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WATSON'S EDIT OKIAL S WATSON’S WEEKLY JEFFERSONIAN MWM 1 Newspaper Devoted to the Advocacy of the Jeffersonian Theory of Government, ' pvalisuadisy SUBSCRIPTION PRICE: SI.OO PER TEAR yyWI/XlSSoa THOS. E. WATSON and J. D. WATSON, Advertising Rates Furnished on Application. UJjEditors and Proprietors - —. Ifj / NTxW m J-I D * Enttrtd at Pttttfitt, Atlanta, Ga., January St, SQO7, « itctnd W/Zy- '<\\Y 'Vf » Temple Court Building, Atlanta, Ga. f / a „ ma u matt,r. Vr* i w B) ... „ , , I * Bl ATLANTA, GEORGIA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1907. Why Not Prosecute the Express Companies? Not long ago, one of tile Eve great Express Companies declared a dividend of two hun dred per cent, ncr profits upon the capital in vested. The outn tctal of the loot divided among the robbers, of this one company, was twenty-four million dollars. Inasmuch as there are five of these vora cious corporations fattening on the public, and confiscating a large part of the portable wealth of the people by levying excessive tolls, you can readily understand why the plunderers do nut wish to be disturbed at their great national pastime of taking unto themselves the property which belongs to others. Confedeiatcd with the railroads, they are hard to handle. If the Standard Oil Company —poor old thing!—secures special terms on its freight because it ships so much and so regularly, the whole machinery of Government gets to thundering portentously and our dear old benevolent and Christian brother, John D. Rockefeller, has his innocent game of golf interrupted by the intelligence that he and his philanthropic pals have been fined twenty nine million dollars. Whereat all the Rockefeller preachers gioan dismally, and Chancelloi Day, of Syracuse University once more bewails the wicked ten dency of Uncle Sam to deal harshly with those who accumulate millions after the manner of thieves. But nobody ever seems to see, in the per manent arrangement that exists between the five predatory Express Companies and the va rious piedatory railroads, the Rebate system reduced tc a Fine Art. Yet that is just what it is. The controll ing clique in the Express Company comes to an understanding with the controlling clique in the Railroad, and the railroad agrees to car ry the freight of the Express Company at a lower rate than it will carry freight for anv.- body else. If THAT is not rebating, what is it? Not only will the railroad carry freight for the Express Company at a lower rate than it will carry freight for anybody else, but the raihoad charges the government itself twice as much as it charges the Express Company. What is it, if it is not rebating, when the railroads give these inside and special and re duced rates to the Express Companies? Every argument that can be advanced in favor of the special rates given to the Express Companies, can be advanced in defence of spe cial rates granted to the Standard Oil Com pany, the Meat Packers, the Lumber Trust, and other large and constant shippers. There is not a single excuse which the rail roads can offer, in defence of the favors they show the Express Companies, that cannot be given by such regular and heavy customers as those mentioned. When the Standard Oil Co. says to the rail road, “We ship huge amounts: we ship every day of every year; we give you more business than anybody else; THEREFORE YOU OUGHT TO SHOW US SOME SPECIAL FAVORS,” the Law of the land thunders its inexorable, NO! And the Court justly and heavily punishes the Standard Oil for defying the national stat ute. But why docs the railroad grant the Ex press Company special favors? Upon the very same grounds as those plead ed by the Standard Oil Company. The Express Companies are large shippers, constant shippers, permanent shippers, regular shippers—hence they demand and are given reduced rates. Why is not this lower rate, to the favored shipper, a violation of law? Don’t abuse me, don’t laugh at me, don’t misrepresent me—ANSWER MY QUES TION ! Why should the Georgia Railroad, or the Pennsylvania Railroad, or the Union Pacific Railroad, be allowed to carry a five-pound package for the Southern Express Company, or the Adams Express Company, at a lower rate than it will carry a five-pound package for Theodore Roosevelt, Wm. J. Bryan, Thomas H. Tibbles, or anybody else? Don’t fly off the handle; don’t go up in the air:— ANSWER MY QUESTION! If our honest and learned Attorney General Charles J. Bonaparte, will start a vigorous criminal prosecution against the Railroads that have given Rebates to the Express Com panies, and against the Express Companies which have grown enormously rich off these rebates, the whole country —excepting the guilty rebaters —will rise up and call him Blessed. HMM Humbugging the Merchants. The ordinary village merchant is quite an intelligent man, and his good opinion of him self is ordinarily on a par with his merits. Being a smart man, he knows he is smart; and he often shows in his general carriage of himself that he is quite aware of the pleasant fact that he is “some punkins.” Yet, he is mighty easy to hoodwink, if you know how to go up to him on his blind side. For instance, the five great Express Com panies, and the half-dozen great Mail Order houses are in deadly fear that Uncle Sam will begin to carry small parcels through the mails at a reasonable rate —thus putting an end to the extortion which gives the Express Com pany 200 per cent net profit. The governments of Europe carry small par cels through the mails, at a nominal cost, thus saving the people millions and millions of dol lars every year. Our Postmaster General, Mr. Meyer, has been to Europe, and has seen the system at work; and has been impressed with its advan tages. Consequently he wants to give his own country the benefit of the system. In oth er words, he favors the Parcels Post, which some of us have so long advocated. As soon as Postmaster General Meyer pub lished his views, the Express Companies and the Mail Order houses got busy. They hired a snraH army of men, and scat- tered them throughout the length and breadth of the land—to do what? To tell lies and get signatures to Petitions against the Parcels Post. To my own town of Tompkins Thomasville and so forth, they came with cheerful confi dence —these men who had been hired, at so much per, to tell lies and get signatures— and the way they got signatures from our in telligent merchants was enough to make the children fall off the fence. These hirelings of the Express Companies and Mail Order houses, came up on the blind side of each of our intelligent merchants, and said something like this: “If the Government should begin to carry small parcels through the mails, at a low tate, the Mail Order houses would get your trade; and you would be left high and dry.” Whereupon the merchant cried out, “Run, and get me a pen, quick! I’ll sign.” Thus the hireling of the Mail Order houses got the name of the intelligent merchant who was afraid the Mail Order houses would get his business. Funny, wasn’t it? And that which happened m my town of Thomaston Tompkins &c, happened in all the others. Happily for the Express Companies and Mail Order houses, the merchants of nearly all the towns of this Union have been improv ing their minds, ever since the war, by the exclusive reading of papers and magazines which are controlled by the Corporations and the Privileged Few. Consequently, many of our merchants— most estimable and intelligent gentlemen— are absolutely ignorant of governmental con ditions. The average farmer has been reading inde pendent papers, which told them what was going on: therefore the average farmer is post ed. The average merchant has been reading newspapers which are owned, or controlled by the Yankee Corporations—hence they are not posted. ihose hirelings of the Express Companies and Mail Order houses, who are getting the names of our merchants, could never dupe our farmers into signing that petition. Why? Because our farmers know that the Mail Or der houses NOW have a secret, lower rate, given them by the Express Companies, WHICH ADVANTAGE THEY WILL LOSE WHEN THE GOVERNMENT BE* GINS TO CARRY SMALL PARCELS IN THE MAILS. Just as the railroads give a special rate to the Express Company, so the Express Com pany gives a special rate to the Mail Order house. It is this inter-twined system of Secret Re bates which the railroads, Express Companies and Mail Order houses are striving so desper ately to maintain. The Mail Order houses are now taking away the trade of the village merchant by reason of the fact that the Express Company gives to the Mail Order house a lower rate