, 1874-07-02
tho law, to which 1t Intends to adhero, for while


ut least.
Railway companies operating roals In Iowa
arc, by tho now Inv, not permitted to charge
over 90 por cont Of tho rates fixed thorcby ns
maxima. Tho new logal rates are botwoen so
and 40 per cont lower than those which tho Com
pany Inns boor charging.
Tho law divides oil railroads In tho State OF
Iowa into olasHos IN accordance with their gross
earnings within tho State por milo; all roads
with gross annual onrniug Of 81, 600 or more
per milo to belong to tho first. or Glass "A."
Tho gross earnings Of tho Chicago, Rock
onl,ng Doc. a. 1879. e5,571.55 por
mile, Which nxoB It In Olass IA"
Tho frat tRblo published In blr. Riddles lottor
shows tlat, stnco tho date Of tho organization Of
tho Company, tl4 rntes charged por milo, both
for persons and property, lave steadily dtmin-
ished aa the number Of tons Of freight aud Of
porsons carried have Increased. TleHo fguroa,
howeyor. are deceptive. Absolutely there Inns
boon dimfnution In tho ratesot fare and freight
"a tie amount Of property or the number Of
passengers increased, but relatively there has
boon vaat Increase. II al increase In tho nun-
bar Of passengers carried warrants any deduc-
ton at all, whom tho number carried has doubled,
tho ratio received By tho Company per pas
aengor for milo should show n very
peroeptibls dimlnuton. But the table proauc-
tho number Of passengers carried ono milo was
22701 ,GCl. tie amount charged per paaHonger
por mile. in centB, ssaa 1857. For tho year ond-
ing March 81. 1874. the number Of passengers
carried one milo was AZ, 1e0.s17, and the amount
por passenger per milo, iu cents, WAS 3.30l.
THUS. while tho number Of passeugots became
about 2111 times grontor, the cont Of carriage per
passenger ptr milo diminished only in tho ratio Of
about to t. Again; whereas for tho ycar end-
Ing Maroh u, 1867, tho number Of tons carried
enc ,nils Was 1866, ,o02ao, and the amount re-
coiycd por ton per mile, in conts, was sos, tho
amount chnrgcd per mile per ton for the year
onding March 81. 1874, was 2.07 cents. and the
number Of tona carried one milo was PIC, ,529, ,401.
That is, while the number Of tons carriod QUE
milo increased In the ratio Of to 1, tle cost
per mile decreased only in tue ratio Of about ~
to l. We think that investigation would Bhom
that tho decrease per head might haye been
creator, al we'll az tha decrease per ton, not
wlthstanding tho heavy expenses incurred to
increaso the comfort, speed, and safety Of
transportation,
the Railroad Company haa no good ground Of
complaint in tic premises. The most that can ha
aad Of tho argument 1t baHos upon tile tabto in
question is, that the Executive Committee Of the
Company have not reasoned very oogontly in
Que instance. They make aBtrongcr point when
they say that last year the Chicago i: South
Western Railway Company did not earn enough
to pay itB operating expenses, and suggest that
tho new law would ut tho end OF this year,
leave them In oyen worse condition than they
wero at the end Of last. And go again whom
they poiut out that the discrimination between
tue railroads Of tho State Of Iowa Is based not
On the character or future prospects Of the road,
nor on tile amount Of their earnings, tile valua-
tion OF their property. nor even on the cost Of
| operation aa compared with their gross earn
| ings. They show good ronson. too, why tho
! rates Of faro and freight in lows should DO
creator than In Illinois, although those prescribed
by tic new LAW arc substantially the same as
! those prescribed by tho Railroad Commissioners
| Of this State. Nor can their argument agaiuat
cast-iron schedule bo we'll refuted.
Tho Company intends, however, to obey the
law for tho present t,-being moved thereto. un-
doubtedly, by tho fact that it's officers filed a
written agreement to obey such la~s at the tina
its land-grant WAS voted by the Iowa Legisla-
turo. They will obey the law, so far a. Iowa la
concerned, but will ondeayor to make up ths
deficit thus croated by increasing tho ratca
applicable to Interstate commerce. This, they
say. they will bo compelled to do in order to in
sure tho payment OF interest on their bonded
indebtedness and Of reasonable dividends.
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