Ellsworth American., 1920-04-07
RETURN OF ROADS
PLEASES FARMERS
urge Policy to Insure Best Sery-
ice at Lowest Cost Consist
ent With Fair Returns.
OPPOSE NATIONAL lzarlou
representative Agricultural oroaniza.
TONS and Rural Press State Farm
ers' Attitude Toward Railroads.
Want Private Operation.

Private ownership of the railroads
under policy of government regula-
ton which will insure the best possible
service at the lowest cost consistent
with fair returns on money invested in
them is favored by representative
farmer organizations throughout the
country. This policy also is supported
generally by agricultural newspapers
which state emphatically that the
farmers are opposed not only to gov
ernment ownership of railroads, but
also to all naturalization plans.
In a letter to the members of the
United States Senate T. c. Atkeson,
Washington representative Of the Ma
uonal Grange, which is said to be the
largest organization of its kind in the
world, representing more than 1,00O,-
600 farm owners in the United States
states that the agricultural interests Of
the country approve of private owner
snip of the railroads and further de-
ciares that persons purportlng to speak
for the farmers in support of govern
ment ownership are neither farmers
nor representatives of any considera-
BILE number Of farmers
Favor Private Operation.
The Grange" says Mr.. Atkeson,
quoting the official action of his or
ganlzatlon, approves of the general
principles of railroad legislation now
pending in Congress to return the rail
roads to their owners, to bring about
the reorganization of the railroad COM
panies into strong systems with CAPT
talization based on actual value, and
TO create n control commission which
may enforce the superior interest of
lhe public to that of any other interest
IN the operation of railroads as com
mon carriers and effectively protect
he public against exploitation or in
Justice"
Many state and sectional agrlcul-
tural organizations take a similar
HNti4hs ihiAitdtAAti9 dlltt LIt 4NdllOliut
Grange expressed Its attitude toward
the railroad question the American
Farm Bureau, meeting In Chicago, vot-
ed for private operation, and the Ma
tional Farmers Congress, In session at
Hagerstown, Md, voiced like senti-
jnents. The New York State Fedora
ion of County Farm Bureau Organi-
81, T.
farmers went beyond that and joined
he Grange in repudiating the alleged
farmer representatives in Washington,
who said they spoke for an "over-
whelmlng majority of the farmers"
Urge Reasonable Returns.
The railroad policy favored by the
New York State Federation of County
Farm Bureau Organizations was stat
cd In the following resolution:
Whereas, There have been conflict
ing statements published regarding the
attitude of farmers upon the question
Of the future ownership of railways;
therefore be ii
Resolved, That the New York State
Federation of County Farm Bureau AS
sociations, representing 10000 mem
bers, in annual session at Syracuse, n.
Y, December 10, 1919, hereby lndorses
the action of the American Farm Bu-
reau Federation in urging Congress to
promptly return the railways to their
owners under such conditions as will
insure reasonable returns on Z q value
Of the property and reasonable rates of
transportation throughout the coun-
try"
Views Of Farmer Papers.
The American Agriculturist states
edltorially that the farmers are dead
set against" the scheme to enmesh the
farmers in the web of radicallsm."
The Pennsylvania Farmer. discussing
the general demand for private opera
tion of the railroads. says: "It is espe-
cially true of farmers, in spite of the
declaration of a few would be leaders
to the contrary" The Stockman-
Farmer adds:
Farmers almost unanimously ap-
prove the return Of the railroads and
the express companies to their owners
The reason is that farmers as well as
other business men, want service of
these institutions, and they cannot get
such service under public operation as
they can get under the operation of
corporations, which have a direct finan-
oioI iptarast in parforninp n