The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1922-02-09
THE STATE MUST LIVE

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Those communities which kind prov
idence blesses with an abundance to !
ship, and leaves little for them to buy, /
must pay greater freight rate on
their outgoing abundance than on the !
much smaller volume of goods which !
suffice to cover their needs. This is !
the law of life of the railroads; if OPP
Grated by the government, or if ope-
rated as now. |
Those sections in and about large
cities consume a much greater ton
mage of goods than they ship; no hu-
man law may change that fact, for
that is fixed by the laws of life. Thus
large cities send away empty cars by
the million, which fact puts a cost on
| the public to move empty cars, which
| cost can be reduced by making lower
rates from such cities to encourage
manufacturing there; thus increasing
the earnings of the railroads at no
cost to rural production, but for the
common good of all classes.
The railroads are part of our ma
tional life, and for them to live and
adjust rates fairly to all shippers
quick action is necessary; as ten mill
lion boxes of oranges may be frozen
in one night in California, or in Flor
| ida; drouth in the west, suspension of
large mines, or great shrinkage in
exports, should be reflected in a few
weeks In changed rail rates, if we are
to follow the rules of life in sustain
ing that which is a part of our nation
al life, viz: the railroads.
| Increase in rail freights should oc-
cur at once upon any great increase in
wages, or railroad supplies; for in
thus Immediately applying the rule of
life to themselves they do less harm
to the public, as high wages and high
prices indicate the time when the peo-
pie are best able to pay high rates.
Strange, indeed. it is that neither
our Interstate Commerce Commission,
nor any state railroad commission
holds these views. That such distin-
guished bodies of men should dissent,
might lead me to think that dream,
but time, since 1915 and 1916, shows
that they were dreaming in those
years. Since then the law of life
arises, as it must ever do, to rebuke
those who have tried to circumvent,
or stay, its sure processes.
Almost all intelligent men we meet
are now agreed that our government
| al agencies, above named, committed
most far reaching economic plumbers
in not allowing rate increases in 1915
and 1916, when we were flush with
war prices. The economic effect and
cost of those blunders far outweighs,
as burdens to society, all its money
losses, inflicted since 1915, by those
who now wear stripes.
I The distinguished men on these sew
eral commissions of ours were honest,
but they were politicians, and they
knew the law of political life. We
would probably have put them out of
office if they had increased rates in
1915. So in 1921 when we are not
able to stand increases in rates the
law of life circumvents the 1915 cir
-tcumvention.
We may not hang the kaiser, for all
lare guilty. No one party, or group
of men, is responsible for this COM
plete mismanagement of our affairs,
but we are all guilty of fragrant mis-
Iuse of our power over the railroads.
1t does show, however, the folly of
: too much governmental regulation.
4 Abusive language should never be
used; it Injuries and wounds our state
. to employ it against our public men;
! though rebuke them we may, and we
q must.
81 Millions were spent about 1916 for
e our government to fix it's own values
q of all railroads, so if we would now
| fix the maximum rate of dividends tc
!, be paid to their stockholders, on oul
!. own valuation, the water in all then
I I stocks would be separated at once.
e By controlling the plans of organi
!. zation, methods of physical operation
the payment of dividends and the
e larger salaries, and presenting re
n bates, the public should thus have al
: the regulations of railroads which i
y can afford to buy at the present cos
of lawyers and other parasites.
ri Our nation must now pay out II
a each seven years an amount abou
:; equal to one-tenth of its entire annua
4, savings in rate regulation alone, which
IS thirty years trial now proves does u
n more harm than good.
1t is estimated that our entire PEG
pie save five billions per year, or tina
we add that much annually to our ma
tional wealth; not in money, bu
n property of all kinds.