The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1921-06-17
Government Needs a Doctor
Not a Propagandist

Not Pr0pagandls
This office is in receipt of a pri
vate letter commencing the editorial
of April 25 relative to the national
industrial problems.
Now, this letter came from the Of
fee of the Committee of Forty
Eight. This committee seems to be
the residue of the body of men who
met last fall in the city of st. Louis,
whose business it was to make the
two old political parties forswear all
their un-American and unprincipled
practices. The meeting resulted in
Babel of tongues and they all scat
tered except few l. w. w.
There seems, however. to be an eff
fort to preserve the original ideas in
the movement, the principle one of
which is government ownership of
the American railways. The Com
mercial admits that the two old par
ties are guilty of many. many, sins,
and that they deserve. both of them,
to be condemned for breaking faith
with the people. even unto bribery
and corruption. With this admission
we also confess to having scored the
national Congress and administra-
tions, both of them, for political
knavery, graft and most all the other
crimes i'll the category of politics.
We did this, but God forbid that we
should ever have to condemn either
of them for government ownership
of the American railways.
OF all the monumental. mistakes of
republican government that would be
the browning blunder. If we are to
vote twenty billions of dollars to the
owners of the railroad securities and
sell bonds to do 1t in order to own
the railroads it will cost us, with the
present war debt hanging over us,
forty billions of dollars altogether to
float the bonds. Capital would thero-
fore clear twenty billions, because it
is hardly possible TIE bonds could be
sold for more than fifty cents on the
dollar. In tho payment of the origi-
nal twenty billions the Government
would no, doubt be giving capital an
extra bonus of something under ten
billions. That thirty billions is then,
in the name of doing something won
derful for the American people, the
first crack out of the box.
Next, the Committee of Forty
Eight is going to organize the sys-
tenn of American railways so that
the people who own them could, with
government management, operate
them at cost No doubt about
it, but what about the cost?
First. we must acknowledge that
model system could be worked out.
1t would be a regular automatic,
chain system, with duplication re-
duced to minimum and the distri-
button of rolling stock and construc-
tion work handled like clock work,
wheel within a wheel, all working
together with complete harmony 1t
sounds grand. Red tape rules and
every fellow has his place. If he
doesn't do but an hours work day
he cannot be used in any other de-
partment. That, however, is but a
very small objection to the system.
But! (And that word covers ev-
erything almost.) The Committee OF
has put the two old po-
Iitical parties on their good behav-
ior, but~nas the leopard changed his |
spots? With this big government
owned industry there is an additional
patronage of two billions year. Do
you suppose with the red tape and {
he flesh pots that politicians will not
reate still an additional patronage to {
operate these roads. If you don't you S
ire very credulous. Do you suppose
hat communities won't do as they q
re doing now with the U. S. Navy
skiing for appropriations for naval /
tations at the mouth of every inlet.