rilK CAUCASIAN.
. IT.I IMK KVKKV TIIL'llSIlAY,
lif MAUIOX ItLTLF.K,
. V'itir ml Proprietor.
SUHSHIBK.
show this Paper to your neigh
nr ami advise him to sub
rribe. Snlrri)itioii Price Jl.oO per
Year, in Advance.
I'ROK FSSI( )X A L COLUMN .
UT ll- ALLKX,
ATIOIINKV-AT-LAW,
(Joldsboro, N. C.
Will nictii! iii Sampson eounty.
A.
m. lkk, m. d.
I'll YSIClAN,St:i;(;KN AM) DENTIST,
o iirc in bee's Drugstore. je 7-lyr
J.
A. STFA'KXS, M. IX
Physician and Sijuokox,
(Oilice over Post Office.)
flri"Miiy he round at ni,'lit at the;
n-viilt'iitt' of J. II. Stevens on College
Street. je 7-lyr
1 L. FAISON,
I ! A IT 11NKY AND CoUNSKJ.L-
n at Law.
Office on Main St root,
a ill practice in courts ofSampson and
.nlj-iining countie. Also in Supreme
Ciiiat. All husiness intrusted to hiri
lire will reeeive prompt and careful
attention, je 7-lyr
S. THOMSON',
V A ITOKNKY AND CoUNHKLL-
ou at Law.
Oilice over Post Office.
Will practice in Sampson and ad
, . i 1 1 i i i counties. Kver attentive
no I faith to th interests of all
.-li.-nts. je 7-lyr
Lit It.
2j A -' unky and Counskll
iiii at Law.
Office on Wall Street.
Will practice in Sampson, lllarien,
IVmler, Harnett and Duplin Coun
ties. Also in Supreme Court.
I'rompt personal attention will he
z'wvn to all leal husiness. je 7-lyr
I MiAXK LOYLTTE, D.D.S.
I Dkntihtky fEg&k
Ollice on Main Street.
1
Oil'.-rs his services to the people of
i.,' 4 i i.-....,...l.:,
1 1 ii i tin ami li ning . ij iiiiuii
in the line of Dentistry done in the
lxt style. Satisfaction guaranteed.
jsirMy terms are strictly cash.
Don't ask me to vary from this rule.
I low is This?
We offer One Hundred Dollars lie
ward for any case of Catarrh that
cannot he cured by taking Hall's Ca
tarrh Cure.
K. .1. CHENEY A CO., Props., Tole
do, O.
We, the undersigned, have known
F.J.Cheney for the last Hi years,
and helieve him perfectly honorable
in :ill husiness transactions and finan
cially alle to carry out any obliga
tion made by theiriirm.
Wi st A- Tui ax, Wholesale Drug
gist, Toledo, O.
Wai.dixo, Kixxan & Mauvix,
Wholesale Druggist, Toledo, ().
Hall's Catarrii Cure is taken inter
nally, acting directly upon the blood
and mucus surfaces of the system,
l'riee 7;")C. per bottle. Sold by all
Druggists.
mt
Strike- are increasing everyday
At very rapid paces;
Even the lightning, so they say,
1 las struck in several places.
Evening Post.
Epoch.
transition from long, lingering
i i 1 1 fill sickness to robust health
Till!
ita 1 p
m.u k.t an opocii in the lite ot t!r niilivul
uai. Such a lviuarkable event is tiva
uiv! in the memory ami the agency
wli-ivhy thn good health has been at
t uaed is gratefully IiIcmxhI Hence it
i thai ro i inie h is heard in praise of Klec
trir liitters. So many feel they owe
their restoration to health to the use of
I'm- Civat Alterative and Tonic. If you
are troubled with any disease f Kidneys.
I h er or St anaeh. of lonir or short staml-
ii-'. you will Mirely find idiot by use of
I.leetrie Hitters. Sold at uOcanu 1 per
h.'illc at 11. II. Holidays Drugstore.
fair woman doesn't hate the men
oh. no !
That scarcely chimes in with her
pian;
Hut had she her wav there wouldn't
be
In all the world a single man.
The rulidt and the Stage.
