Addresses—importance of Agriculture. 443 
railroads, who warned the new reform party and the old republi¬ 
can party in words of elequence and power, and in almost a threat¬ 
ening manner told them not to increase taxation upon this 
species of property as it would be an unjust discrimination and. 
a burden they could not bear, I said to myself where is the 
learned counsel to reply to him on the part of the people who are 
building up and enriching their roads, or at least those who con¬ 
trol them, and who the masses of the people believe are extorting 
from them high aud unjust tariffs, and paying less than their pro¬ 
portion of the taxes of the country according to the real value of 
property. Are the representatives of the people assembled at the 
capital, sent there to represent the industries of the state, and 
hence do not need an attorney or counsel to present their side? 
Our legislators are no more the representatives of the industrial 
producing masses than of the railroads or other corporate and 
special interests, and if these gigantic corporations are to come 
before committees and legislators to argue their side of the case, 
some one or more competent persons should be employed by the 
people to present the other side. Some of these special interests 
in this state have become so strong, and their wealth so great that 
the relations which they bear to the agricultural and other pro¬ 
ducing avocations of the state are so interwoven and closely con¬ 
nected, and of such /vital importance to taxpayers, that if the 
representatives annually sent to Madison to look after the 
interests of the whole people and to enact such laws as shall 
deal justly and honestly by all classes and general interests 
cannot discharge that duty intelligently and wisely, then 1 am in 
favor of having a board of railroad commissioners to examine 
and study up the relations which these great interests bear to 
each other and have them adjusted in the interests of the entire 
people as recommended by his Excellency C. C. Washburn in his 
annual message in 1873, and by bis Excellency Wm. K. Taylor 
in his message just presented to the legislature. But, says one, 
the people cannot get men upon this commission that cannot be 
bribed by the use of a few thousand dollars to present a favorable 
case for the corporate interests. Mr. President, I don’t believe 
such statement to be true. I will confess that from my experience 
and observation, my faith in the honesty and integrity of poor, 
