Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1890-11-06
STATISTICIAN POOR
ON THE PROTECTIVE POLICY.


I New York Mail and Express.
There is no better, more accurate OF
more generally recognized authority on
statistics in the country than Mr.. Henry
| V. Poor. In all that concerns railways
and railway management especially, he
is better qualified than any other man
in the country to give an opinion.
Some of the results of his studies of
railway transportation, and of the effect
of the tariff on general prosperity, are
given to the public in the current number
of the Brooklin (Mass.) Chronicle, and
they are worthy of general attention.
Here are some of the facts brought out
by this expert statistician:
The increase of the United States in
population from 1866 to 1889 was about
II per cent. The increase in railway
mileage was 330 per cent. The increase
in railway tonnage number of tons car
ried one mile) was GA per cent. The
increase in the value of goods carried on
railways was about go per cent. In
this period the increase in tonnage and
value was more than four fold greater
than the increase of the population of
the country.
More striking still are the figures
showing railway charges for transporta-
ton. In 1866 the average rate per ton
of merchandise carried on the railways
was 2.73 cents per mile; in 1889 it was
$40 of a cent. The latter rate, however,
is only the average. On the great trunk
lines the rate was lower. On the New
York Central, for instance, there were
2,098,904 tons of freight moved in 1866,
at cost per ton per mile of 2.163 cents;
in 1889, 15,112,2S6 tons were carried at
a cost of .76 of cent per ton per mile.
The gross charge in 1889 was actually
.153 of cent less than the profit per
ton per mile in 1866.
"Our railroads." says Mr.. Poor, open
to every person and to every industry,
no matter where placed, and at lucrative
rates, the markets of the world"
In 1888 the railways of the United
States carried larger volume of traffic
than all the railways of Europe taken
together In 1889 they carried no less
than GIG, 49,, ,237 tons of merchandise.
But what has this to do with a pro-
tective tariff?
The protective tariff has had great
deal to do with this. The coal mines
of the country contributed 100000
600 tons of the total amount trans
ported. The iron interest of the country
contributed 50,000,000 tons. The Incl
dental effect of the tariffin swelling the
volume of railway business can not be
exactly estimated; but it is hardly too
much to assume that to the tariff, directly
and indirectly, is due more than half the
tonnage of our railways.
The amount of railway extension and
railway transportation is one measure
of the prosperity of our country, and
pretty good measure. The enormous
increase of these items under a protective
policy, together with the fact that trans
portation costs the consumer less than
one third of what it costs in England,
and less than one-quarter of what it
costs on the continent of Europe, and
together with the further fact that wages
on our railways, as in most of our in
dustries, are just about double here
what they are in England-this shows,
in form apparent to everybody, the
splendid result of protective policy.