The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1920-04-13
THE WATERS FINE.

teligent people who still had some American ideals
who believed in the right of the people to choose by
process of election their public officials. used to
ask, who is the Boston and Maine governor of New
Hampshire now?" 1t a good joke because
il was true joke. The Boston and Maine railroad
corrupted New Hampshire it deliberately and will
fully brbed enough voters to give them the power to
rule the state.
The Tulsa Tribune says:
I'm those days the who went to the ticket Of
flee and paid cash for transportation curiosity
The Boston and Maine railroad in the business o.
peddling passes putting everybody under obligation
to it that they could substitute. The Boston and Maine
railroad was conspicuous bride vendor. 1t was il
the business of corrupting government. Yet its Off
would have felt terribly offended had anybod.
accused them of lack of patriotism devotion to thu
principles for which the Revolutionary War wa:
waged.
THAT which was true of New Hampshire was tru
of nearly every state in the Union with some rail
road group of railroads
Some thirty years ago when young congressman
advocating perfectly rational thorough.
honest and decent legislation that was going to com
pei the Chicago, Milwaukee and ST. Paul and tn
Chicago and Northwestern railroads to respect tn
established laws of the land Senator Sawyer rushe,
to the aspiring young statesman and said You can
advocate that Don't you know these railroads criss
your district?' Such was the Prussion lik
power of the rule or ruin railroads"
only the other day at of the civic gathering
/ of business men in Tulsa, Mr.. Moffet, the superin
tendent of the Cosden refneries told how the SAINT
Fe used to govern Oklahoma in territorial days H
told of how outraged group of citizens went to ia
as to cut the supports of bridge over creek which
few hours later wrecked a freight train in protes
against the political tyranny the Santa Fe Old set
tiers tell that the Santa Fe named the governor
| he judo md no
Eritory.
THE domination of the Southern Pacific as tn
great political boss dictator of California is ma
tonal story and national scandal Enduring litera
ture has been written out of that railroad yrann.
The awakened people carried Governor Johnson t
Sacramento that issue.
! 1.-The railroad directors in the past have i'm man
instances usurped the power Of government them
selves. They have been autocratc and dogmati,
They have told the people what they could have an
what they could not have. They have made an
moulded legislatures to suit them. If you want
know how helpless the people have been in the
hands, read Mrs. Peattie's famous story of the Ne
braska farmers fight against railroad rule-"Ji1
Lancy's Waterloo
When these railroads, following these policies
the past found newspaper that dared tell the trutl
they secretly they did most things secretly subs
died and established another newspaper in that tow
and with dummy posing as proprietor and pub
lished. poured in the money to support it and by UT
derseling everything usually succeeded in wreckin
the newspaper that dared defend the people
only recently Indiana was shocked to learn thu
her late distinguished citizen Charles Warren Fail
banks once Vice President of the United States an
for. years the guiding genius Of the big Four raj
Iroad, had been through all those years the three
fourths owner Of the Indianapolis News which boas
ed much about its integrity. All the while Deane
Smith posed as the sole owner. Delaney Smith WI
the dummy The United States indicted Dummy Smit
for LYING under oath to his flag And Fairbanks Il
him lie The Pen is the place for such liars TT
laws of the country must be respected and WILL b
Neither wealth high office make any man i'm
mune.
! Are the railroads going to attempt these thins
again? Are they going to be foolish enough to ont
more try to rule the people, to try to tell the poop
what they and cannot have; what reasonable ar
Legitimate canvenfences the people may expect ar
what they shall be denied?
1.-The people Of the United States have been genel
Gus with the railroads. Now they are ready to on
more be generous very, very generous Even stool
holders. who, in the case of the Rock Island ha
to run to the rescue of their securities and ove
throw the la~less government of the Rock Islar
system and recapitalize and rebond the railroad on
decent honest basis those stockholders after
administration of deliberate and wiful plumber Al
Ieager and willing to help the railroads back on
firm sound, rational, honest cooperative basis
1.-The public is not so guleless as once it was Ev,
New Hampshire cannot be bought with passes toda
It's huge House of Representatives with more men
bers than sit in the Congress of the United Stat
and its tiny Senate Of ia beyond the brfbe al
bow in shame to think how cheaply they once so
t out their cherished Yankee rights.
The best business policy that the railroads :,
Is q -att
dering the greatest service to the peopIe II tn,
show the wisdom and the sound business sense a,
the fundamental patriotism to do that the peop
will go far in vacatng hamperfng laws and in gran