Speaking of the men who are commonly termed railroad magnates, Mr. Kirkman says: "They alone possess the needed administrative ability that the situation demands. They not only provide largely the capital, but they discover the fields wherein it may be used most advantageously. They are the advance guard of all great enterprises, the natural leaders of men. They are an integral part of the country, a necessary and valuable element, without which its natural resources would avail little." This is a very strong statement in the face of the fact that but very few of the class of men to whom Mr. Kirkman refers ever built a line of road. They have usually found it more profitable to "gobble" roads already built than to construct new lines. According to this author the public have no reason to complain of railroads; on the contrary, the latter have always been the victims of public persecution, and "every species of folly, every conceivable device of malice, the impossible requirements of ignorance, the selfish cunning of personal interests, the ravings of demagogues, the disappointments, envies, prejudices and jealousies of mankind have each in turn and in unison sought to injure the railway interest." But probably the most extravagant passage in the whole treatise is the one referring to special rates, which he calls "the foundation and buttress of business," without which it could not be carried on. He expresses the opinion that without the continued and intelligent use of such rates "our cities would soon be as destitute of manufactories as one of the bridle paths of Afghanistan," and then continues: "The special rate of carriers is like the delicate fluid that anoints and lubricates the joints of the human body. It is an essential oil. Without it the wheels of commerce would cease and we should quickly revert to the period when the stage-coach and the overland teamster fixed the limits of commerce and the stature of cities."