Uev. V. M. Slioat. Pastor I'nited
Kiethivn church. Hluo Mound, Kan.,
ays: "I feel it my duty to tell the wha?
wonders Dr. King's New Discovery has
done for me. Mv lungs were Hadlv dis
eased, and mv parishioners thought I
could live onlv a few weeks. I took
live bottles ot Dr. King's New Discoverv
andani now found ami well, caining 20
pounds in weight."
Arthur Love. Manager Loves Funny
Folks Combinatiou, writes: 'After a
thorough trial and cTvincing evidence,
I am confident Dr. K' gvs New Discov
erv for Consumption, b"n' Nem all
and cures when evt-rvthiu.-. lse fails.
The greatest kindness lean do my many
thousand iriends is to urge them t. try
it." Free trial bottles at It. II. Ilolli-
dav's Drug Store, llegular size 50 cts
and 1.00.
There is something annoying about
a glass eye. The man wearing it may
know it's a fraud and still he can't
see thr ugh the fraud.
lbicklen's Arnica Salve.
The best Salve in the world lor Cuts,
l.fiises, Sores, Ulcers, Salt llhcura, Fc-
verSores, Tetter, Chapped Hands, Clnl
Mains, Corns, and nil Sk:n Eruptions,
ami positively cures files, or no pay
required. It is guaranteed to sive per-
ieet satislacticu. or money refunded
I nee 2j cents per box. For sale by
ur. ii. i. Holli day. Clinton, and J
U. Smith, Druggist, Mount Olive, N. C.
"O, Clara, Tom's been ex
yelled from Yal
"You don't tell me so. What
was the matter?"
"He was found studviner ro
litical conomy when he should
have been developing his muscle
for the next boat-race." Life.
fVt No pickpocket can expect to make
vt a .'Uocts of his business until he gets
hia hand in. Binghamton Leader.
VOL. VIII.
- - - .. . . ; i
Till- EDITOR'S CHAIR
HOW THINTIS LOOK FIIOM
OUU STAND POINT.
The Opinion of The Editor and the
Opinion of Others which we
Can Endorse on the Various
Topics of the Day.
Hon. K. p. Flowers, of New
York, ofi'ein an amendment to
the Constitution in tho House
of Representatives not long
since. Tho amendment is in re
gard to the appointment of post
m ister by the Government. That
.VJ,0U( offices now filled by post
masters appointed, is placing
too much ower in the Govern
ment and disposing of a veiy
important matter with the peo
ple in a way not satisfactory to
them. He shows the growth
and development of the post
oilice department. In ita infan
cy, says he, it embraced only 75
offices scattered in a straggling
line along the Atlantic Seaboard
ministring to about 3,000,000
people. Now the number of
offices is 59,000 and t eir popu
lation is 05,000,000. The mat
ter at first so small Is now be
coming alarming. This great
host of postmasters is to be re
placed whenever by the smallest
majority a charge is effected in
the head of the Government.
We see later in the Senate that
Mr. Hoar has introduced a joint
resolution, whi-'h was referred,
proposing a constitutional
amendment making the office of
postmaster elective. The sub
ject is a matter of interest to
every ono and hope the news
papers will freely discuss it.
That mammoth humbug and
swindle, the Louisiana State Lot
tery, has already captured a ma
jority of the State Legislature
and only lacks four votes -if
having the requisite two thirds
vote to re-charter it. Two
months ago no ohb had any idea
that the Lottery had a ghost of
chance of being re-chartered.
The people of the State? are
against the gambling den. But
the members of the Legislature,
whom the people have elected
to represent them are gradually
one by one reaching the con
scientious (?) conviction that the
people don't know what they
want, that the Lottery is a bless
ing to the people but they a1 e
too ignorant to see it. These
same representatives will prob
ably have the cheek tc go home
and be candidates for re-election
and try to convince their consti
tuents, the "dear people." that
the Lottery is a god-send and
that as true representatives they
were bound to vote fo:- it. An
exchange says :
The Louisiana State Lottery will
doubtless be re-chartered. But few
days pass over without reminding
us of the power money has in legis
lation, and what a source of evil it
becomes when used for corrupting
voters either in legislative halls or
at the polls.
