Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-10
MISUNDERSTANDING
GENERAL MANAGER HAINES ON
THE STATE COMMISSION.

viewed by a NEWS reporter yesterday
upon the subject. Before giving his views
it may not be out of place to state that
there are two bills pending in the Legisla-
.ure amending the railroad commission
law. but they are very different and affect
the commission differently. A bill was
in the House by Mr.. Harris, of
Blob county, which provides for giving
notice by publication before any changes
in rates, orders or schedules are made,
and for a hearing before the commission
bv interested parties. Also for APP
peaIs to the Superior Court of
Fulton county and to the Su-
preme Court. Another was intro
duced in the Senate by Capt. Falli-
CANT. Of this district, which makes the
commission a board Of arbitration be-
tween the railroad companies and the
people. This bill Col: Haines supports:
He saws that under this bill ''instead of
the Railroad Commission being virtually
a board of managers for all the railroads
in the State, as at present, it shall be a
judicial commission that shall pass judg-
ment on the way in which the railroads
are managing their own property when
ever a dissatisfied citizen shall call upon
it to do sou
II have always taken the pOsltion,' p
said Col. Haines in answer to query,
.sthat it is TO the interest of the public
that railroads should make their own
rates under proper restrictions. The
of the State recognizes this.
1t REQUIRES the Legislature to regulate
railroad rates, not to make them. The
legislature which passed the Railroad
10 ranrr0IffnH tho commits.
sion to make rates. This action was hasty
and ill-infOrmed, and the experience
under the law shows the necessity of its
modification"
WORKINGS OF THE LAW.
"What can you say about the practical
workings of the lawW
whenever the State interferes between
two classes of its citizens, 1t should act
very cOnservatively, and particularly Sc
in this case when we consider now much
the welfare of the State is involved in the
welfare of the railroads. If the state eX'
meets any considerable development OF
the present railroad system it must make
railroad investments more attractive than
under the present law. Capital Will moi
20 into an investment in the management
of which they have no control. so long as
therailroads do not control their rates they
90 not COnLTOl LuEtI ONu lCoO0ACNof "
cannot tell more than 80 days ahead what
rates we are to work under. Which
law is to the best interest of the
Siate-one which gives the power to make
the railroad rates to three State officials
whose interest il is to make themselves
popular, and who are in no way
responsible to the owners OF the
property, and who by so doing drive away
foreign capital from building more rail
roads. or to leave it to the railroads
to manage their own affairs, subject
as l have said, to the proper regulations
for the protection OF their patronsI 1t Is
not a question as to what the people OF the
State would like to have so long as they
are iudispOsed to put their OWL
money into railroad investments
If the capital of the State is fully
employed in agricultural, commercial
and other pursuits, we must look TO out
side capital to build our roads, and more
particularly to those now largely inter
ested in Georgia railroads. The State
probably, has all the trunk lines needed
but the system needs to be filled out with
feeders or branch lines"
EFFECT OF. THE COMMISSION.
sWhat is the effect of the commission
upon the building Of new branch linesV
sPeople who want them built have beet
applying to the existing roads to build
them. The commission insists that the
branch railroads shall count in with the
main line in making rates, instead OF
allowing them special rate. The adyan
tage in building a branch line is that Il
may be feeder to the main line. The
branch line is expected to earn enough
to paw expenses, and the profit is looked
for in the increased business
on the main line. Under the
rulings of the commission branch line
cannot be profitably constructed in this
State. 1t is of no use to say to capitalists
that the commissioners might change
their views; they might be as easily in
duced to change them back again aftel
the branch roads were built. W.
all know how cautious capital is
how it retires from any field of actor
where the hazard is too great, and Where
the hazard attendant on railroad invest
ment is converted into a certainty of loss
In the hands OF an irresponsible manage
ment we may well expect capita
to fOrsake the unprOmising field alto
gether, and this is the condition of affairs
to-day in the State of Georgia, in The
opinion of the responsible managers OF 1T
railroad property. | say responsible
railroad managers'-thOse who have
been selected by the owners o
the property, it is presumed, OF
account of their experience and apti
tude for such positiOn-and their opir
ion must of necessity have greater weight
with that class of capitalists whose spe
cialty is railroad investments than the
opinion of State officials, who cannot be
considered as in any way responsible t
the owners of the railroads. If the people
of Georgia want more railroads built here
they must make investments IN railroad
property more attractive
PROGRESS OF RAILROAD BUILDING.
Col. Haines was asked if he had any.
thing to say in reply to the statement
made by the Railroad Commission that
five times as many miles of railroad had
been built during the five years OF the
commission as during the five years pre-
ceding the commission.
THE commission he replied, Ibid not
state how many miles were built in the
first year and how many the fifth year
since they have been ruling the roads.
AS to the claim that 500 miles were built
during the fifth year, let me say this: The
East Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia
was bound by law to extend the Macon
and Brunswick Road, and was obliged
to connect this line with their main sys-
tenn by building from Atlanta to Rome.
ne UEOIRld dClHC IOdu was dAACdu y
under way when the commission was ap-
and the lines which the Savan-
nah Florida and Western built from
WaycrOss to Jacksonville and to con-
meet with the Pensacola and Atlantic
at ChattahOOchee were built for purposes
of Interstate commerce and not because
of the advantage which was expected to
accrue from the management of the Rail-
road Commission. 1t would be interest
ing for the Railroad Commissioners to
state just how many miles were built last
year and how many are now under con-
structiOn. There have been about 6C0
miles of railroad built in Florida in the
last five years without the fostering care
of the Railroad Commission, and nearly
800 miles are now in course of cOnstruc-
ton.
THE RAILROADS KNOW BEST.
sit does not necessarily follow that
because a railroad makes its own rates
that those rates should be unjust and
and we must bear in mind
that it is only where rates are unjust and
that the law is called upon
to interfere. The chances are nine
out of ten that the management
of a railroad understands better
what rate the business of that
road requires than do three Railroad Com
missioners in Atlanta, who very likely
never saw the road in question. And is il
not better to take those nine chances in
favor of the railroad company's rates and
take the tenth one up before the commits
sion, if necessary, than to make
everybody that is interested on
the railroad side profoundly dissatIs-
fed with their condition, and indisposed
to proceed any further in the development
OF the railroad system of the StateY 1t is
to the interest of the railroad companies
that the people along its tracks should be
for it is out of their prosperi-
ty that the roads profit comes"
Nj. WIN. G. Workman. 10 Bay street,