The Athens post. [volume] (Athens, Tenn.) 1848-1917, 1858-07-02
RAILROAD FARES AND FREIGHTs.

RAILROAD FARES AND FRElGHTS.
.lt trrom the Lynehburs Repsbllcanj
Our respected contemporary Of the Knox.
willie Southern Citizen takes strange view
Of the policy which should govern the con-
duet Of Railroads. Il is opposed 10 the dis
elimination which is usually made in favor of
through. fares over local fares, and thinks Il
unjus, 10 those who make the ronds 70 have
to pay more for travelling over them than
gentlemen living at distance and who never
contributed one cent to the enterprise. In.
other words, the Citizen thinks Il wrong tina,
q citizen Of Knoxville should be made to
pay, four cents per mile TO ride to Jonesboro,,
while the citizen Of New York or New Or
leans should DO made to pay only three cents
per nile.
Now, Il seems TO us that there 10 nothing
wrong IN such policy, and moreover that II
II founded on justice and reason, and war
tanted by universal custom. II a Livery
stable man hire you buggy aud horse for
ono hour, he will charge you one dollar. II
no hire II for q day. he will charge you three
dollars. Now there 10 no sort of proportion
Ia these charges, but there is nothing wrong
in them. If a Lynchburg merchant sell
KHoxvillc merchant fifty bags Of coffee, he
can adod 10 place his charge at much
lower figure than when he sells a citizen of
Lynchburg n single bag. The retail man,
therefore, has just as much right to complain
Of the reduction Of prices by the wholesale
merchant MS a local traveller on rnilroad
has to complain of the reduced charge on
through passengers. A man who travels
only ten or fifty miles can afford TO pay a
higher rate Of fare than the man who travels
600 or 1900 miles. Local travellers and
local freights are more trouble ard expense
than though travel or through ireights.-
Through travel and freights require no stop
pages and delays, aud no agents and depots
except at two points on each road. But local
traysl aud fteights require depots and stop.
pages at every interval Of 8 or 10 miles.
Not only is there no injustice in this sys.
TEN Of dscrimination-noto only is il found
ed on universal custom aud unquestionable
propriety-but it is absolutely essential to
the best interests and success of our great
railroad line. There nre three leading lines
Of communication from New Orleans to New
York--a Southern Northern and Middle
route. The travel between these two points
aud their environs,. amount 10 mllors of
dollars per annum. Now, suppose the poll
cy Of the Citizen be. adopted, and through
travellers be made to pny ut the same rate for
fifteen hundred miles that citizen of Knox.
vile or Lynchburg is made to pay for riding
ten miles, what would be the result? Why,
clearly TO drive all the through travel cxclu-
sisely to the other routes, and thus occasion
loss 10 our railroads of thousands upon
thousands Of dollars! There is no evading
this point. The through travel is almost a
clear gain to railroads. To carry fifty
through passengers from Knoxville to Brs.
tol, and from Bristol to l.ynchburgh, will no,
I'D twenty. dollars additional 10 the cost Of
Vie trip. II requires no more agents, no
more hands, no more stoppages, and but it,
= tiu If any more fuel, wear and tenr Of ina.
tttihsfy. When, therefore, you shall drive
IN thfongh travel you drive off by far the
most. psefiable part Of railroads business.
That The system recommended by the Citi.
zen would have this result cannot be ques-
toned for ono moment. 1t is 1882 miles
from New Orleans to New York, which at 4
cents pet mile, would make the fare of sin
gle passenger s65 %. Its now only s4s.
The difference would necessarily drive every
through passengers to one Of the other
Routes, and the consequence would be loss
u our railroads of thousands Of dollars per
=, annum.