In the January number of this magazine, I specified the wrongs which the people of Georgia suffer at the hands of the railroads. Mr. Clark Howell, the Corporation Candidate for Governor, tried to answer me, and probably flatters himself that he did so. Let us see. I made the statement that the railroads had violated our Constitution by “a joint ownership of competing lines, thus establishing the monopoly which the Constitution forbids.” That is a serious charge. If it be true that the railroads have trampled the Constitution under foot and established a monopoly in defiance of law, that fact alone should damn them. No man, no set of men, no corporation, no combination of corporations, should be allowed _to make law for themselves_ in Georgia. We should compel all persons, natural and artificial, to respect and obey our laws. Does Clark Howell deny the accusation brought by me against the railroads? Does he deny that the Morgan-Ryan-Belmont interests work together in beautiful harmony in Georgia? By no means. On the contrary, he parries the blow by saying that if any unlawful combination exists, Hoke Smith was the lawyer who represented the law-breakers in court. That’s a pretty defense for the railroads, isn’t it? According to that kind of logic we must not enforce the law against people who steal because Hoke Smith, as a lawyer, has actually defended thieves. Logic of that sort would compel me to antagonize the law against murder because as a lawyer, I defended dozens of men charged with that crime. Hoke Smith’s position as a candidate for governor is one thing; his position as attorney in law cases is another; and there is no use trying to fool the people about it. If the railroads have made an illegal combination we must smash it, no matter who the lawyers were that represented the railroads at that time. * * * * * My editorial states that the railroads treated our Railroad Commission with contempt by refusing to obey its rules, its decisions, its orders. As an example, I cited the case of the town of Flovilla, Georgia, where the railroads had for two years refused to provide the accommodations for passengers on their way to the Indian Spring. Mr. Howell jumped on this statement with the triumphant crow of a bantam rooster. He had caught me telling what was not true. No wonder the little rooster crowed. Not many men have upset statements made by me. Like many another little rooster, Clark crowed too soon. Listen: Clark says: “The truth of the matter is, the Railroad Commission _ordered the building of a new depot at_ Flovilla, and the records of the commission show that THE ORDER WAS COMPLIED WITH.” If the records of the commission show that, _Somebody_ has fooled the Commission cruelly, for _there has been no new depot built at Flovilla_! Crow again, little rooster. * * * * *