The Georgia editor who took
a trip and left his wife to dun
delinquent subscribers, had no
paiticular malice against the
delinquents but he had unlimit
ed confidence in her hustling
properties, and knew that when
she went for a delinquent he
came, not always cheerfully,
but he came all the same.
Wil. Star.
It will be fully six years, it is
now said, before the Govern
ment is through with the publi
cation of the Records of the
Civil War. In all there will be
120 volumes: Thus far 45 have
been distributed. The cost will
of course be great the annual
expenditure being some 300,000.
It will be an important work
wThen finished. -Wil. Messenger.
"Col. Shepard is ari ass," ex
claims a nearby journalistic
neighbor of the Colonel. We
object to this unkind compari
son. It is an uncalled for and
an unprovoked and an unjusti
fiable reflection upon the ass,
which has never done anything
mean enough to be subjected to
such an odious comparison.
Wil. Star.
You can get 100 acres of land
in Samoa for $1.37 and the taxes
will be only 39 cents a year.
H
si;natok ki:ku's ii:fksii
He Tells Why He Voted Against
the Knilroud Commission.
On last Saturday, E. W. Kerr,
Esq., according to previous ap
pointment, spoke at Ingold, N.
C, in the forenoon and at Clear
Run, N. C, in the afternoon, de
fending his record in the last
Legislature. He made the same
speech at both places, to about
fifty or sixty people, which in
substance was as follows:
"A great question, the Railroad
Commission, is beginning to ag
itate the people, and it is for you
to say whete it will end. I vo
ted against it and am willing to
stand here and give my reasons.
Some say that the Railroads
paid me money to vote and work
against Railroad Cornmiss'on.
All I have to say to this is "evil
to him who evil thinks." You
can put me on oath if you whit
to, and I will state that I was
not bribed.
They say that I was instructed
to vote for a Railroad Commis
sion. I was not. I dare any
man from Franklin to Mingo to
say that he ever wrate to me
asking me to support the Com
mission bill. The Alliance says
that they sent :ie up petition
with 1,500 names asking me to
support the bill. All I have to
say to that is that I never re
ceived such a petition, and I
don't believe there was ever any
such petition. If there is any
man in this audience who ever
signed such a petition let him
speak out. At one time when I
was home during the session of
the Legislature, I stopped atln
goJd and there a dozen men,
whom I asked if they wanted a
Commission, said no. I asked a
man who Avent to Raleigh during
the session of the Legislature if
he wanted me to vote for a Com
mission, he said no. Tne 7th
article of the platloi m on which
you nominated men in 1888, de
clared against creating any new
offices, and your county by a ma
jority of 45 voted against put
ting two more judges on the
Supreme Court bench. But they
say that I am a Railroad attor
ney and therefore am with the
Railroads and in sympathy with
what is f or their interest. The
Railroads aLe bcurid to have at
torneys. In 1874 the Legisla
ture passed an Act that you
could sue a corporation by serv
ing summons upon any agent or
official. So you see that the
Railroads are bound to have at
torneys, and I just happened to
be the man they selected for
Sampson county. Suppose a
horse was killed between War
saw and Clinton and notice was
served on the agent at the latter
place that the case for damages
would be tried at 4 o'clock the
same evening. The agent would
telegraph to Wilmington for
counsel, the authorities at Wil
mington would telegraph to
some lawyer at Clinton, say Mr.
Stewart, to appear for them, and
he was to telegraph back that
he was on the other side; then
they might telegraph to Mr.
Faison and he too would tele
graph that he was on the other
side; what would they do ? They
must have a man to attend to
their interest, so they make an
arrangement with some man in
every section to be their attor
ney. They need such a man, so
it is fair and just that they have
attorneys.
There is a cry now for the
farmer to Tiave men who are
friends to represent them in the
halls of legislation. Let us see
about that. T was raised on a
farm, have lived on a farm, and
married a farmer's daughter, so
I am about as deep in the mire
as you are in the mud. I con
trol 1,700 acres of land and have
five plows running. So I am the
farmer's lriend, and whatever I
do for his iuterest is also for my
interest. But because I am a
farmer in ho reason why I should
vote for a law that would injure
the State.
