The San Francisco call., 1896-05-15
CANADA'S ADVANTAGE.

+, Apropos of the movement in Congress
| to withdraw from the Canadian railroads
penetrating the United States the privi
| lege of taking American goods in bond and
| shipping them whithersoever they please,
| a correspondent of the New York Sun has
published some startling facts and conclu-
sions. From the report of the Secretary
of the Treasury to Congress he quotes that
! for the three years-1S93, 1894 and 1896
no less than 1,316,S52 cars, containing "a
! 063, 329 tons OF merchandise, were diverted
from American to Canadian railways
under the bonding regulations.
These goods, it should be remembered,
are transported over Canadian territory
from one part of the United States to an
| other by railroads which are heavily sub
sidized, which are unhampered by any
such law as our interstate commerce act,
and which for other reasons are able to
haul a much lower rates than American
lines can afford to charge. That is why
they control so large part of the traffic
that otherwise would fall to American
roads.
The Suns correspondent makes this
showing:
Ii the loss in earnings to American railways
was only 1215 cents per 100 pounds, the total
loss for three years was 500, ,15S 1922. Railway
traffic earnings for the past three years have
been less than for the years 1880, '91 and '92.
If the average loss for 1896, '97, '9S and '99 is
no greater Qf the bonding regulations remain
in force) than the average of the past three
years, the total loss for this decade will be
more than $20o, 600, 900.
The total gross freight traffic earnings of all
the railways IL Canada for the fiscal year 1898
was $32 1856. .029. For ten years at the same
rate ii would amount TO 1890, ,545, ,203 OF this
total 5000, 100000, or 81 per cent, would be
from American traffic, which legitimately be-
longs 10 our own railways just as much as our
coasting trade belongs TO American vessels.
For the fiscal year 1898 there were 173, $40
miles of railways in operation in this country,
osting 81 ,443, ,SSS, ,S92. The bondholders re-
ceived a little less on the average than per
cent as interest on their capital, and the share
holders less than per cent, and vet we per-
mitted Canadian railways heavily subsidized
by Canada and Great Britain to rob American
railways of their legitimate traffic.
By like careful use of figures and logic
the correspondent shows that the total
passenger traffic earnings of the Canadian
roads for the fiscal year 1898 were SIS, ,0S7, 300 ;
that if these roads were denied the bond
ing privilege they would lose the freight
and that in consequence they could not
afford to charge the present low passenger
rates that bring them SO great volume OF
business. He estimates that their loss on
passenger receipts would be not less that
$5,000,000 year. That is to say, deduct
ing from their total gross earnings of $52,-
042, 1885, $50, 000,000 Tor freight and S., 900. coo
Tor passengers, they would have left only
S27 043, 1856 as total gross earn ngs for 15,-
020 miles of railway, or $500 mile. The
average bonded Indebtedness of all the
Canadian railways is $2l 600 mile, which,
al per cent, demands $l100 mile for IN
terest upon bonds, leaving 500 mile for
operating expenses, rentals, renewals, in
terest on current loans, etc. Their actual
operating expenses in 1893 was $2361 a
mile. Twenty-one out of twenty-seven
Canadion roads did not earn operating ex-
penses, because they had no American
traffic. 1t can be easily inferred not only
TO what extent American roads would be
benefited by the withdrawal OF the bond
ing privilege, but also the difficulty that
Canadian roads would find in existing.