The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1920-01-22
would purchase only about one-half
Of mOdoru locomotive

would purchase only about one-half
Of a modern locomotive.
Including the capital expenditures
which have been made by the govern
ment in the past two years the aver
age capitalization Of all American rail
including everything from the big ter
minal to the last spike. is about $780,
600. Railroad authorities estimate that
/ the railroads could not now be dupli-
Gated for less than s150,000 per mile.
One authority points out that first
class concrete and asphalt highway
/ today, just bare road, costs about
$4,000 a mile.
John Sharp Williams is sage
among senators. He came to Wash
ington from Mississippi in the days
when the stars and stripes were still
distasteful to his Confederate views.
But like multitudes of others OF the
Southland he has come to be so in
tensely loyal to the Union, and its in.
stitutions, that the decline of any fea-
ture OF our government is painful 10
him. The Honorable John Sharp was
the democratic leader in the house for
years, and then he came to the SEN
ate after a brief spell spent on his
farm. Now he Is going to retire vol
UNFAIRLY, for the reason that he gives
that he has long since lost interest
in the ordinary machinery of politics" ."
To make his point clear he says: IL
condemn and despise it."
On an important occasion when the
water power measure was under con-
sideration Senator Williams called the
attention OF the senate to the fact that
eleven senators had listened to the
argument, and he commented: This
is a fair sample OF the utility Of the
United States senate to the people Of
the United States. Eleven senator's,
Ave on one side and six on the other
side, represent the two great parties
here who are undertaking to determine
very important industrial PROPOSE
tions. Two additional republican sena-
totrs came in at this point in Mr..
Williams's speech, and he called atten"
ton to their presence, and then went
on to say that the attendance indicated
that "this is about the way the United
States senate, the fifth wheel in the
government OF this country, Is carry
ing itself 1t is not paying any atten'
ton to its public business; ! am not
paying any attention to mine as
member OF this august body; nobody
else is. Old Benjamin Franklin was
about right when he said this was the
fifth wheel and ought to be dispensed
with. The American people are grad
ually rising to the height Of demand
ing the abolition OF the United States
, senate simply because the United
: States senate does not function; i
e does not operate. Do you know Mr
= President, | feel almost tempted Il
o demand the presence Of quorum II
$ order to determine the pending propo
s sition? I will not do so, because tha
l. would be unclublike, and I am a mem
:, Der Of this club"
s. Facts About Sugar" edited by I
$ M. Mayo, is the leading publication II
d the country, and it is regarded as tn
particular friend of the domestic ST
gar producers. Under the heading
Il "The Blight OF Government Control.
v Mr.. Mayo says, editorially: "The eS
). perience of many years has demon
e strated that when sugar gets into pol
I tics or when politics gets into suga
e it is the sugar industry that suffers.
g Mr.. Mayo takes hope in the raising @
"The Blight" and continues: "Unde
government control American suga
" production has not progressed, but
Il is to be hoped that the announcement
e OF a policy OF noninterference by tn
n government during the coming yea
IL will be made sufficiently definite an
t. authoritative to remove, in part a
If least, the sitting influence OF cor
tineud power to control"