There are three classes of men:
1st. The emotional man. This
class of men can go t o a church
on Sunday, hear a sermon and a
few hymns, shout ard hurrah,
but before Wednesday they lose
the last dad-blamed bit of their
religion.
2nd. There is the prejudiced
man. He shuts his eyes like
a snake at certain times of the
year and is blind. He can't sec
the truth if it is thrust before his
eyes.
3rd. " There is the reasonable
man, and he i3 the kind I wish
to talk to. I believe you are
reasonable men, so I will pro
ceed to five my reasons for vot
ing against this measure.
First let m " ask you a , ques
tion. Can a commission regu
late passenger and freight rates
here ? No. It can do so in
C AU C ASIAN
'uro Domooraoy
CLINTON, N. 0., THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 1890.
Georgia and South Carolina, but
not in North Carolina.
In 1790 oith Carolina went
into the Union and adopted a
constitution, which stood till
1835. Then there were five or
six amendments made, which
are immaterial to the question
under consideration. This con
stitution stood until 18G8, when
the Canby Constitution was
adopted. During all this time,
from 1700 to 18G8, the word
railroad or corporation wa not
in our Constitution. When I
made my speech in Raleigh
against the Railroad Commis
sion, Col. Fuller and Judge
Strcng both came to me and
said that they were ignorant of
the fact that such was the case
till they heard my speech.
Now the Constitution of the
United States says that.no ex
pout facto law shall be passed.
Thereforo every road chartered
in the State prior to 1868, of
which there are ten, could not
be controled by the Legislature.
In 1868 our people saw the de
fect in our Constitution of not
giving the Legislature the pow
er to regulate tqe passenger and
freight rates of railroads and to
prevent discrimination, &c, so
they put in such a clause. The
framers of the Constitution of
Georgia showed more wisdom.
When that State entered the
Union the framers of the Con
stitution, in article 4, section 2,
page 1, gave the Legislature that
po wer,so a commission can reach
all roads in that State. North
Carolina is the only State in tne
Union that did not have a clause
in its constitution giving the
Legislature this power over cor
porations. So the ten old roads,
which are the strongest, cannot
be touched. Then is it right to
pass a commission that would
throw a wet blanket on the new
and weaker roads, in nearly all
of which the State owns an in
terest, while the ten old roads
aie owned almost entirely by
parties who'live in other States.
In the C. F. & Y. V. Railroad,
which runs forty miles through
your county, the Sta e owns a'
150,000 interest. So why should
you wish tojcripple the interests
of the State by putting a wet
blanket on such roads ? In the
charters of these ten eld roads
the rates are fixed at 9 cents per
ton per mile for freight and 6
cents per mile for passengers.
And the Supreme Court says
that such a charter is a contract
and therefore a commission
would have no power to regu
late or prevent discrimination.
You say that the Alliance
wants a commission. Who vo
ted with me against the Com
mission. It is true the Repub
licans voted against it for au
evident purpose, but of the
whole eight De uocrats who vo
ted with me all were members
of the Alliance, with one excep
tion, and he was a young law
yer. White and Hughes, both
prominent men, in the last Leg
islature, said that a commission
would injure the ppople.
I am not againt the Alliance.
The Alliance is more nearly
with me than you suppose. If
I see you about to make a mis
take, is it not my duty to tell
you about it? If I see you go
ing a road and know a bridge is
up, ought I not ask you to stop
and look, and should you then
say that was an enemy ?
Now some one says that the
Commission 13 doing fine in
Georgia, but Texas, the home
of the Alliance, has no commis
sion. I stand here and dare
anyone to contradict me when I
say that the Commission is doing
damage iu Georgia. If any of
you will get a man from there I
will take him around with me
and make him tell the truth
about the Commission. Yes, I
can show you myself that a
commission is grinding the giz
zard of the people of Georgia
I can do it with the last report
of the Railroad Commission of
that State, and this is the thing
that I mashed the life out of
those who were in favor of a
commission in the last Legisla
ture. N
Here railroad passenger fare
ist 3 cents per mile first-clas3,
21 cents per mile second-class.
