The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1896-10-26
Mr., NELMS IS CORRECTED.
Commissioner Stedman Explains the
Railway Earnings.
GIVES AN EXAMPLE IN ARITHMETIC
Ratio of Operating Expenses to Tonnage
Made Simple--No Attention Paid
to Siurring Remarks.


"on maze four of ,be fourth annual re-
49,, .,,ro,, c,,,,is.,,n of Texas
P"' ~ W nj, ~
find the following 'later'eH' i"' e'''S
amount of freight carried turing tho year
,,,, a,., ,,,,a 90 1904 vas n 2S547T
-. ,,.,,., d,,r,r,, the
IONS thS stoSs ai''oc'"t coz oe' zoe ~ ,ai 9e9
year endlns June o. 1871 " va , ,,
an lhcIea.t ui i'''o pei ''ns' =" , ~,
inss oil an inc re''toA"' VI ,., -
year Nli,Cu Vn",u ~ oV ,,t,,,, ordad
lNr'-'1.Vo' 81" io' Wv ~ - =, ~, In
june 'V' lo'2, ~ va "a. Wv 20 90 ~ ~
crease Oh s7'o't' 'So;','' ut NO. , '., tho.
Now you see ny th,s se' ,eli'iu. II 10
during the year VI "hlch '"p! ., ="
have saved YOU the enormous sum VI -
~ Ooo that the raliroauS WIN u, gu ~
oil lrto per cent " ouS'ness s'i no w On -,
crease III net eHflthKs 100 r i -, /
Now, submit W ne lhp."isonV p,Up ~. |
the state thdt Is an 'hiPussp'''l'!
the railroads to ma"c such a showing win
out an actual increase u lreleii' Ia.es'
Assuming mat NF' Mems Is nonesV a.,N
truth''i IL Is eN'leht 'ii"s i ~, i'S ,sp If
ence oil t"tiYe Fe@rS u. I'LL. o' ,i nv" &c.,
when ne hoesis as qu"HlSlhs ni'' W. ,d
place on the r1lroad COMMISSION, NJ u'u
not learn some Things 'ha' Il collin
ought to Know. ms aTEunleht pam,
stated is that from the iac, tua' ~
certain year as compared WIN d"o'n'i
pauies increased lI.3h per cent cohsluereu
in connection with the fact that LOT 'he
year in which there was such increase ul
tonnage the net earnings Increased 4e.1N
per cent the Conclusion Is .GGy,9'g xn .i
once If il taught him anything concerning
,ho earnings and eypenscs of railroad com
io, yb,,,ld have instructed him that
,be onerotinr exnenses of a railroad com
nanv do moi increase in the same ratio as
an'l,,,' II IN a ,,jynn year the gross earnings
80 Il ,.,ilro,d co,nnanv amount 10 a certain
| ~, ,d ,ho o,,eratinp exneuseg to a Ger
,ai, other surn tho doubling or TRIPPING of
80 .,arrirge YIN not double or triple the
| a,,,,o,.os rho reason Is clear when it is
| n,ai'',,a IN, whether the business is
| t,,a W. s,,au many ~ the EXPENSES such
r,,,,ir, ~ tr,rl, taves salaries OF Off
| ~ . r,,at,, Tho same This view is
s,t -. mo fart mai while for the
oa,. ,,1;,g ,u,e "a 1Sg5 as compared
i't ,h, nav ending June 20. 1891 the
49, Wv ;ora,sad ~ az nor cent and the
e"'' ilfa - S ror CON, the EXPENSES in
eal t ~ ,,,i1,. 9 q nor rent,
| '',nHor ny .ta,,, In ,.esnact 10 the earn
l,"' !. Is ,,,o,sos ., railroad COMPANIES
,ns9 "i" 49,. auction is family IT is
'n"' W. g., he ronrse in arithmetic
. t h,,l'a go ,bnro,,gh Tha renort which
Mas n, Nv s,o,,s vas before him when he
,,,a,oi he sneech cxbibits that compar
pitparc' MS on1;rc tune 70 1894. with
ing 'ne n'' ,,o 70 ,s"5 for the latter
, ,'aar ,ho ,onraqe of the railroad Companies
i'',oaio, ~ ee nor cent the gross earnings
.i'''ee 1i - 'e nor cont and The net earn
that these figures an IN mn,,n 'apira,'ogl
page four OF the last annual renort of th,
, commission, from which page MIR Nelm.
quoted are incomprehensible 10 him To
US" his language. il is AN impossibility
FOR the railroads to make such showing
without an actual increase IN freight
rates That these figures may be the re-
SUI ot business operations consistently
with an actual reduction OF freight rates
Is nevertheless matter of demonstration
People sometimes when they .ncouutt,
such terms as tonnage. earnings, operating
| expenses and others used in railroad mar
lance become confused. Let us rid the
question of this confusing element and ON
ploy an illustration so simple that every
| f'''''l 9'liN WV UtNuus III tN1fe ana .ih
mounds of 0our ,nal,inp I0oo nound- -,