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Jackson Progress - Argus Published Every Friday. J. DOYLE JONEB, Editor and Pub. Subscription $1 a Year- Entered as second-class matter at the post office at Jackson, Ga. - Telephone No. 166. Official Organ Butts County And the City of Jackson. NOTICE Cardß of thanks will be charged at the rate of fifty cents, minimum for 50 words and less; above 50 words will be charged at the rate of 1 cent a word. Obituaries will be charged for at the rate of 1 cent a word. Cash must ac company copy in all instances. Don’t forget to put in a good word for the county fair. Ask an editor v’hat is the great est town in the state, and he’ll tell you Decatur, of course. What has become of the old fashioned fellow that took his bath only on Sunday mornings? Felder and Eichelberger are calling each other names and for once they are both probably right. You help yourself, you help the community, you help everybody when you patronize home institu tions. All candidates for governor have opened up headquarters. Now let them open up some pep and ginger. It is nothing short of remark able how quick Carranza cooled off after the “Fighting Fifth” got warmed up. The Georgia editors are testing the capacity of their stomachs and the hospitality of Decatur this week. Both are ample. Nothing is too good for the boys at the front, and the folks back home will see to it that they are remembered in a substantial manner. Now that it is a five-legged institution, isn’t it about time that Commissioners Howell and An derson quit kicking the Dixie highway ’round? The “Dollar Dav” edition of The Statesboro News is one of the best put out this season. The paper was full of timely informa tion about the “State of Bulloch.” and reflected credit upon the progressive editor. We’re in favor of conscripting an army of those who sneer at 'the national guard, and let these stay-at-home “patriots” have their inning with the greasers.— Jackson Progress-Argus. That’s business.—DeKalb New Era. It would at least cure a lot of sore heads. One of Uncle Sam’s laws re quires a barrel to hold three bush els. The law was made to keep swindlers from sending out two and a half bushels of potatoes, apples or other truck and calling it three bushels. A law ought to be made to make the woo 1 deal ers deliver a full cord of wood when they take pay fer a eerd. —Valdosta Times. PROPOSED NEW CIRCUIT The bill recently introduced by Senator E. M. Smith, of McDon ough, to create anew Superior Court Circuit composed of the counties of Monroe, Butts, Henry and Clayton, and to be christen ed the “Indian Spring Circuit,’’ seems to have met the strong approval of the Henry County Weekly and the Forsyth Adver tiser. But the Griffin News and Sun says that they are just nat urally “agin it,’’ and so are we. The business of the Stone Mountain Circuit appears to be moving along in a smooth, just and business like manner under the present Judge and Solicitor. And, speaking for Clayton, the dockets are comparatively clean and it requires less than a week twice a year in which to hold our court, and we cannot see wherein it would benefit the county to have four sessions. We feel at home where we are we thank you. So please count us out of the new circuit. Jones boro News. THE DIXIE HIGHWAY Bulloch Times: One institution that has occu pied the public attention almost incessantly for the past year or longer is the Dixie Highway com mission. Originating in the mind of somebody somewhere, the Dixie Highway seemed to assume definite shape so far as Georgia was concerned when Gov. Slaton, before retiring from office, ap pointed Editors Howell and An derson, of the Atlanta Constitu tion and Macon Telegraph, re spectively, to represent Georgia. Then the wire-working began. Hither and yonder meetings were held to select the route through Georgia of the great highway, and the commissioners were fe ted and banqueted until their sides fairly bulged. Finally, af ter a season of suspense never before witnessed, two sets of twins arrived, when eastern and western routes were recommend ed both north and south of Macon by the commissioners. Then came the task of selecting the eastern prong of the route be tween Macon and Jacksonville, and it was necessary to bring an other twin—naming a route by Waycross and one by Savannah. Thus Georgia was blessed with five Dixie Highways. Having been thus favored, the question arose, “What are you going to do with it?” The answer generally has been “Nothing.” Asa re sult of this answer, as well as due to lack of judicial fore sight on the part of the Georgia commissioners at the outset, the weeding out process has com menced. Mention was made last week that the eastern prong of the North Georgia route, which leads through the city of Jackson, had been abolished bv action of the Highway commissioners. So far as we are aware, all the routes could be abolished without detri ment to any community, and without greatly disturbing the minds of the people who pay to build and maintain the public roads of the state of Georgia. Commenting on the abandon ment of the route through the town of Jackson, the Progress of that city says: “The announcement does not occasion surprise or alarm, how ever, for the same amount of travel will be secured over this route as heretofore. Butts coun ty has the good roads and the at tractions to offer and the tourist travel will continue to be large. * • * The Dixie High Freight Rate Discriminations Do Exist in Georgia The railroads of Georgia hare suggested for the consideration of the Railroad Commission of Georgia, at the hearing