In Georgia there is no second-
class, and the passenger rates
are 3 cents per mile on the A
roads, 4 cents per mile on the B
roads and o cents per mile on
the C roads. Now the A roads
are those down in the eastern
portion of the State, where it is
level. There are only two roads
down there. So there are only
two roads in the State but what
charge over 3 cents a mile. The
B roads are those up in the cen
tral portion of the State and the
C roads are up in the mountains.
There are more of these two
clashes of roads than any other
kind, so you see that nearly
everybody in Georgia is forced
to pay 4 or 5 cents a mile. So
you see that they pay higher
d wlilto
rates there than we do here,
where there is no commission.
I boldly lay do vn this proposi
tion, that a commission is against
tho people. In Georgia, under
a commission, it cost a child
from five to twelve years of age
half price to travel on a rail
road, here it will not cost him
anything. How is it with freight?
Without going into details, I say
to you here, on my honor, that
the Commission has riised
freights in Georgia one-third
higher than they were before.
In Georgia the railroads aie get
ting rich off of thb Commission.
In this Stte there ae only two
railroads that are paying ex
penses, that is tho Wilmington
& Weldon and the Richmoud &
Danville. The profits of the
former is only 8 per cent, and
the latter 5 per cent. Now do
you object to anybody making
8 per cent, interest or profits.
We all want to and ourht to do
so. In 1879, when Geoigia
passed the commission act, the
railroad property was worth in
round numbers only 9,000,000;
in 1888 it was worth $29,000,00(3,
or three times the amount.
Where did this increase in
in wealth come from? It was
ground out of the people by that
God blessed commission that
7011 say you want. Do you
want it? No. I don't believe
you do.
Now you are ready to ask if
it helps the railroads why are
they opposed to it ? They are
not opposed to ifcf Theywauta
commission. Mr. Watters, who
virtually owns the W. & W.
railroad, went to Raleigh during
the last session of the Legisla
ture and asked me to stop fight
ing the Commission. I asked
him if he thought I was fight
a commission for him. He said
that he thought I might be do
ing so thinking it would be a
tavor to the railroads. , I told
him that I was fighting a com
mission because it would ruin
my people- He said yes, your
people would catch the patch
ing if a commission was passed,
so go ahead. Some say that
there was a lobby of railroad
men and their attorneys in Ral
eigh .during the last Legislature
fighting the commission. The
man who says that telis a lie.
I asked some of the railroad
officials, who happened to be
there, to go up to the capita1
with me, but they naid that a
railroad man was not a free
citizen in North Carolina, that
if they went up to the capital
that every dadblamei little
newspaper in the State would
raise a howl and yell.
I never raw in the Capitol but
one railroad man, that was Maj.
Winder.
Gentlemen, here is the Rail
road Commission bill holding
up the pamphlet that T voted
against, the god-blessed thing
that they say will do sj much
good. There is more devil in
this bill than in a fexa mule.
Yes, gentlemen, it is the
monkey that is so much-talked
about and so little kiuwn about.
There is not a man in this au
dience wh has ever read it.
So don't condemn me till you
know what is iuit. It provided
for three commissioners, one of
whom was to be a Radical. Did
you send Jin to Raleigh to vote
for a. Radical? I never have
done so, and so help me God 1
never will. It requires that no
one of the three should own any
railroad stock or bonds or know
anything about railroads. In
fact the bill required that they
should all take an oath to fiat
effect. Now is that right? Sup
pose that tlia next Legislature
should be composed chiefly of
lawyers and merchants and tuv
were to take up a noiion that
all the troubles of the countrj
were due to the laziness of the
farmers, and they were to pass
a commission to regulate the
farmer and see that he worked
better and got up earlier, and
did not rest so long at noon, and
did not go to town unless he had
business, and that the bill should
say that your bosses, the com
missions, should not own any
land, nor know anything about
farming. Would you like that?
Then don't put a cup to the lips
of the railroads that you are not
willing to put to your own.
Nowjou pass a Commission
the convict will be taken off
from the roads and put back in
the penitentiary, and it will cost
you 250,000 a jear more to ruu
the penitentiary. That is half
as much taxes as you pay. Now.
thereforo if you now pay 10
tax you would then have to pay
15.00.
