Eaton weekly Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1866-1875, 1873-12-25
THE TRANSPORTATION QUESTION.
Report of the Committee on Railway
Transportation of the New York
Cheap-Transportation Society.

Report of the Committee on Railway
Transportation of the New York
Cheap-Transportation Society.
[From the New York World, Dec. 1O.l
The D rectors of the New York Cheap
Transportation Society met yesterday
afternoon. The Committee on Railway
Transportation presented report. The
committee recommend the construction
by the Government of a national iron
highway between East and West, to be
operated under general law by indi-
viduals, they paying toll therefor sufi-
cient to maintain the road-bed. Com
planning of the present defective rail-
road system, the committee say /:
Prominent among the defects and
abuses in our present system are 1.
The present method of undertaking the
construction of railways without a paid
up capital. 2. The initiation commonly
known as watering stock" by which
its nominal value is largely increased,
thereby making it necessary to unduly
tax travel and. commerce to secure it a
value. 3. By rings in their manage
meiit, through which both the public
and the non-managing stockholders are
feeced to enrich few prominent Off
cials and managing stockholders. 4. The
present system which necessitates the
operation of passenger and freight
traffic over the same road-bed in which
the passenger traffic has the right of
way, thus making it necessary for
freight trains to lay up two-thirds of the
time when they should be rolling on to
their destination. 5. The but partial
representation of the stockholders in the
Board of Directors.
The committee, after careful examina-
tion, recommend the following remedies
for the defects and abuses of the present
system of transportation
F5rst-Legislation, by which our
present system of railways can be regu-
lated and improved and,
SecOaad-Competition, which will
complete and carry outthe reform which
legislation must inaugurate. Under the
head of legislation, we must have the
following laws:
Commissioners, who shall be clothed
with power to establish and regulate
rates for transporting freight over all
railroads doing business in this State,
and to prescribe a uniform system of
keeping railway accounts.
2. A law prescribing an equitable
system of proportional or minority repre-
sentation of the stockholders in the
boards of direction.
3. A law restraining railway COM
panies from paying interest or divi-
dends beyond a fair and just return on
the actual cost of their property to their
stock and bondho1ders, and compelling
them to expend all sums in excess of
such amount, and what is required to
keep their roads in proper repair and
pay their necessary operating expenses
in their moving, handling and terminal
facilities, for public security and con-
venience, and to reduce their transpor-
tation charges, when such facilities are
in perfect and complete condition.
5. A law prohibiting all railway COM
panies from delegating their business to
separate corporations, now known as
fast freight lines, the entire receipts of
which do not go into the treasury of the
road over which they run.
6. A law to prohibit the leasing, con-
solidation, or combination of parallel
lines of road, by which competition is
destroyed and the peoples highways
converted into monopolies.
z. A law prohibiting railway COM
panies from acquiring or holding more
real estate than is necessary for the
operation of their roads, and prohibit
ing Hallway companies from engaging
in mining or any business other than
t hat of transportation.
s. A law making it a penal offense fol
any public official to accept or use the
free pass of any railway company, and
prohibiting railway companies from
granting such passes to any but regular
employees of such railways.