The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-05-19
THE COST PROBLEM.
RAILROAD TRANsPoRTATIoN.

RAILROAD TRANSPORTATION.
IMPORTANT STATISTICS ON RAILWAY FREIGHTs
WHAT IT COSTS TO A TON OF FREIGHT A
N MILE-THE COMPARATIVE RxPENsEs OF
PASSENGER AND FREIGHT TRAINS. gots.
At regular meeting of the Chicago En-
gineer's Club, lately held in the Academy
of Sciences, Mr.. l.. p. Moorehouse, of the
Illinois Central railroad, read paper soon
corning the cost of transportation on rail-
ways" from which the following interest
ing extracts are taken: The business OF
transportation has. hardly yet attained the
position of an exact science, and, indeed
from the crude theories and contradictory
statements so frequently met with in the
discussions of the matter, it would seem
that the very foundations which underlie
the whole subject are not well established,
az least are not universally acknowledged.
The object of this psber is to bring clearly
to view two or three of the facts that may
be called foundation stones, One of the
most important questions involved is in re-
lation ito the reasonableness of rates" and
inquiry should ue made to ascertain, IL pos
sible, what principle should govern the es-
tablishment of charges for transportation.
lt is evident that in estimating the cost OF
performing any work the actual OUTLAY OF
money incurred is a very important element
in Determining what should be the amount
received by the performer from the party
for whom the work Is done, and our first
inquiry will be the cost of doing the bust
ness railways perform. IL we ask what is
the cost OF transportation of railways we
may be reminded that according to Stats
tics the average expense of running a train
one milo on all the roads of Ohio, Pennsyl-
wanna, Illinois, New York and Massachu-
sets, for the year 1872 was one dollar. But
a glance at the figures shows this varied
from So on the Ohio roads, to l3l cents on
the Massachusetts, roads; and. upon exam
ination, we find that this latter amount rep
resents an average of amounts varying from
80 TO LIS cents. While, therefore, we accept
one dollar as the average for the five states
named, we see at once that it may be unfair
to take that sum for any one of the above
mentioned states, and probably much more
so for application to any particular road.
The expense for maintenance of way should
be divided between the passenger aud freight
business in proportion to the damage done
by each. This is in proportion to the weight
and speed ct trains.
THE WEIGHT OF FREIGHT TRAINS
is about twics that of passenger trains the
speed about one-third less. A freight train
of the same weight as passenger train
would do two-thirds the damage to track
The passenger train mileage. therefore, rep
so far as the maintenance of way is
concerned, a freight train milage of three
tourths that amount. Switching trains may
be considered as representing one third of
freight trains; and construction and fuel
trains may be taken as equivalent to freight
trains. Taking the Illinois Central railroad
as standard, Mr.. Morehouse then iscer-
tains by careful statistics the cost of a train
mile to be about one dollar and twenty two
cents, and then he states that, having found
the expense per train mile, we proceed to
ascertain the cost per ton. The average
weight of trein is about three hundred and
forty tons, and the load So tons, including
eight and one half tons of company's materi-
ais, so that the paying freight is n tons.
The total expense of III 81 cents, divided by
the "a tons, gives 1.5Sf cents for the total ex-
pense per ton, and the amount 63.4 cents re-
duced, likewise gives 1923 mills for the d.
rect expense. The average train consists of
nine loaded, nine empty cars, and the way
car. Could a load be secured for one of the
empty cars, the additional expense would
be small. A charge of three mills per mile
would pay profit on this particular car
load. If another loaded car be put into the
train, the total cost would be less than four
mills per ton. The detailed estimate is one
third. AS to the cost of moving the whole
rain Including dead weight and load) we
have: For train of $40 tons, g. 80 mills per
,on; for train of $50 tons, 3 % mills; for
rain OF $50 tons, 3.49- 100 mills. 1t may be
Of interest to pursue the investigation, so as
20 include the question of through traffic
between the East and the West. Assertions
ire frequent that with a double track steel
Dad from Chicago to New York, devoted
exclusively to freight trains running 10
minutes apart and at speed of eight miles
IN hour
ah THE COST PER BUsHEL
If transportation of wheat the entire dis
ance may be reduced to six cents. Using
he data we have before us we will make an
of minimum charges Trains each
zen minutes for sixteen hours per day, say
)ne hundred trains per day; grade and align
nent such that train may consist of fifty
,ars weighing eight tons and carrying
,welve tons each. Weight Of train paying
oad), 600 tons; dead weight, 400 tons; work.
ng in the year $50 full days; aggregate
tonnage, Is, Co., 900; and we should have for
$40 tons, 63 4-10 cents; 40 tons, lob LILO
cents, or a total direct increase of 166 40
,euts. The computations as to difference in |
labor, slow speed, ETC., are omitted. This |
would leave loo lilo cents for the direct train |
expenses. This is for full train of fifty |
cars, carrying 600 tons, going East. For the |
fifty cars returning, on the suppositiOn that |
she Eastern and Western freights are re-
,petivelv seventy five and twenty-five per |
cent. of the total tonnage, we should have |
only 200 tons of load aud total train of $50 |
IONS, and the cost would BIS detailed ccm- |
putation omitted at the rate of % 100 mills |
per ton. To what degree the indirect ex- |
penses would be reduced by this immense |
business it is impossible to say. On the |
Lake Shore road there appears to be about
iorty per cent. II we take half that amount
or our hypothetical road, and call them
,wenty per cent, it can hardly be estimating |
hem too high. This would be S0-100 of
mile, and the total expense would be
a 3-1Oo miles. Accepting the popular esti- |
mate of $4,000 mile for the cost of the |
-oad, the net earnings should be $4,000 per |
nile; and, this to be earned by q traffic
Eastward of Is O00, 900 tons and Westward of
100000 tons. For the net earnings we
must add 63-lOO of mill, bringing the gross |
earnings up to 4 81 100 mills. 1 submit that. |
rom the data before us, we are warranted in |
king the minimum average rate at one |
lalf cent per mile per ton. The cost for 800 |
niles would be $3.50 per ton, or at the |
ate Of 1874 cents per bushel.
CENTRAL AMERICA.
rrTp AaE ITpON A BRITISH CoNsJJI--SHOOTING |