The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1894-11-07


Republican osti'ut.oNs.
The interstate commerce commission
has been compiling fos some tine a
statement Of the conditions under
which the railroads Of the world are
operated. The subject vas not sug-
gested by the recent testimony before
the commission meeting in Chicago
The labor union men there have Iesti-
fed their belief that the solution Of the
problem of employer and employed Oh
the railroad world was the government
control of railroads.
The facts and the figures which the
interstate commerce commission has
gathered together do not, says the Pnil'
adelpbia Times, conArm their theory
nv the experience OF other nations
Even in the United States the expert
ment of railroads controlled by the
State has been tried in different Sec
tions and has so far proved a distinct
failure.
There are only six countries in the
world in which the control Of virtually
sll the railroads is in the hands OF
the state. They are Australasia, the
Cape of Good Hope, Egypt, Nicaragua
Paraguay and Peru-certainly not
countries after which the United States
would be very much tempted to pat
tern. But there are some great cou L
tries In which the state is a part owner
of railroads, and these include Ger
many, France, Denmark, Austrian
Hungary, Belgium, Brazil and Canada.
Eleven countries, CT one-half of those
In which railroads are operated, have
no interest in the operation of the roads
beyond 8 claim for money advancedl TO
some of them. In two countries rail-
roads are owned by the government.
but are leased to private companies,
which operate them.
In Nicaragua, Paraguay and Peru,
where there was no inducement for
private capital to invest In railroads,
the governments were obliged to build
what few lines there are, and these are
operated by the government and run
by the government employees. In Aus
tralasia, with the exception Of one or
two short lines, the colonial govern
ment have built the roads with money
derived from loans negotiated 5y agents
general. In Victoria and New South
Wales so many abuses grew out OF the
partisan control OF the roads that ten
years ago they were placed under the
direct management OF non-partlsan
commission, which not only dlrects
their operation, but has charge Of the
construction Of new lines. In Egypt
there are about 1850 miles Of railroads
belonging to the government and two
short lines, which are under private
control. At the Cape Of Good Hope
all but about 18O miles Of lima in Cape
Colony is owned and controlled by the
government.
AGAINST GOVERNMENT CONTROL.
The rates charged on these out-of-the'
Way-lines are not -air basis for the
comparison of state controlled roads
with those which are owned by private
companles or individuals. Yet Joseph
NImmo, Jr., the statisticisp, has 1ound
IN the Australian roads a strong arsu-
ment against government control. His
remarks (Which are not QG2ted by the
interstate commisSiop) are: "Construc
tion of railroads in Australia FILLED as
q private enterprise. Then each one Of
the FIVE colonies took the matter up
separately as governmental enterprises
Their construction has been a source of
grave charges of dishonesty, and their
management subject Of popular COM
plant, especially smong the farmers.
Freight charges are much higher On the
Australian railroads than on our Am
erican roads" Marshal NJ. Kirkman
writes that the experience OF Cape Col
ony has betn the same. In order to
get the necessary votes in the assem- bly,
to pass a bill authorizing the construc
tion OF meritorlous lines, 1t has been
necessary to baild other lines, that were
not required and will not pay it."
The condition Of affairs finds paral
lei IN the American congress In the
matter of river and harbor improve
menls, for the river and q :rbor bill IS
notorlously 'log-rolI- d" measure.
The result Of the construction OF non
paying lines in EDglish South Africa,
Mr.. Klrkman says, Is that high freight
rates are charged on the good lines to
make up for losses on the poor lines,
and this has acted as prohibition on
every industry except diamond and
gold mining, and sheep and ostrich
farming. Private railway lines are for
hidden in Cape Colony because their
COmDSllllOu Will luC AOSSNo
would be fatal TO the latter.
Even in Germany the government
found 1t necessary to buy up many
private roads because their competition
was ruinous. Ninety per cent of the
mileage IN Germany is owned by the
government, and under the law the
government is required to manage the
roads as single system in the interest
of general traffic. The government
may cause the construction and equip
ment of roads and enforce uniform
traffic and polio regulations; and even
the few private railways are under the
control of state boards, and their maxi
mum rates are fixed In their charters.
Although Germany's government
methods are so admirable in many re-
spects the experience of the people OF
that country with government control
of railroads has been encouraging. In
stead of operating the roads in the IN
terest of the eople, the government
uses them as source of revenue and
power, and the rates charged are higher
than those which are charged IN the
United States, while the rules Of the
road are much more burdensome
TOO MUCH RED TAeE.
An oft.repeated story Of Chauncy
Depew illustrates the red tape Of Ger.
man railroad management. A party of
young Americans ran after moving
train to csard 1t. The cfacial Of the
platform called to them to stop. They
ran on ana boarded the train. At the
next station at which the train stopped
they were taken from the car by hle
Of soldiers, and Informed that as they
had clearly violated law of the En-
pre- they had already been tried and
sentenced, without hearing, to thirty
days Imprisonment. Senator Cullom'
on his return from trip TO Germany,
few years ago, said that there was
more fuss over the departure OF one
train in Germany than one would see
in years travel il America. and that
if our railroads had 10 pay the army OF
officials which was needed to manage
the German roads, they would have TO
charge twice the present rates.
In France the original intention was
A. r<n,- tnS OF q