What will aCommissioc cost?
It will cost you 45,000 a year.
How is that? Well, the Coinmis
sioners would get 2,500 each a
year, making 7,500. A clerk
for them would cost 1,200.
Printing and other incidentals
would sum it up to $15,000. The
fees allowed to the Solicitor and
Attorney-General in the Superi
or and Supreme Cou ts, would
probably amour t to 10,000.
Then each one of these roids
would contest the Commission
before the Supreme Court, and
you could get no lawyer for less
than i,000 a case, so that would
be 20,000, making in all forty
five thousand dollars.
Another objectionable feature
to the Commission is that it
would allow tho Commission to
give a man damages if he gvit a
leg broken or had property
damaged and then too allow
him to go on into the courts and
coJlect more damages before a
jury if he was n it satisfied with
what the Commission allowed
him.
But my last and greatest ob
jection to a Comm.bsion is that
it will cause social equality be
tween the whites and the blacks.
Where there is a Commission
you can't have second-class cars,
but the negroes can ride in tho
same cars with white people. I
was travelling South not long
since. I was asleep, when sud
denly i was waked by tho noisy
and boistrous talking and laugh
ing of a crowd of negroes who
had just gotten into the car. I
asked the conductor what was
the matter? He said, oh, it is
S. C. and tho Railroad Coinmis
sion. He went on to say what a
trreat service I had rendered my
State by saving them from so
terrible a calamity as a Com
mission. I was going to Wash
ington recently and stopped at
Milfred, Va., for a meal. When
I went into the dining-oom I
saw a negro sitting at the table.
I left and did not eat there. I
asked a man if good old Vir
ginia had come to that? He
said that since they had had a
Commission they were getting
used to a great many things.
Th Atlanta Constitution is
gcod authority and here is a re
cent copy stating that negroes
were invited iuto a Democratic
meeting, showing already the
bad effects of a Commission in
Georgia.
Gentlemen, feed a pig and he
will make a hog, and if you put
a Commission on this State
there is no telling to what extent
social equality will go. I will
never vote for a measure that
will have this effect. Now,ulease
excuse a few words personal to
myself. You nominated me for
the Senate in 1872. Then I was
a black-haired youth. To dav I
stand before vou with gray hairs.
Yes, I have grown trray. fiirhtiiiLr
the battles of Democracy for
you, and if now you see fit to
chop my political head, I have
a dying request to make of you.
I'M on my political tombstone,
"He died a white man and fight
ing for the white man's cause."
Some say that this commission
question will tie the rock on
which the Democratic party
will split. Well, if this is so,
then we have come where the
roads divide, and if the party
splits there is no doubt on which
side 1 shall go, it will be on the
white man's side.
See our answer to the above
on second page. Editoii.
15 AD XKWS.
The Saini.soiiiaii Have Got the
Illues Hecaiisc There are Xo
Itlucs.
D. B. Nicholson, Esq., who
came up yesterday to be present
at the meeting of the Demo
cratic State Executive Commit
tpe, tells us that the outlook for
a crop of Sampson BLUES is
very poor, and that in route
quence there is great mourning
in the State of Sampsnn. He
tdls us that the crop of corn,
cotton and rice are excellent, but
that nothing compensates a
Sampsonian for the los of his
who: tleberries. Raleigh State
Chronicle.
iong, lirotner. we never
worry over so small a th ng as a
whortleberry. We have too
many other thing to be proud
Ed.
A PREDICTION.
mere is a track rr:u t very
section of North Carolina tliat
leads to the highest distinction
that any of her son i can attain -
the Executive or Governor ot
our State.Durham has furnished
theCa:r that is heading'that
way and whea the constitution
al time allotted our present
Governor expires, this Cair will
arrive in Raleigh and go into
quarters for four years. Daily
Raleigh Chronicle. J. J. T.
Virginia's first woman phy
cian is Mr?. C. L Haynes, wLo
has recently been elected as
sistant physician at the Western
Lunatic Asy?um after passing a
successful examination before
the State Medical Board.
No. 36.
" I'll V N K 1.1 N COM 1 Tt I K's"
1:1:1. u:r am asksthi: m
noie si:yi:kai. jri:s.
