dual, locality, and
kind of goods, even if this ruined some men and enriched others, and
if it destroyed the prosperity of cities to increase the earnings of
the road.

Sec. 13. #Political power of railroad managers.# Likewise in various ways
railroad managers may exercise great political influence and power.
Some writers maintain that the power to make rates on railroads is
a power of taxation. They point out that if rates are not subject to
fixed rules imposed by the state, the private managers of railroads
wield the power of the lawmaker. By changing the rates on foreign
exports or imports, the railroads frequently have made or nullified
tariff rates and have defeated the intention of the legislature.
High rates on state-owned roads in Europe have been used in lieu of
protective duties. These facts go to show that a change of railroad
rates between two places within the country is similar in effect to
the imposing or repeal of tariff duties between them.

The wealth and industrial importance of the railroads soon began to
give them widespread political power in other ways. It was commonly
charged in some states that the legislature and the courts were
"owned" by the railroads. The railroads, in part because they were
the victims at times of attempts at blackmail by dishonest public
officials, declared that they were compelled, in self-defense to
maintain a lobby. The railroad lobby, defensive and offensive, was, in
many states, the all-powerful "third house." Railroads even had their
agents in the primaries, entered political conventions, dictated
nominations from the lowest office up to that of governor, and elected
judges and legislators. The extent to which this was done differed
according as the railroads had large or small interests within the
state. These statements can with approximate truth now be made in
the past tense, as was not possible a few years ago. A better code
of business morality has developed, and the railroad management's
relationship of private trusteeship toward the shareholders and of
public trusteeship toward the patrons of the road is now much more
fully recognized. The change was not brought about without long and
strenuous agitation and effort, educational and legislative, as is in
part described below.

Sec. 14. #Consolidation of railroads#. Gradually the consolidation of the
railroad mileage into larger units put into fewer hands greater and
greater economic power. The early railroa