The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-01-03

The State Funds Wasted
by Rea & Co. :. ).
A WORTHLESS REPORT MADE.
1t Contains 38e Pages That. Would
Be of More; Value as Blank
Paper. ::

To a man in Kalamazoo the Railroad
Commissions annual report, issued Yester-
day, might be good reading. but to- Cali
fornians it is nothing but clumsy literary
effort. compiled fol- no other purpose except
to deceive the public
The Kalamazoo man would not know any
thing about California's railroad affairs
after he finished reading Messrs. .Rea,.
Litehfield aud Beckman's book, and no
citizen of this State will have the patience
to read all OF it; for unless he is the employ
OF the Southern Pacific Company he willbe
utterly disgusted as soon as he turns the
FIRST few pages and will consign the Whole
volume to the waste basket.
In their introduction the Commissioners
say that the statistical details which accom-.
panied former reports have this year been
eliminated TO permit complete. report :of
the proceedings in the Shiyely case.
AS matter of fact there is but very little
of these proceedings contained: In the re-
port, it having been sent to print before any.
testimony WAS TAKEN
To be sure the complaint Of r. 0. Shiyely
VS.. The Southern Pacific Company can De
found on rage 1913 and the Southern Paetilc
Company's objections on pages l44 and 145,
and there is also X. I. Morgan's queer ex-
pert report given In full as an appendix.
But these are nearly all the references
made to the Shively case, unless the lew
onesided remarks about its origin dove
tailed in here and there ale TO be coDsld-
cred.
The report states in the way of business
that from July S, 1891. to August 4, 1892,
there were seventeen railroad corporations.
in this State with a total capital stock au-
thoriZed of $50 2O0 eco, which contemplate
the construction of 22S6 miles OF road, be-
sides two electric roads. with capital sto;; K
authorized amounting To 81, 10000 and Inc
contemplated length of 80 miles OF road.
During the fiscal year just closed there
were 31S. y miles Of new road constructed,
making the total length OF all roads III
California 1909 20 miles.
SIeaking OF profits and such matters, the
report says the following:
The total gross income OF all the California
roads which reported TO the commission for the
last fiscal year was S42.l29.7SS n aud Tie
operating expenses were $25, 596,3S3 90, ieay-
Ing a balance of SIG, 533, 4O5 ~.
The average freight earnings per ION per mile
for The Southern Pacific Company Is ST cents;
for the other lines, excepting only the Atlantic
and Pacific Railroad, from 2.62 cents per ton per
mile TO II cents per ton per nille
The percentage OF operating expenses to gross
earnings as shown By he different companies Is
634 per cent for the lines operated by The South
eIn Pacific Company and 70 per cent for the
other lines In California. The average rate OF
fare per passenger per nile for the Southern
Pacific lines Is 2.16 cents. For the her lines
the average Indicated by The table Is closely In
the nelgnborhood Of cents per passenger per
mile.
The formation OF the two railroad COM
panies consolidated during the year Is re-
ferred TO by the Commissioners In the fol-
lowing paragraphs
There were two companies formed during the
past year by the consolidation OF roads now IN
operation One oil these, the southern California
Railway Company, includes the Santa Ice ana
Santa Monica Railway Company, the San Ber-
nardno and Eastern Company and the Southern
California Company, having total length OF 666
miles, with an aggregate STOCK authorized OF
SIT, 100000.
Tie other consolidation was that known as the
Long Beach and AlamiJoS Bay Railway Com
PAW which now includes the Los Angeles and
Ocean Railway Company and the Long Beacn
and Alamilos Bay Railway Company, having
total length of twenty-five miles, Win capital
Fixed at 10000
Then comes the touching and greatly mis-
leading reference to the causes which led to
the filing OF the Shiyely complaint men
toned in the foregoing, and IN history OF
the case Traffic Manager Leeds is blamed
for the whole business.
Quotations from letters exchanged be-
tween the Traffic Association and the COM
mission appear on the next pages of the re-
port hut siuce the letters were given IN full
at the time they were exchanged and the
extracts quoted are selected with view 10
disguise the true state OF affairs, is being
absolutely no value attached to them.
The introduction closes with humble
apology for the unwarranted employment OF
Expert Morgan, which contains the follow
ing naive lines:
Tie commission, however, finds Itself In an
embarrassing condition financially, as there are
no funds upon which IL can draw 10 pay Tor The
services OF an expert, which are necessarily ex-
pensiye, ana Tie only remedy now remaining IS
for lie Legislature 10 appropriate reasonable
sum TO meet ibis contingency.
Under the head OF Proceedings Of the
Railroad Commission in Connection With
the Traffic Association Of California" some
of the letters and schedules sent by Man
ager Iced and ex.President Sletson OF the
association are presented. together with the
replies by Rea, Litchfield and Beckman.
All of these letters were published IN
THE CALL last summer
The stormy sessions and the hot cOntro-
yersies between Leeds and the board bad
during the months Of March, April and
May are not mentioned at all.
And these are all the contents OF this great
book, which was expected 10 contain matter
of so convincing nature that every SEN
ator or Assemblyman only had to read it
and be converted at once 10 the idea that the
Railroad Commission is the noblest and
most useful body ever created
During the eleventh century fashion OF
embroidering the initials of the name and