Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-01-20
OUR RAILWAYS.
Annual Report Of State Board
of Railroad Commissioners,
The Traffic and Revenues for the Past
Twelve Months Show Decrease Over
le96-Use Of Third Rail.
lspecial pigpatch b the spvl

Boston, JAN 19,-The annual report Of
the board of railroad commissioners
will be presented to the legislature in
few days. The report shows that
there are now In Massachusetts 21O1. $50
miles Of main and branch railroad
lines. There are beside go miles of Sec
ond, third and fourth main track and
1871 miles of side track, making the to-
tai length of railroad track in the state
1894 miles. The total length of railroad
lines owned by Massachusetts, compan-
les in and out Of the state is S516 miles
and the total length of railroad track
owned is 6953 miles.
In a review of the year. the COM
mission says the exhibit for the past 70
months have been in some respects dis
appointing. AT the close of the proceed
ing year it was hoped that the tide had
fairly turned, and that a period of fun
recovery and prosperous growth had at
last set in. On the contrary, the traf-
tic and revenues for the companies f,,s
the last year show q falling off in every
particular from those of the fiscal wear
ending June 30, 1896. This 6 r nlage
was, however, very nearly counterbaI-
dIlGea by strict economy and a marked
Ifelght rate reached it's lowest average
point on the railroads of this state at
LLo cents per ton mile. AS compared
WIlh une proceeding year there was. in
round numbers, a decrease of g. 1851 70O
II GROSS earnings from operation Of
Sa,s49 lVo in operating expense and OF
$zoVV IN net earnings from operation.
aue net dlYlstble income from all
sources was $157, 900 less than the vear
before, and the amount of dividend,
declared was $3.50 greater; SO that
! d surplus of 1864, $50 for the wear 1905
I was charged into a deficit Of S55 150 fo,
the year 1897. The gross surplus Of fine
companies was however, increased nv
the amount of $1,2O695O indicating that
approximately that $1,262 100 had been
expended out OF current income On con-
struetuon, equipment and other addi-
lions to permanent property. The aver
age rate of dividends paid on the total
amount of outstanding capital stock was
0'6O per cent-an advance from s. 49 ne4.
| cent the previous year.
Inere has been a marked decline i11r-
ing the past year In the annual num-
Der or passengers carried ON the rail-
roads OF Massachusetts, companies, For
the ten years up to and INCLUDING, the
year 1893, there had been an average in
crease of nearly 5,825, 900 passengers per.
year. For the four years since 1899
uhere has been an average decrease of
over 4,766,000 passengers Der wear
There We're carried in 1898, 121, SO7, 945
passengers, and in 1897, 1902, 743, 800 The
commission does not pretend to state
whether the cause of this is the hard
times or street railway competition, but
suggests the shr.nkage as a subject for
| careful thought and study.
Discussing the railroad travel to and
from Boston, the board saws the roads
which terminate in Boston. in 1893 car
Iled 56,5S1,541 passengers; and in 1897.
49,69l,215. The railroads entering Bos-
ton ON the north have suffered in the
last four years a. diminution of 1872 per
cent in the annual number of passen-
gers carried to and from the city. and
those entering Boston from the south
of II per cent. The loss of the New Eng
land road C22.2 per cent? is the largest.
and that of the Fitchburg road (4.6 per
cent? the least
The board points out that from 1893 to
1897 the number of passengers on the
west End Street Railway Of Boston
has increased at the rate Of 9,672, TOO
passengers per year, amounting to an
increase Of 2S.9 per cent for the four
years, and that this road and the four
others whose lines run from or into the
city of Boston have increased at the
rate of 12,2OS, 900 passengers per year,
and 31.2 per cent for the four years II
appears to be safe estimate that in
the last four years the annual amount
OF suburban travel to and from Boston
on the railroad lines has diminished in
the aggregate not less than 10 per cent.
and on the electric railway lines has
increased more than 20 per cent
Discussing the use of electricity i'm
railroad operation, and particularly
what has been done in that line by the
N. Y, N. H. & H, the board saws ~the
practicability of the use, under favor
able conditions, of third rail for the
transmission of electric current on sur
race roads, Is contrary to the formerly
generally accepted opinion of electrical
experts, is, perhaps, the most import
ant fact of more recent demonstration
The third rail has manifest advantages
In point of practical convenience over
the overhead trolley. The board adds
that It has not yet been put to the test
of all of the possible vicissitudes of a;
New England winter Some changes
in the existing railroad laws may have
to be made in reference to the use Of
electricity.
The whole number of accidents to
trains reported during the year ending
June 30, 1897, was a. which was Is more
than the number during the preceding
year; 20 Of these were collisions and IL
were derailments. No passengers were
killed by collision or a derailment. bur
IA were more or less seriously injured by
a COLLISION and by derailment Four
were killed and % were in
1ured in collisions, and 8 killed and IL
injured in deradlments. The total num-
Der of accidents to persons during the
year were 919, which is a decrease over
1896 of los. OF the whole number. 24s
were fatal, 6S of these injured persons
were passengers, 537 employees and *
persons at grade crossings and stations.
and 244 were trespassers. AT grade cross
ings 26 persons were killed, and 20 in
jured, not fatally. AT stations IL persons
were reported as killed and as injured.
The total cost to Jan. l, 1898. paid. for
the abolition of grade crossings in this
is So, 452, 042, of which
amount the state pays $1,S14,956 the bal-N
ance coming out of the cities and towns.
The state has also paid under a special
law $1,275, 252 for the abolition Of the
Boston and Providence grade crossings
in the city of Boston. The board sug-
gests a joint utilization Of the terminal
and other facilities of the N. Y, N. III.
& H, and N. Y. & N. E. road in Boston,
in order that the capacity and useful
ness of each system may be increased.
i FOOT BALL RULES COMMTTTER