on August 17, a system of rates that it is be lieved will eliminate the discriminations now existing between the cities and towns in Georgia. There are approximately two thousand railroad stations (cities and towns) in Georgia. About sixty of these cities and towns are accorded what are known as “bas ing point rates,” which means that these comparatively few points enjoy lower rates than the other nineteen hundred and forty points. The rates between these comparatively few basing points are lower than the rates between intermediate points and lower than for like hauls in other directions. The basing point system has been condemned by the Federal Congress, the In terstate Commerce Comission, the Railroad Commission of Georgia and the authorities of other States. In their desire to retain the advantage they have enjoyed, a considerable number of these sixty favored larger cities and towns (basing points) are opposing a freight rate revision in Georgia. The railroads have been put on notice by the Supreme Court of the United States and the Interstate Commerce Commission that they must harmonize state and interstate rates. In the Shreveport case, the Supreme Court of the United States held: “The power to deal with the relations between two kinds of rates as a relation lies exclusively with Congress. It is manifest that the State cannot fix the relation of a car rier’s inter and intrastate chargee without directly interfering with the former, unless it rim pi j follows the standrad set by the Federal authorities.” The Interstate Commerce Commission, pursuant to an Act of Congress, has order ed the elimination of the basing point system. T* conform to the requirements of this order the railroads were compelled to make a radical revision of interstate rates. Correction of interstate systems of rates in conformity with present legal require ments, without correcting intrastate systems so as to conform to the same standard, 'would create situations repugnant to the laws against discrimination. It is necessary to bring about a revision of rates m the entire Southeast in order to harmonize intrastate rates with interstate rates. A beginning in the matter of revision of intrastate rates must be made. The rail roads first petitioned the Railroad Commission of Georgia for a revision because more discriminations and inequalities exist in this State than in any other State in the South. Petitions are now being prepared for presentation to the Railroad Com missions of various States in the Southeast with this object in view. What the railroads of Georgia now propose to the Railroad Commission of Georgia is a revision of Georgia rates in conformity with the principles that the Interstate Com merce Commission, pursuant to Federal law, has required them to observe in adjust ing interstate rates. We do not believe that the people of Georgia expect or require a preferential ad justment of freight rates. The real question involved is whether the proposed revision is just and reason able from the standpoint of the railroads and the shippers, and such advances as are proposed should not be condemned simply because they are advances. It is not and will not be the pohey of the Railroads of Georgia to pro pose any system of rates which wmdd discriminate unjustly agamrf die Georgia producer in favor of producers located at points without the State. Should the principle appear to be violated by any technical construction of the petition wo give assurance that we will not propose, nor will we attempt to adopt, in actual practice, any rate at variance with the same. The interests of the people and the mtersts of Railroads are identical. Any sys tem of rate making which works a hardship on the one works a hardship on the other. The primary object in the proposed revision is to systematize Georgia freight rates so that all cities and towns may be put ©n an equal basis and discriminations removed. Some rates will be increased while others will be lowered. If, in the readjustment, the railroads enjoy increased revenue it will not be unreasonable for the Commission to grant it, because the railroads have heretofore shown the tremendous advance in the cost of everything which enters into the manufacture of transportation. Commisioner Daniel, of the Interstate Commerce Commission, in the investiga tion of the 1915 Western Rate Advance Case, said: “In the matter of rate regulation and fixation we have reached a point where one of two courses ought deliberately to be chosen and clearly announced. If, despite in creased costs not offset by increased revenue, increases in rates are 'to be denied, ex cept where in individual instances gross injustice would be occasioned by their denial, the carriers ought to be apprised of this policy, so that they may set their house in order, if they can, against such a situation, if, on the other hand, we are to acknowl edge in general, what we are perforce compelled to admit in detail, just and reasonable increased rates should be permitted not grudgingly but with such fair measure of allow ance as will indicate that the transportation industry is entitled in the interest of the public to earnings sufficient to provide a service commensurate with public needs.” THE RAILROADS OF GEORGIA way was one of the biggest fakes ever perpetrated on the public of this section. The commissioners absolutely lacked backbone enough to designate a given route. The people along the old ‘capital route’ are welcome to all the hon or and glory they can get out of the alleged Dixie Highway.” Children Cry FOR FLETCHER’S CASTORIA 1 with the same skill as we. restore