The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1892-04-28

Increased earnings pJZ1 ,cJO.OU. 1ue
records of the Houston and Texas
Central and several other roads pre-
sent quite as favorable conditions.
Two or three only show reduced earn
ings during the commission period
compared to the corresponding
months of the preceding year. At
once on making these statements l
hear the question asked in suBdued
tones, How is this? Rates on every
thing have been reduced and yet the
railways have increased their earn
ings? The question is proper under
the circumstances and am glad to
answer it.
Reduced rates increase the volume
of trade. They stimulate business.
Practical, every day life demonstrates
this. On the principle that man
can make more money driving thirty
horses to town at so cents head than
by driving five horses at dollar and
half head, the railway companies
make more money by hauling large
quantities of traffic at cheap rates
than they do by hauling a small
amount at high rates. Perhaps bet
ter illustration would be to call your
attention to the effect of excursion
rates from here to Dallas. Suppose
the road were to charge $40 a passen-
ger the round trip, but few of you
would go except from absolute neces-
sity. None of you would make the
trip for pleasure. The cars therefore,
though required to go and return,
would haul but few people. On the
other hand, if they were to charge
dollar the round trip thousands of
you would go and crowd the cars.
Whether for business, recreation or
pleasure the people would travel often
and load the road with work.
If you will notice the greatest gains
by companies have been by decrease
of "expense;" yet they have not re-
duced salaries nor the wages of their
employees. nor failed laterly to render
good public service. The companies
will deny it, but this saving under
the head of expenses is most likely
the amount they have heretofore paid
out in rebates now prohibited and
made possible of detection under the
law. Another reason for increase OF
earnings is that. the railways ship
Texas produce from point to point
within the State, and therefore have
not so much division to make with
outside lines. In this way there has
been great saving. 1t is sufficient to
say, however, that rates have been
greatly reduced and the roads have
not lost money. So neither the peo-
pie nor the corporations should COM
plain of the commissions work.
1t is self-evident proposition that
the railways cannot operate without
revenue; and that revenues must be
raised by collecting tolls or charges
from the traffic carried by them. In
the last campaign the question was,
who shall fix the schedule of charges
to govern the railways in collecting
revenue from the people? For long
time these traffic charges were fixed
by traffic managers outside OF the
State, who knew nothing about
Texas. 1t was to their in
terest to carry all the commerce of
the state over connecting lines to
Northern markets several thousand
miles away. 1t was against their in
terest for our traffic to be sent to the
coast so near by, whence it could be
carried over the sea to the competing
markets of the world. In other words,
foreign traffic managers who con-
trolled Texas roads were interested in
making Texas traffic pay tribute to
help support connecting lines leading
| to and from other cities in which they
were interested. They therefore, in
the nature of things. opposed local
factories of every kind, and seriously
objected to the concentration of our
traffic on the gulf coast. 1t was their
custom to charge from three to ten
times more persImile for hauling to
and from points within the state than
to and from points beyond state lines.
They made it rule to carry our cot
ton, grain, lumber and stock cheaper
to manufacturing points East and
North than they would to similar
points within the state one-twentieth
the distance. They cerried our raw
material to the Northern manufac-
tories and brought back manufactured
articles to supply the demands OF our
people. They hauled our wheat from
the Panhandle to Kansas and Missouri
mills and brought flour from those
places back to Texas for home con-
sumption, instead of hauling the wheat
W ObO POo-
pie that advantage. They hauled Kan
sas instead of Texas corn to those sec
tions of the state where it was not
raised, and the people were forced to
use it. They carried Texas fat cattle
to Kansas and Illinois packeries,
where they were butchered and sent
back to Texas cities and markets to
supply home consumption. They car
ried our lumber to the north and east
for manufacturing purposes cheaper
than they would to Texas points.
They charged less for carrying out
cotton seed to central places several
hundred miles off than they would to
local mills close by. BY this process
they had made about SIS per cent Of
the traffic of Texas interstate to the
injury of the people and their local
industries. In fixing their rates their
only inquiry was, how much will the
traffic bear? And the question of
BUSINESS, reasonableness of rates and
the encouragement of our local facto-
ries never entered their minds. The
result was that no Industries in the
state, except those largely controlled
or owned BY the railway officials,
prospered