Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Feb. 15, 1906, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
1 T THFFEC AR Vol. 14, UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, CHAPEL HILL, N. C, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1906. No. 1 OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION.. DIALECTIC WINS SOPH-JUNIOR. Spirited Contest on .Government Ownership of Railways Won by the Affirmative. The annual Soph-Junior debate between the Di and Phi societies took place in Gerrard Hall Friday . night, before a good-sized audience. The query was: "Resolved, That the United States government should own and operate the rail roads." The affirmative side was presented by the Di representatives, Messrs. B. F. Reynolds, 'OS, and Roby C. Day, '07 and the negative by the Phi. debaters, Messrs. Oscar R. Rand, '08, and W. A. Jenkins, '07. The president of the debate was Mr. J. S. Kerr and the secre tary, Mr. K. S. Stewart, both of the Philanthropic society. The iuderes were: Dr. T. J. Wilson and Professors W. I). Toy and Col lier Cobb. The debate was one or the sort that you like to hear. Each speak er leaped into the fight with zeal and earnestness and stayed in until the end. The speeches showci power of analysis, ability of presen tation and, in some cases, swiftness of repartee.. At the conclusion of the debate, the judges returned their decision in favor of the affirm ative. Mr. B. F. Reynolds was the lirst speaker for the affirmative, and some of the poynts he made follow: Government is the expouent of our social and economical life, and being such, it is bound by its na ture to protect its citi.eus indus trially as well as politically. It is also the proper business of gov ernment to develop all the national resources and to promote those in stitutions upon which the social, political and industrial welfare of society most vitally depends. Gov ernment in its organic capacity can assume control of an industry upon two conditions: First, there must be industries in which comprehen sive social interests are involved; second, there must be industries in which social evils arise as the result of unregulated private administra tion. The speaker next showed that railway transportation is a function of government. First, in its legal relation, in its constitutional war rant, which has already been exer cised in the purchase and operation of the Panama railroad; second, in its analogy to public highways the sole justification of its erection and existence; and, third, in its comprehensive social and economic interests in that our civilization and our very existence itself de pends directly upon the railroads. The railroads, which possess al most the exclusive control of the in tercourse of the country, including the conveyance of persons and ev ery necessity of life, the service of the postoffice, and the movements of the troops, have none of the quali ties, and ought to have none of the privileges, attaching to private com mercial establishments; therefore it would be an outrageous error to regard the American railways as business ventures important to none but the shareholders; they, on the contrary, involve interests social, political and industrial of the great est magnitude; and, in short, it is incumbent upon a government of the people, by the people and for the people to ov, n and operate such an industry. Mr. O. R. Rand, first speaker for the negative, presented this line of defense: The essential difference between a democratic and a paternal govern ment lies in exalting the individual and encouraging individual initia tive. Paternal governments are characterized by governmental ini tiative. This spirit of individual enterprise has been the greatest factor in our rapid industrial devel opment. It brought forth our splendid system of railways. Gov ernment ownership and operation would deaden individual initiative and lead to paternalism. , By concentrating enormous power in the hands of the Federal govern merit, the ownership and operation of the railways by the government would lead to centralization. In the United States the powers of government are divided between the Federal, State, and local govern ments. The Federal government has authority to regulate inter State commerce, while the States have power to regulate intra-State commerce, it tiie nation tried to operate the railroads it would come in conflict with and override the State's powers, thus concentration greater power in its own hands. Furthermore, the railroads would of necessity become a political issue and political corruption would ensue. Transportation is not a function of a democratic government. In dustry is a function of an individual. Anything which produces wealth is an industry. Transportation is a factor in the production of wealth iu that it gives to articles place utility. It is therefore, an industry. The proper position of the govern ment toward its industries is to regulate, not to own and operate. Mr. R. C. Day, of the Di society, second speaker for the affirmative, in part: I propose to show you that gov ernment ownership and operation ire both practical and necessary. Iu the first place the purpose of Federal railroad ownership and operation would be to furnish, at least necessary expense, the most efficient service to the greatest pos sible number, and thereby strive to promote the entire industrial