Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1888-03-01

ment and betterment of the property. What
will be the state Of affairs when we have lost
of this revenue Si10, 900, and when we have
added to our expenditures $175, 900, making
difference to us Of $685., 200. 1t is close
figures. We would not have money enough
then by S150,000 TO pay our interest and
nothing left to apply in the way of any need
ed and added improvements. Now, in. re-
gard to that / should like to say word. We
have taken some pride in working up the
property which l am in charge of, SO that ii
shall be credit to ourselves and credit to
our State. Some of you people who live on
the line of our road can testify as to wheth-
er it has been improved any or not. But
we flatter ourselves that our passengers are
reasonably, to say the least, well provided
for by the number of passenger trains and
the quality OF them, We have endeayored
to improve our track SO that quick time
could be made over it with safety. We do
something In the way of adopting modern
appliances contributing to the comfort of
our people. l think we are step in adj
vance of any road west of Chicago In the
matter of heating trains. We equipped two
trains before winter came with steam
heating apparatus. j am not aware
that any other road west of Chi
cago took that step; but, as all of you re-
member, this matter was wonderfully brought
before the people during last winter, some
very serious accidents causing loss of life
through fire occurring at wrecks, and fore
saw, or thought l did, that there was going
to be general and popular demand for some
other method of heating coaches, and like
to keep our road up pretty near to the mark
and be as near to the front as L can, and as
| say, i equipped two trains running between
Cedar Rapids and DEBORAH, with steam heat
ing, and | will say, gentlemen, they have
been successful; we have had no trouble
whatever through this coolest weather, and
guess it has been as cold as Iowa weather
gets to be, these cars have never at any time
have ever seen them or heard any one say
when the mercury stood at less than G5 and
20 degrees. But gentlemen, what are we
going to do if we are to be curtailed in this
way, our revenues diminished and these eX-
have we left for any of these
improvements? Not dollar. We
are S150,00O short on our interest
account. We shall, as matter of course,
try to pay our interest 1t is light; $4,000,
mile at per cent interest. Not another
road in the State of Iowa with so low an in
terest account per mile do not believe, and
we certainly ought TO try to pay that much
to the people who have invested their money
in the property. There is an issue of stock
but l am sorry to say that it has never been
of any benefit to its holders. There has
never been dollar of dividend paid to them,
and / must say there is very poor prospect
ahead for it. We only try to pay the inter
est, and the balance is put into the property
to improve it, to make it safer and better
and TO serve the people better. Now gentle
men, what is going to be the result of this
hao Iax ,,a1,V,N a,,N nj
form is going to be the wateh-word and
economy in every particular. We are going
to strive to pay the interest as long as we
can, but the days of the receiver are not go
ing to be very far Off, but how are we going
to stave them off? In the first place
we will stop improvement. We will put as
little as possible in our tracks, We will try
to keep it so we can run over it; we will put
as little repairs as possible on our engines
and keep them going; we shall have to aban-
don at least SO Is per cent of our passenger
train mileage. The cost of running pas
sCngar train is not less than soc. per mile,
and we are running passenger trains to-day
which pay us but 14c. per mile between
Iowa City and Clinton, SIC. mile between
Muscatine and MOntezuma, little over Ace.
a mile between Cedar Rapids and Sioux
Falls, and between Ellsworth and Water
trains on the main line which pays us about
75c. or Soc, and they have to support those
lines which do not earn money enough to
pay for the men that are on them and the
coal burned in the engines. Those trains
will certainly have to come off. They ac-
cOmmodate the people, not so many as |
wish they did, because it would be better for
us If there were more, but we will have TO
take them off, and the people on these
branches will have to do their riding ON
freight trains.
DO these people want this? Would not
they much prefer to pay US what money they
are paying now, and have the train accom-
modatons which they have now? They are
carried safely and quickly, and connections
are made ON time. A passenger starts at
any point on our line on one day and the
next morning he is in Chicago. All over the
State, by our own lines and connecting
lines, these principal points are easy of ac-
cess. Do not you suppose that every one of
the people of Iowa, who patronize our road,
would great deal rather pay us what they
have been paying us for the services of the
last year, than to pay twenty cents less per
passenger and have to ride ON freight train?
You can see for yourselves we will have to
reduce expenses in some way, and that is one
way, and the first Wages | would not re-
duce until absolutely compelled to. AS
matter of course there will be reductions in
the force. When my people come to
me, for i will have to let some of
them go, l will have TO say
to them, our legislature has reduced our rev.
enue to such an extent that we cannot pay
you; you cannot work for nothing; l appre-
ciate your position; you have your little
home, partly paid for, but it is absolutely out
Of my power to help you; / have only so
much business, and the rates | do not fix
myself; have to do business on the rates
fixed by other people, your representatives
in the Iowa legislature; it only earns so
much money, and | must distribute that ac-
cording to my best judgment; if | cannot
pay you but half wages it is better you
should go and try some more favored place.
What does the man have to do? 1t is inev-
table; cannot help him; he cannot help
himself; he has nothing to do only to go out
and get some place else; leave the home he
has paid for, or partly paid for; sell it
IL he can, or try to rent it. And who
does he rent it to? Here are fifty
more people in the same fix, i have had to
let go; he can neither get any rent Dor his
property nor can he sell it, because there 81
so much for sale and what is he going to do ?
Gentlemen, yod had better go slow. There
are great many railway employees in the
State of Iowa, about $4,000, and this thing
is going to affect every one of them sooner or
later. We will staye it off as long as we can,
but sooner or later they have to feel it, and
1t cannot be helped; but when they do come
to feel it i can say have done my duty in
explaining this to you. Here are figures that
can be verified by anybody. You can go to
the Commissioners, and this is simply copy
n tbn mazda m them. fhav n vapi-