The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-11-18
RELATIVE EXPENSES.


For the fiscal year ending June 80,
1896, the postofice department eX-
pended 800 626, ,296.S4, and it's receipts
were $50, ,499, ,20S40, an excess of eXpon-
diture over revenue of $S127 0SS.4i. The
department received q grant from the
treasury of S6,OOOOOO. still leaving a de-
ficiency of S2,127,OSS.i4. The outstand-
ing Indebtedness due to the postoffice
amounted to $715,251.G3. The postof-
flee employs nearly 100000 persons. a
great contrast is presented by the rail-
road companies. Their aggregate cap
ital account amounts to over $l1 500
100000. OF this S9553, 767, 10 has been
sunk in permanent works and equip
ment. They own nearly $4,000 miles Of
railway, and their operating eXpendi-
lures amounted in 1896 to $792 Dos, 269
This vast sum is the cost of services
which they themselves perform Our
railroads have 36,OS0 locomotive en-
gines, 24,7SS passenger coaches, 1888
baggage and mail cars, and 1850, ,061
freight cars--a total of 1878, ,76S engines
and cars of all descriptions. This enor-
nous amount of rolling stock has TO
be constructed, kept in repair, and
periodically renewed. Some idea of the
magnitude of our railway system may
be gathered from the fact that for
repairs and renewals to locomotives,
passenger and freight cars alone, our
| railways expended in 1895 $93,707 ,9S9,
or $3,163,G67 more than the aggregate
expenses of the United States post
office department for the same year.
The track stands in need of constant
repair. \ writer in the August North
American Review says in this conneC-
ton: During the past fifteen years
the Pennsylvania railroad company
has annually expended millions Of dol
lars in Strengthening the alignment and
| reducing grades on that railroad. The
entire road from Philadelphia to Har-
risburg practically has been rebuilt.
Like improvements have
been carried forward on the Lake
Shore railway from Buffalo to Chi
cago, until today that company has
the greatest mileage Of continuously
! low-grade railroad in the world, enab-
| ling that company to refund its mort
| gage debt in a new consolidated bond
| at 3i@ per cent.--the lowest rate of in
! terest on any railroad on earth.
Every dollar of advantage aC-
| cruing from the enormous disburse-
| ments Of these companies for better
| ments during fifteen years has been
! received by the people of the United
! States in the shape of reduced freight
| and passenger charge"
TAXES.
The railway companies pay 100000
! 600 for taxes, and, relatively speaking.
! they are taxed higher than any other
kind of property. If the government
undertook the management of the rail-
ways, they would have to do much
more than work the roads. They would
have to become purchasers of railway
supplies, ranging from axes, acid and
antimony, to wick and WheelbarroWs.
! For a railroad needs more than road
| bed, ties, steel rails, cars and engines
to pull them. fGrowing out of these
! general features arc demands for ma
terials of such variety that the cata-
| logue Of the purchasing agent is a
| good sized volume, wherein are named
| several hundred articles in more Oh
| less constant use by the corporation
If the state took over the railways
| it would have to become a manufac-
turer on a large scale, Engines, coach
es and wagons might he built by con-
| tract, though this introduces a dang