The railroads have become the express companies, not in legal fiction, but in transportational fact. The railroads largely own the express companies, entirely control the express companies, and, to all intents and purposes, are the express companies. We, the highly intelligent American people, simply don’t know these facts. Never has it seemed to occur to us that, since Benjamin Harrison was President and John Wanamaker was in his cabinet, the express grafters may have devised improved ways of working the express graft. Therefore, in this parcels post matter, we don’t know who is pushing the knife that we feel between our ribs. We accuse the express companies. A man who was being murdered might as well accuse the shadow of his murderer. Perhaps the facts that follow will show you who are behind the shadows of the express companies. I quote from Senate Document No. 278, Sixtieth Congress: Stock held by railways in express companies $20,668,000 Railway securities owned by express companies 34,542,950 Holdings of express companies in the stock of other express companies 11,618,125 Since this article was written (Mr. Benson adds in a footnote) the Interstate Commerce Commission has issued a report in which railroad holdings in express stock are given at $14,124,000. The same report says the “total book value of property and equipment of 13 express companies is $22,313,575.53.” The figures furnished by the express companies are evidently somewhat bewildering to the commission, which, having found the total value of the express companies’ assets to be $186,221,380.54, remarks: “It is evident that the capital stock of these companies bears no relation to the amount invested in the express business.” On the face of the Interstate Commerce Commission’s report, the railroads have disposed of more than $6,000,000 worth of express stock since the United States Senate investigated the matter during the life of the Sixtieth Congress. Yet there is no mention of such a transaction, and it seems exceedingly unlikely that the railroads have suddenly reversed their policies and become sellers instead of buyers of express stock. What seems more likely is that both the railroads and the express companies are continuing the policy to use figures to conceal facts. Gentlemen who can give $186,000,000 worth of assets a “book value” of $22,000,000 might have no difficulty in compelling figures to turn flip-flaps upon almost any occasion.