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Show 1 RAILWAYS AS GOOD CITIZENS The other day the writer was summoned before the railroad commissioners of this state as a witness against the proposed bus line between Davenport and Council Bluffs on Highway 32. In tiie course of the questioning, it was suggested that this ind'vidual was especially friendly to the railroads. We admitted the statement, and we have no reason to apologize for our stand on the question. The railroads have contributed more to the development of this nation than all other enterprises combined. The railroads rail-roads have invested more in capital stock, in materials of one sort and another, in labor of all classifications, and in tangible, permanent improvements than any other business in the n.ition. The railroads have revealed the most intense faith in the future of the country, and instead of setting up programs pro-grams of retrenchment when times were slow or hard, they have extended old lines, built new lines, added new equipment, equip-ment, erected r.ew terminals, laid new steel, employed more labor, and developed more resources. It is true that in the old days the railroads asked concessions con-cessions of the communities which they passed. But the concessions granted yesterday have been paid for a thousand-fold- The railroads have repaid in a type and quality of service without which the nation had been prostrated in the times of supreme need. The railroads made possible the wide education of all the people. Without the transportation facilities of the railroads rail-roads we would be still limited to the weekly newspaper and the old-fashioned magazine. There could be no wide distribution distri-bution of the daily newspapers, and the intimate inter- -change of business would still be an idea, did not the transportation trans-portation system of the railoads eliminate East and West and North and South. The service of the railroads has gone on so quietly and certainly and efficiently that the people have come to take it all as a matter of course. I have heard preachers give thanks in their prayers for presidents, and governors, and newspapers, and armies and navies and rains, and sunshine, and a lot of other things, including crops and hogs and cattle and prosperity. But up to this time, I've never heard a clergyman raise his voice to heaven and lead his people into a prayer of thanksgiving for the railroads. Rather, the people have had quite the contrary attitude toward the railroads. No other enterprise in the nation has been blamed for as many woes as have the railroads, and political wrath has never been vented more cruelly than upon the railroads. But in spite of it all, the railroads kept going straight ahead, keeping the faith, giving the very best service, and dealing kindly and generously with the public- The railroads have given the most generous support to agriculture. If I had my way now I'd turn the problem of the farmer over to a group of railroad men and it would be a safe bet that the problem would be solved. The railroads have spread the gospel of better livestock, of diversified farming, of better tillage, of dairying and poultry breeding, of better homes and communities, and of public health. They have co-operated in bringing the markets of the world close to the producers of wealth, and have spared neither time, money nor brains to make the farmer a king in his realm. I'm certainly friendly toward the railroads. If I want to go somewhere they'll take me safely, swiftly, and in a style not inferior to that enjoyed by royalty. They'll insure my life and well-being and the charge will be less than it would cost me to drive an automobile. They'll take me day and night, through all kinds of weather, and the direction matters not at all. They'll furnish me with bed and meals en route, and every courtesy and privilege will be accorded me. I'm friendly toward the railroads because they are the most cordial and sympathetic co-operators in the community building enterprise- They help us maintain our schools, they help us maintain our streets, they pay largely toward laying water and sewer mains, they keep their own property in the best possible physical condition, and they stand ready to meet every community fairly on the subject of community welfare. They maintain a goodly payroll in every community they serve, and they pay their bills promptly and without haggling. I certainly like these railroad boys, and I think we'd all be better off if we endeavored to plan our business ventures on systems similar to theirs. I like them because they are not a bunch of lily-handed never-sweats. They toil at their jobs. They'll transport anything any-thing from there to here and vice-versa. They don't make a fuss if the freight is dirty and smelly. They don't holler if it is heavy and hard to handle. They don't complain if it is shipped either local or carload. I'm for them. And as long as I'm in my right mind I'm going to give them all the support I can. I'm thinking what a heck of a fix we'd all be in if the railroads decided to quit and let the bus lines have all the transportation business. Dexter (Iowa) SentinaL |