The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1894-10-04
NATIONAL R[ZZbE!
Government Ownership Of Rail
ways Would Be Just That.

Beware the Peoples Party
Bargain Table, For Theil
! Brand New Schemes Have
Been Weighed and Founc
Wanting, Times Without
Number, Years and Years
! Ago.
An examination Of the financial prob
lem involved in the government owner
ship and operation of railroads hal
shown that it would bankrupt the
credit of this country if attempted; and
that the entire net earnings Of the roads
under the present system, which are
presumab y larger than they would be
under the less economical system OF
public management, would be INSULT
Gent to pay the lowest rate of interest
at which bonds could be foated, or an
amount equivalent to the sum for which
they could be condemned under the
law Of eminent domain, or bought at
private sale.
This will seem to determine, from
one direction, the total impracticability
of the Populistic idea Of the nationalist
ton of railroads. It has proved to be
just as undesirable by another mass OF
conclusive testimony drawn from the
experience Of governments which have
already engaged in the business.
Beware Of tho Peoples Party Political
Bargain Table.
It is common to all the novelties ex.
posed by the Peoples party on the polit.
ical bargain table, that they ignore the
facts of past human experience. Any,
body would think, for instance, to listen
to Populist speeches and to read Popu-
list campaign documents that the free
coinage of silver was brand new
scheme, evolved from somebody's brain
within the last year or two, and de-
pendent upon theory for acceptance or
rejection. The fact is, to the contrary,
- every moderately well informed per-
son is aware, that the Populist idea OF
money and what can be done with it, is
as old as money itself; and that the ex-
pertinent which they are anxious to try
has been tried hundreds Of times and
has ended in failure, panic and utter
business ruin, without . single excep-
ton.
One would suppose in like manner
that the national ownership and con-
troll Of railroads was beautiful inven-
ton Of late date, and that we would
have to experiment with it before we
could determine just how it would work
in practice. On the contrary, there is
abundant information, easily obtainable
from current and standard works on
the railroad question, and also from
recent official publication Of the United
States government, to teach us how
state Ownership has worked in other
parts Of the world.
Facts About Government Ownership Of
Railroads.
Il is true thai no important govern
ments have adopted the system in its
entirety. The results Of q partial adop-
tion of it have not been satisfactory
enough for that.
Only two governments in the world.
Egypt and Nicaragua, with q total
mileage of less than fourteen hundred
miles, own and operate their entire
railroad systems.
Ten governments, including some of
the most enlightened and freest people
in the world, do not own or operate
railways at all.
Eighteen governments have . mixed
system, part Of the roads being owned
by private companies and another part
by the state. This system has been
adopted most largely on the continent
Of Europe, and seems to be perfectly
well adapted to the monarchical and
bureaucratic forms of government
which flourish there.
Three governments, Greece, Holland
and Italy, own part Of their railways
but do not operate them at all. They
are operated under lease by private
companies.
I will be seen that an immense ma
jority of the railroad mileage of the
world is u de: private control. In
Austria about 40 per cent Of the railway
mileage is owl:d, a1d about 70 per
cent is operated by the state. In Bel
GUM three-four> hs of the mileage is
under state control, and railroad affairs
are administered in connection with
postofices and telegraphs by q govern
ment department.. In Canada about
one-tenth of the total mileage of Is, 900
miles, is owned and controlled by the
gov rnment.
The Experience Of France Should Be q
The system in France is peculiar.
After very unsatisfactory experience,
both with unrestricted private competi-
ton and state management, the terri
tory of France was finally partitioned
among six great companies. Each has
q distr ct within which it alone is al
lowed to do business, and competition
is prohibited. In order to secure to the
public adequate facilities, where private
ownership is.thus denied, it was neces-
sary for the government to give large
encouragement and financial support to
the roads. It has provided from
9750, 000, 900 to 81, 900, coo, 900 of capital,
or from one.fourth to one-third Of the
whole, and guarantees large govern.
s>>k - l.