Morning journal and courier., 1884-03-14
LOCAL NEWS.
The Railroad Problem.

| MT. Arthur TT. Hndley's Idea of the Way to Reform Railroad InjustfceE-A Ma tioaaI COmmissiOn Advocated.
 "The Railroad Problem" was discussed by
 Arthur T. Hadley at North Sheffield hall last evening. the lecture being the sixth in the
 Mechanics course. The room was crowded.
 Mir. Hadley spoke of the vast railroad system
 of the country and the opportunities of fraud
 it afforded. He said that speculation and
 corruption were undoubtedly evils connected
 with the railway system, but those evils are
 not so great as they were. Are the railroads
 making too much money? The general
 average of returns on the money invested is
 only per cent. The people of the coun-
 try are not going to grudge this interest.
 They say that the railroads charge too high
 rates. But the rates of transportation are
 now much cheaper than formerly. The ir-
 regularity of rates is the real cause of the
 complaint about the rates. One man is
 charged more than another. The difference
 in rates comes harder on the producer than
 the consumer. If one man in the neighbor-
 hood of Kansas City is charged more for the
 transportation of wheat than another it makes
 8 great difference. man won't stand
 such an arbitrary action on the part of the
 railroad. That was the root of the Granger
 difficulty several years ago. Places situated
 on railroad junction got lower rates than
 places nearer the market that were on only one railroad. That caused trouble. There
 are inequalities for different kinds of goods
 and different manufacturers. Competition is powerless to remedy these evils Popular
 remedies and the railroad remedies have been
 tried. A popular remedy generally has the
 merit of simplicity and very few other merits. Popular remedies try to treat the
 disease by the symptoms. They do not find that the disease yields to the treatment Experiments have been tried, but have been intellectual, because peo pie don't understand that the question is com plicated Legislation on the railroad question
 has been advancing. It was proposed that
 such scale of rates be adopted that the
 railroad should make just as much profit on one thing as another. MT. Hadley explained the injustice of such rule. Objectors say
 that different rates should not be charged for the same articles, and that it is wrong to charge more for a part of the distance than for the whole. These things are right as general truths but as axioms to use everywhere they are wrong. Mir. | Hadey gave illustrations to show how in- l equalities in rates are perfectly justifiable | sometimes. The short haul principle Is also | criticised. Bismarck tried the principle on ! large scale. It has worked well where there
 is not water competition. In Germany it | raised through rates and stopped the through
 business. Railroads became unproftable, 1 and the principle had to be abandoned l Congress has legislated on the railroad tariff | in different ways. Pooling is the solution
 that railroad men have attempted to give to I this question. Different roads agree on
 rates. The trouble is that the roads can't i keep up such an agreement. They ask | that each road have certain share of the traffic to avoid fraud ''Set thief to catch thief" and set rail- l road man to watch railroad man seems to
 be the best way. A national commission to 1 manage the office will be 8 good check
 against injustice The direction to look for 1 reform in railroads is toward 8 commission l appointed to protect the permanent interests
 of railroads and people against the temporary | interests of railroad dividends. Such com l mission would get the support of the best ! railroad men and would be such power that
 it would guard against what may be one of | the greatest evils of our national life.