The Sunday herald. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1866-1887, 1880-09-05

extensively into the opefS business. The
impression Vanderbilt made htfe was that of
drf nttiable. rather weak man, too good ri
heart TO SIT TN his fathers throne. Three OF
the prea, lines of rdiifoad IN England have
lust reported additional dividends and in
creased revenues for the half year of 81, ESQ.,
600. The American railroad system, as COM
pared with the British, leads to some novel
figures. Mt. q. r. Blanchard has recently
brought out some obscurelyh2own facts
about railroads. n seems that iron rails
were first used at White Haven, England, in
1873. and that a high presstife locomotive
was patented in 1902, and actually built for
a Welsh railroad in 1904, by 1revithick
Vivian. This locomotive, used before Full
ton put out his steamboat, worked well on
levels and slight ascents. A different loco
motive was tried III 1911; near Leeds. Eng
land, and then came Stephenson With his
engine In 1874. The average traiiffOttstt6n
charges by rail in America, says Mr.. Blafich-
ard, are far below those current in any coun
try of the world and lower in New York
than in any State of our Federation, although
our trans continental lines were built mainly
by tho public moneys or credit upon lands
given by the people they charge higher
rates than in lines built by private capital
on rights of way paid for AT high valuations.
In England the item Of Parliamentary ex-
penses to secure railroad charters and keep
away political interference amounts to more
| than 81, 200 a mile, and on the Great North
ern railroad $4,000 4 mile. As we have
forty governments as independent and pow
erful as Parliament, the railroad problem in
America is for that reason alone forty times
as difficult. The United Kingdom has
1000 miles of railroad TO a population of
| nearly $4,000, 900, while the United States
Ia, ~ In lat; pp
of above 10, OOO, 900. In Great Britain there
is one mile of main railroad for every seven
square miles of its territory, while we have
one mile to thirty-fve square miles. In
America there are only about $50 persons to
support each mile OF railroad, and in Eng
| land l $50 persons. The American railroads
have cost per mile an average of $50, ZOO, and
| and British railroads slS0,O0O per mile.
British railroads pay about $4,000 a mile
gross revenue and $500 net revenue.
American railroads pay about 50, 400 gross
and 81, 800 net. The English work their
lines for about 50 per cent. of their receipts,
and we work ours at nearly "a per cent. of
the receipts The English railroads are al
most independent of foreign and of river com
petition, while our railroads must compete
with those of Canada and with numerous
navigation companies at home, which Con-
gross and the State Legislatures do not in
tcrfcre with at all, while constantly attack
ing the railroads. Mr.. Blanchard cpitomizcs
the two situations as follows:
In England a SMALL insular territory, gov
crncd 10y one law. enacted and enforced by
ono tribunal over short-distance railroads,
| with five times as much RAILROAD mileage per
| square mile of country as our own, costing
| three times as much per mile as our own,
| running through traffic three times as dense
| as our own, and earning three times as much
| per mile gross and nearly four times rs much
| per mile net as our own. at rates averaging
about double per mile the rates charged by
our railroads, and without foreign or river
rivals and free internal controlling and com
| peting canals, navgable lakes and streams.
| On the other hand, our Union of forty-seven
| States and Territories covers continent
| feeding u world contcsting onr markets, each
| State making laws as absolute within its
local limits as those of Parliament over all
England, our hauls long and complicated,
the pareleism of lakes and foreign carriers
positive and controlling, and our population
relatively sparse. Every condition requisite
to the cheapest rates exists in England. Our
charges average about one-half theirs and
their higher rates, as sustained by railroad,
pool consolidation, or a clearing house recog-
nized by its law and sustained and enforced
| by its Parliament, courts, railroads, Com
mission, and Board of Trade.-Gath in Gin.
| riun,ti Ennu;rrr