Newark leader. ([Newark, Ohio]) 1917-1946, 1922-01-20
Farm Products VS.. High
Freight Rates
(By Charles M. Kelley

hands of the public, the railroads Of
the nation could be purchased for
SO, 100000, Glenn E. Plumb, coun-
sci for organized railroad employees,
points out in letter to C. H. Mark
ham, president of the Illinois Central
railroad.
This, Mr.. Plumb says, is just about
half the property value claimed by the
carriers, and more than $4,000, 100000
less than the value given the roads
by the Interstate Commerce Comnis-
sion for rate-making purposes.
This heavy watering of railroads
imposes an unjust and unnecessary
burden of nearly half billion dollars
upon the American public. 1t also
explains why the farmers of the ma
ton are broke and why railroad work
ers are being ground down as respects
both wages and decent working con5i-
tions.
1t also provides a reason for the un-
satisfactory industrial conditions in
this country. The railroads have es-
tablished charges greater than the
traffic can bear. They have made it
cheaper TO burn corn than to purchase
coal. They have forced farmers to
sell the products of a years labor for
less than the cost of carrying them to
market.
In other woros, railroad mana.ye-
ment and the latter's manipulation
have so loaded down trade with trans
portation charges that it cannot move
freely. This is the implication of Mr.
1o44 10 Mo- VII ZhoI
Mr.. Markham took exceptions to
these statements, claiming that rep
resentatives of the workers were at
tempting to discredit railroad man.
ayers in the eyes of their employees.
He called upon the employees of the
Illinois Central to repudiate their
unions and their leaders and place
their faith in managers, who would,
Markham said, be very happy to re-
cord this note of confidence in their
good purposes.
Reiterating in his reply to Mr..
Markham his charge that valuations
so far established by the engineers
of the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion show that the roads are worth
less than half of the sum claimed,
Mr.. Plumb proceeded to give the
market value of stocks and bonds,
which substantiate the appraisement
of the Commission and support
Plumb's statement in every particlar.
AS to the charge that rail managers
are grating on supply contracts,
there is a mountain of evidence in the
records Of the Commission to the eff
feet that number of roads contract
ed for repairs of cars and locomoti, es
and paid concerns in which railroad
officials are interested from four to
six times what the work rendered was
worth.
Seemingly there is an unextinguish-
able supply of the particular brand of
bunk that individuals highly placed
in the government have been ladel-
ing out to the public in lieu of con-
stluctive legislation looking to the re-
| form of intolierable conditions.
An effort was made to lull the work
ers into a sense of security with
gratuitous assurances of solicitude for
their well-being that was to assume
concrete shape in "can't-strike" laws
and industrial courts that were to
tell them what they could and could
not do. The administration, let it be
said to its credit, has frankly and
! boldly told the workers that they need
expect no favors-and they will be
mighty lucky if they get even what is
coming to them in all fairness.
The farmers make up a consider
able portion of the voting population,
and they have been given a deal so
raw that they are kicking almighty
hard against the dealers. The West,
it is said, is in a ferment of political
rebellion, and unless pacificatory dope
IS administered to it in large doses it
is likely to get off the reservation.
Wallace is making arrangements for
a conference on agriculture which
will be held in Washington. To it
has been invited some farm leaders
whose knowledge of farming is con-
fined to farming the farmers. Re-
Gently Senator LaFollette has had
something to say about these self
constituted spokesmen for agriculture
Not long ago they were in a secret
conference with the political lobbyists
Of Big Business organizations and as
sented tc a program that, while help
full to the packers and other trusts,
certainly was not intended to do any
thing for the distressed agriculturist.
With these hand-picked delegates
Secretary Wallace has called in the
Big Trusts that have been astride the
necks of farmers, along with some of
the most odious lobbyists that infest
Washington. This prize collection of
fake fxers is going to cook up a pro-
gram that will be disguised as farm
er's relief, but which in operation will
simply make condions worse. Maybe
some farmers will fall for this mumbo-
jumbo, but not many, if they listen
to what is being said to them by their
true spokesmen. The Iowa Home
stead, one CT the leading farm papers
CT the country, has no illusions about
the Wallace conference. 1t expects
nothing helpful to emanate from a
gathering Of interests that have been
thriving on the miseries Of the farmer
and worker and were instrumental in
creating them for that very purpose.
If the producers of the country are
ever to get relief, they must first de-
mand it at the ballot box. They must
send their own kind of people 20 Con-
gress and establish them in other
places of power. As long as the gov