and social welfare. Federal ownership would provide a national railroad department, employing the most responsible operatives through a branch of the civil service, and thereby promote a give better service? strong, unified service to all classe of people and of industry, an linpar tial service, since the fundamenta principle of government service em braces the "square deal. In the second place the corpora tion operates its road for the accu mulation of wealth. In pursui of this purpose the public welfare when inconsistent with it, is con stantly neglected. The corpora tions resort to discriminations, re bates, disregard of law, public bribes, and through these to re straint often to the ruin of persona business initiative as is shown by abundant evidence. Finally government ownership and operation will remove these evils, which for over thirty years of at tempted government regulation tin der private control has grown more serious, by substituting the one government policy of most efficient and thorough service instead of the personal selfish purpose of the pri vate corporation. Since the cause should be reniov ed to cure the disease and as a more absolute private monopoly cannot be expected to bring that result, gov ernment operation only can be ex pected to remove the dangers and at the same time provide a strong, uni fied, and impartial system of travel and transportation. Mr. VV. A. Jenkins, for the Phi lanthropic society, closed the first round, speaking along the following ines: If the proposed system excelled he present one it would have to give lower rates and better service. Could the government give lower rates? At the very lowest estimate the government would have to issue seven and a halt billion dollars' worth of bonds to purchase our rail roads. The annual interest on this immense debt at 4 per cent would le $300,000,000. The net profits of the railroad business last vem imounted to $188,000,000, or $112,- 000,000 less than the interest on the bonds which the government would lave to issue. The annual deficit would have to be drawn from pub ic taxation, else the government, nstead of lowering rates, would lave to increase them. Could the government give better services.' the annual interest on the bonds, as already seen, would ic $300,000,000 per year. After the dividends, amounting to $188,- 000,000 were declared last year here were between $92,000,000 and $93,000,000 set aside for improve ments and extension. Granted that the government would give the same rates that we now have, and make the usual amount of profits and surplus for improvements and extension, it would first have to pay the interest on those bonds before allowing anything for improvements i ml extensions; but the profits, plus the surplus, would not pay the in- erest on the bonds by $20,000,000. How then could tho - - ' ' V. II Ilk 1 A DRAMA IN ONE ACT. Wherein Bill McDade & Company, Sleep Dispellers,l)o Their Dally Stunt Conversation as a Test of Lung Power. Scene: any one of one hundred rooms in the South, Old Fast and Old West; the tune: some time in the tiny hours just before dawn any old morning in the year. Darkness and intense silence prevail and the inmates are ' sleeping the sleep of the sleepy. Suddenly the sound of a pump vigorously manipulated breaks forth. For a half a minute it continues and then a blood-curdling sound, half shout of triumph, half roar of defiance "greets the ear: 'H-a-a-a-r-d luck! Ii-a-a-r-d luck!" It strikes the eardrums of the slum bering ones and converts their peaceful dreams into nightmares. They toss restlessly as if in the grasp or some insatiable demon. Again comes the cry, "H-a-a-a-r-d luck !" This time it is taken up and answered from other portions of the campus in varying words but with unceasing vociferousness. A Babel of soun ds in which each voice seems striving to drown all others ensues. (The sleepers toss more feverish y. One half-opens his eyes.) The pump appears gradually to ecomc the center of the sound radia ions. Bursts of Satanic laughter ollow sentences shouted at the top of the speakers' voices. (The other sleeper now opens his eyes, l he lirst nan-raises liimselt on his elbow.) The pump is now ceasing to be the center of the group of voices, which is scattering again to differ ent parts of the campus, but the conversation is being continued with unabated vigor. Ouestions and inswers, satiric comments punctua ted by appreciative merriment are mrled back and forth. As the dis tance between the parties to the conversation increases, a reserve of ting power is called into play, which overcomes this disadvantage. Suddenl7 the conversations close or a brief space. Both slumberers are now wide awake. "What was that?" asks one, apprehensively. "Confound those loud-mouthed coons!' cries the other, hotly. "How in thunder and by all that's eternal ! !! Curtain. Furthermore, Government em ployees would not render efficient service, it directly appointed ov the government, they would be changed whenever a new party came into power. If some scheme of ivil service examinations were adopted, how could you test the fit ness of one million, six hundred thousand employees, representing every degree of intelligence from a pike-driver to a railroad president? The rejoinders were apt and witty.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 15, 1906, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75