TIONS.
The (JiHvaion art llu-ily An-
Mu. Eimtoiu As you were un
well this week and pressed with
a multiplicity or other matters
you handed me tht following
communicatii.n, requesting mo
to answer the various questions
asked therein. For convenience
wo have written our answtr im
mediately atter each ono of tho
questions :
Fka n k us Townsm 1 r,
Juno 9th, 1890.
Emtok Cuvasiax,
Dear Sir: In your issue of Juno
5th I see &11 article, editorially,
"Answer to K," in which you
say K "took a clipping, vc.t for
a pretext to appear in pri.it on
the Railroad Commission' and
you give IC. a sound thumping
tor leaving the text given him
by the editor and straying Into
legalities. I suppose that both
the editor and K desire the pub
lic to pass upon this subject and
in order that I, as one humble
member of that public, so dear
to every political heart, may
understand tho true issue to bo
submitted, beg to ask you a few
questions suggested by your ar
ticle, with Ihe Loxo that your
replies will be responsive to the
spirit and letter of these ques
tions and not subject to tho
charge of "sophistry" or an ''in
tenti ui to mislead the public.
To call your attention to the
parts, I quote from your article.
"A commission would stand as
a vigilance committee not only
to see that the law was executed
and that there was no discrimi
nation, but also to report charges
that were too high.
"What authority or legal
power would tne commission
have to enable it to do this?"
Anasver V Railrcal Commis
sion would nave lust Mich
authority and leal powers as
the Legislature in its wisdom
should confer upon it. Beyond
doubt the Legislature could
fiame a bill that would confer
unjust and unwie powers upon
the co ..mission. And they
could also frame one tiiat would
be constitutional and of great
advantage to the country.
2nd, " hat Law would it in-
force?"
Answer Vuch laws now exist
ing or which may hereafter x-
ist or come within Its jurisdi;-
tion. Tbe question is absurd.
As well object to Magistrates
and ask what law they woul 3
enforce.
'When and how would it en
force the law"?
Answer. As to the "when'
our friend "Franklin" is ex
ceedingly ignorant for a lawyer.
Wheu a law is enacted a clause
is usually added to the effect
tlut "this act shall be in force
from and after its ratification"
or the act itself fixes the date
upon which it shall go into
opeiation. If nothing is naid
as to when the act shall take
effect, the C 1e, section 2862,
provides that it shall, In that
case, go into effect thirty days
after the adjournment of the
Legislature. Ah to how the
Commission would enforce the
law we suppose they would do
so with fairness to the people
as well as to the rail roads and
just here is the secret of the
great kick which the rail roads
are making, through tl eir pa d
attorneys, against the Commis
sion. They remind us of the
Irishman who employed a liw
yer to defend hi ui for Larceny.
The lawyer told his client
that he would seft that ha got
ju.tice. The lii-hman icplieJ:
"Don't do that; fait. that' just
what I don't wait." . fair Com
mission i. jmt what the rail
roads don't want.
4th. "Would the Commission
go into the :aw con U or would
ths.'. matUrs be tried before
the Coinmis ion as a vigilance
coaiii ittee?"
Answe: Thc'bill c. eating the
Commi-s on would povide for
the liianmr cf Its operation
We maysuppose that questions
of law would be tried aud e
ter ined by the Comm ssion it
self with th- r.u'ht of appeal to
iu - oiijh;iiij . ou I. OlOUlU IS-
SUeS of fact arise in any cise.
proper 1 1 be tr ed by a ju.y, the
Commission would frauie issues
covering the disput-d facts and
send their to the Superior Court
of any county most convenient
to the witnesses, and there tho
case would be tried, just like any
other case, by a jury. What
could be fairarthan this? A
similar practice prevails incase?
tried before the clerks of the
Superior Cou its, and such was
the practice ' in the old equity
courts.
oth. "J f tried before the com
mittee wonld a jury trial be
given ?w- -
liHNK
7
UKATir? tnatgr nc tui-.
KN!..f.( IIS fuaaj u o. uc,
ltnVl'l tn a oV.l t -..
lIN'l' K manr a Ul tiMr.
riKstIUVt t.fciiv a Ur;c ?uiic-.
