Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-08-28

muster will be both pleasant and profit
able to all concerned.
Railroad Statistics
"Poor's Manual for 1854, just pub
lished, gives some interesting statistics as
regards the condition of American rail
roads at the close of the past year. 1t ap-
pears that at the close Of 1884 there were
1880 miles of railroad i'm the United
States. of which 3911 miles were construct
ed last year. The share capital of the
miiclg" in operation in 1854, equalled 3d.
1i2,GlG,GNG. against 500, OGO, jN3 in lNS3
The funded debts of all the lines at the
close Of the year aggregated S3,669, l15, i12,
Il sum Sl6N 23j, SIS in excess of the total Of
lNN3 The other forms of Indebtedness of
the several companies at the close of the
year equalied S2H GGG, 596, against S26S,-
/ I!j,4N5 tor 1883, the decrease being 81, 25S,
/ 60. The total share capital and indebted
ness Of oil kinds of all the roads making
returns amounted to $1,Gi6,399, 054, Il net
increase in the year Of Sl9S. 533212. The
gross earnings and receipts from all the
lines making returns were $40, GS4, 90S of
which >33t.,9J,1ul were received from
transportation of passengers 500, sG9,9lO
/ from -portation of freight and So, OOO,-
900 from transportation of mails and eX-
press matter, Investments and sale of
lands. The gross earnings of all the lines
for the year ending December, lsS3, were
1923, 1924, exceeding those Of 1854 by $53,-
0Ss,0l6, or a falling of in the latter year of
GA per cent.
/ Notwithstanding the great prostration
of business the past year the tonnage of
merchandise distributed in 1854 fell very
little short Of that of 1883, while it exceed
ed the tonnage moved in 1852 by %, 5S3, 3I4
tons.
MI Poor says the falling off of the earn
ings is something phenomenal. In 1877
the total earnings of all the roads was
S4;29O9,272. From that date they increas-
ed rapidly until in 1883 they amounted to
sS23, ''2,g34. In four years the increase
amounted to S29S, l52, 34,, the average in
crease being more than $i5, 900 annually
This increase was due very largely to the
enormous expenditure in the period of
I'VE years ending in 1883, in the COnstruC-
ton of railroads, within which 10000 miles
were constructed ut cash cost of 81 POO, -
OOO,OOO.
OF these 10000 miles considerable part
was built on speculation and parallclcd
existing lines. The most striking exam
pies of the kind are the West Shore and
Nickel Plate, and the general dcmoralza-
ton which has prevailed the past year in
railroad circles is due more largely to the
construction Of these two lines than to
anything else. Their effect has been to
stop altogether dividends on the Lake
shore and Michigan Central, and to reduce
those paid on the New York Central from
two per cent quarterly to one-half of one
per cent quarterly. The earnings of other
great trunk lines have suffered in like
manner, and business has been done with
little reference to rates or results Back
OF the building of these two parallel lines,
and the real cause of the catastrophe of
1888 and 1881, was the wonderful success
of the signal instances of "watering" of
which the Pacific lines, the New York
Central and Lake Shore are striking ex-
amples, The real catastrophe, Mr.. Poor
says, took place when the watering oc-
CURED. It's success set everybo wild
and capitalist and adyenturer alike were
seized with mania for railroad building.
The country, N the opinion of Mr.. Poor,
is nov at about It's lowest cbD as far as rail
roads are concerned. The competing
lines are being takcn up by the lines they
parallel to, The West Shore imbroglio
has been settled by the absorption of the
West Shore by the New York Central.
With this settlement will probably come
peace between the New York Central and
. Pennsylvania companies, and then sub
stantial progress will have been made
towards Il restoration of rates to Il paying
basis.
The general volume of business in 1854
it appears very nearly equalled that of
1883. In extensive sections, mainly free
from the influences which have affected
the lines paraleled, the earnings in 1854
compare favorably with those of 1883. The
earnings of the railroads in the New Eng
land group in 1854 were SOS, 55s ,9l3, against
$50, l55, 1G3, for 1888 the falling off being
only $3.50, $50. The earnings of the ten
States comprising the Southern group
were Sil SCI ,I95 in 1854 against 500, S44 ,273
for 1888 the increase for the year being
S2,0l7 522. The earnings of the siX'great
lines within the territory lying to the
south and west OF Lake Michigan were, in
1884 ,S7I ,253, 296 against SIS SOD, IA in 1888
the decrease for the year being only
Sl,2ll AS The number of tons moved by
these lines in 1884, was 32513,5lS against
81 ,663, 979 in 1883. With the recovery of
the trunk lines, Mr., Poor predicts that
the whole railroad system will resume its
former prosperity.