THE RISE OF THE GRANGER MOVEMENT. 207 



did not contain a mile of railroad, and he probably knew as little about 

 railroads as any other man in the Legislature ; at least, to believe the 

 contrary would require a very pessimistic view of Wisconsin intelli- 

 gence. March 11, 1874, the famous "Potter Bill" became a law. 

 Mr. Potter is said to have made it up by calling for suggestions and 

 incorporating those most disadvantageous to the railroads. At any 

 rate, it was bad enough at first, and the railroad interest worked to 

 increase its enormities, hoping to get it into a shape that they could 

 defeat. They were mistaken. The bill passed, and the Governor cele- 

 brated some speedy victories in the courts by firing cannon. 



Meanwhile cases were before the Supreme Court on the validity of 

 all this legislation. The court recognized the gravity of the question 

 and reserved its decision, affirming the constitutionality of the laws, 

 for more than a year after the test case (Muun vs. Illinois) was argued. 

 The gist of the decision is in the following words : " When one de- 

 votes his i^roperty to a use in which the public has an interest, he, in 

 effect, grants the public an interest in that use, and must submit to be 

 controlled by the public for the common good to the extent of the in- 

 terest he has thus created." The decisions in this, and the six other 

 " Granger " cases, were pronounced by Chief- Justice Waite, Justices 

 Field and Strong dissenting. 



In the courts the farmers were victorious. But, unfortunately, the 

 Supreme Court does not pass upon economic laws, and to these the 

 movement had already succumbed. By the time the cases were de- 

 cided, in 18T6-'77, scarcely one of the statutes in question remained in 

 force. In the second year under the Potter law, no Wisconsin road 

 paid a dividend, and only four paid interest on their bonds. Foreign 

 capitalists refused to invest further in the State. On the recommenda- 

 tion of the Governor, the very men who had passed the law hurriedly 

 repealed it. In the next year Mr. Potter faded out of American poli- 

 tics, and his place in the Senate was filled by another. Most of the 

 other States also beat a precipitate retreat, poorly covered by a faint 

 demonstration against unreasonableness in sreneral. 



So the victors were beaten, and bad times made the defeat seem 

 worse than it was. But they claim, and not without reason, to have 

 done lasting good. The attitude of railroad corporations is very dif- 

 ferent from what it was twelve years ago. More of the old grievances 

 have disappeared than is generally supposed. To this movement we 

 owe the railroad commissions found in so many States. How much 

 they are worth is, of course, a matter for dispute. The power of the 

 railroads to reward or punish is so real and present, while that of the 

 people at large is so indefinite and far away, that it is not strange if 

 the ordinary commissioner inspires about the same terror as does the 

 gingerbread lion. Of late the Grange, forgetting its record, has been 

 claiming the credit for all the good accomplished. It is gravely as- 

 serted that a resolution of the National Grange in 1874 caused the 