TurtiNt .UrtUf in J j-uUr
iw -ojlr mrr mtixun l o J.
Answer -A jury trial vsotiM
b given for all issues of fart,
according to the method indica
ted umler the fourth question,
or in any other manner which
the Ixgilature In its wisdo-o
might provid.
tith. "Is not & trial by jury
guarantied by the CoiiIilut;oit
of our Statu to every one in th
trial of every queti..u involv
ing either peis-mil lilwrty, per
sonal security, or the enjoyment
of private property?"
Answer I'Le (MisUtution.
Article I, 9cc. l, provide that
"no person shall bt convicted of
any crime but by the una'iiuious
verdict of a jury of go. hi and
lawful men in open court."
Secti .n lt, Article I. provld-M
that "in all controve.-sie at law
rosiec.tln property the an.-ient
mode of trial by Jury U one of
the best hecuri lies of this ri.'ht-
of the people and ouht to re
maiu sacred and inviolable." Is
sues of fact are tried by a Jury
as we have before explained and
issues of law are trUd by the
judge and would be tried under
the Commission bill by the Com
missioners. No one proposes to
deny to railroads the risjht to a
jury trial.
7th. Who would coustltute
this CjnmUsiou and how elect
ed ?"
Answer We are not in the
prophesying business and cannot
possibly tell who will constitute
the Commission. We suggest
that "Franklin" turn a cup, a
we have seen 1 Id women do, and
try to find out by locking iu (hit.
Tho first set of commissioners
would probably be appointed by
the Legislature and after that
elected by the people.
8th. "What would be the cost
of the commission annual lyuid
who would pay it ?"
Answer We suppose there
would be three commissioner
with a wilsry of about $2,0:Xi
each. This would make $,ooo,
and perhars a clerk for about
$1,000 and incidental expenses.
A very efficient commission need
not cost more than $15,0)0 annu
ally. Tho cost would of cour.-o
be paid primarily by tho State,
but the fines and penalties col
lected from the rail roads for vi
olation of the law, Arc, would
go into the State Treasury, and
in our opinion would much more
than defray the cost of the com
mission, so that tho tax which
the railroads would be compell
ed to pay would be clear gain
to the State. The gain miht
be applied 'to tho education of
the people so that the corpora
tion could not befool and op-
i ress tharn as they have In the
past.
9th. "How could tho Commis
sion know there was no discrim
ination ?'
Answer The proper form of
the que.'tion is: How could the
Commission know there wa dis
crimination? Those injured by
the discrimination would make
complaint. Tho Commission
could coinp.l a system 1 pub
lished late from whicli -jvery
man could know what he ought
to be charged and if more was
charged he could recover dam
ages with such suitable fines and
penalties as the law might im
pose. The same objection might
be made against having any laws
for the punishment of crime
10th. ' To whom would the re
ports be made wheu charges
were too high, and would the
Commission's say so be final as
to what were too high?"
Answer The report would be
made to the Commission or any
member thereof. Doubtless
J here would be proper leirisla
li.m fixing freight aud pxs sen -.ates
or at least indicating the
principles upon which such rates
would be fixed, and such a ss.iy
would be final aud be no
.reater hardship upon the rail
roads than is the "says." '-thou
slialt not steal."
"Franklin" now proceeds as
' llows :
These questions all seem to me
to be absolutely neeesstry ones
111 passing upon this isme by
ihe people, and I eonftss suggest
a number of others equally diffi
cult for me to solve, but I do
not wish to make my enquiries
so lengthy that thi article may
go into the waste basket instead
of the paper. I hope the editor
can find both time and space to
answer these questions fully for
I am fully satisfied that th
question of transportation is one
of vital importance, to two
classes of every com inanity, v'z:
the farmer and ihe merchant,
and I am also satisfied that there
is now aod always has been dis
criminatio.i in favor of some
and against others, not alone by
the Railroad, but almost every
one these are sometimes inten
ded and sometimes accidental -as
an Illustration, Mr. Editor,
Do you-audidly believe K. has
ha a railroad ? or that he knows
Continued from Second Pajje.
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