not
elected governors. senator's, repre-
sentatlves; controlled party conven-
tons and maintained lob les at the
national capital. corrupting and CO.
erclne all those who might be cor
rupted and ccorced
THE railroad magnates expect to be
IN politics more IN the future than in
tHe past. ihey havc tried to take
away state control of the roads and
lodge it at Washington, so as to avoid
their being regulated, for they know it
IS easier to control Congress than for
ty-eiEht different states.
Seek Private Monopoly"
II know that the PENNSYLVANIA and
the Baltimore & Ohio had lobbies here
when the Union Station was being
built, and tnat for ten years they pre-
vented Congress from enlarglng the
powers Of the Interstate Commerce
Commission. The railroads want one
system, If possible-one gigantic mo-
nopoly. the greatest in the world,
backed by all the banks in Wall Street
and all the great newspapers"
Mr.. Bryan declared that contrary to
general opinion, the roads during the
war dad not test out government opera
ton. although government control sue
ceeded where private ownership had
completely failed
Restrictions were laid down against
working under permanent policy" he
SAID, land we had to try government
operation with the roads being run by
the very men VINO did not want to see
government operation succeed, so that
the roads would go back to private
control
Fear "Rich Monopolists"
The two first questions in the rail
road situation, Mr.. BRYAN declared, are
whether We arc to have government
or private ownership and how to
bring about the transition from pres
ent to other control He argued
against private monopoly on the
ground that it eliminated competition
and tented to create a group of rich
monopolsts who came to disbelieve
In popular government
The principal arguments against
the Plumb PLAN" he said, are its
cost the possibility of the roads be-
ing made d political football, and the
extreme Capitalization of all power in
Washington that would result. Such
a plan would take an enormous
bureau, with all the difficulties that
come with bureauracy. We can't
afor to concentrate power at Wash
lngton that viii go farther toward
centralization than all other things
l.A