The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-01-28


exceeding North Carolina in railway
mileage. Railroads have aided largely mi
the grand work of development. going
on throughout this land, and in every
State. We can hardly realize the condl-
tions which would prevail without them
or the condition in which the various
States of the Union would be placed,
were we suddenly relegated back to those
prevailing even thirty years ago. Val
ueS of all kind, especially real estatF
values, have doubled and trebled III
North Carolina, as in every other state
by their advent, and is it but fair tha
proper returns should be made to then
owners for expenditures which have pro
duced such marked results? Yet how
are they to secure such proper returns
if the laws Of States or the United States
or the orders of the Railroad Commission
ers, or of the Interstate Commerce Com
mission. are to be such as to preclude
such property from more than meeting
it's current obligations, for operation and
taxes. The interests of the people and
railroads are identical and it is a singu
lar fact which every one must have not
ed, that when prosperity comes to one.
it comes also to the other, and when
adversely comes to one, the other be"
comes depressed, it being necessary that
both work in unison, if we are to &C
complish the greatest possible good
There are large areas of country yet to-
be settled, and transportation facilities
will he leading requirement. Capita
must be enlisted in it's behalf, or we
stand still as a nation. For these en-
terpriSes and every other material devel-
opment, capital and labor are factors and
must work in close cooperation under
laws, just to each and encouraging to
both.
The aggregate capitali-
cation and funded
debt of the railroads
of this country on
June Both. 1896. a.
mounted to ....... So, 744 ,399, 332.UU
With bonds represent
ing ............... 4.517.S72 O63 90
And stocks .... 1926. so, 269.00
and during the year ending on date above
mentioned, 1926 per cent of its funded
debt paid no interest to its owners and
20 per cent of the total stock represent
alton paid no dividends.
''The Statistician,' prominent jour
nal, gives the following interesting fig
ures, which have been compiled from
the last report of the Interstate Com
merce Commission, dated jung Both,
1897: last year, the railroads of the
United States carried over 100000 DOC
passengers one mile. They also carried
$4,000 100000 tons of freight one mile.
The total amount paid in dividends on
stock was $S7 ,603, 3T1-call it 5000
600. Of the total earnings of the rail-
ways. about 40 peI cent came from
freight service. and 30 per cent from
passenger service IeteuS assume then
that of the $SS.000,000 paid in dividends,
10 per cent, or SCI. 100000 was profit on
freight service, and S26 100000 was pro-
fit on passenger service. Let us drop
fractions and call il S62 100000 from
freight. and S26000.000 from passengers.
BY dividing the passenger profit into the
number of passengers carried (13OO0.-
O00.000), we find that the railways had
to carry a passenger 500 miles in order
to earn one dollar of profit--or five miles
TO earn one cent. Their average profit.
therefore. was less than two-tenths of
aIle cent for carrying a passenger land
his baggage one mile. By dividing the
freight profit into the freight mileage
$4,000, 000000) we find that the rail-
ways had to carry one ton of freight
1880 miles in order to earn one dollar.
N over fifteen miles to earn one cent.
The average profit, therefore. was less
than one-fifteenth of cent for carrying
ton Of freight. (hesides loading and IN
'oading it, one mile.'
The Railroad Commissioners of Kan
.sas in their Sth annual report for the
year, ending December LIST, 1890, state
Is follows:
''Rate making does not belong to the
exact sciences, nor can it be trusted
safely to the forum of legislation. II
is governed by no fixed rule, determined
by no known principle. The most ex-
oerienced traffic manager or expert rate
clerk. may be asked in vain for rule
n reason determining any given rate
)r sheet of rates. They may tell You
hey are named because the commodity
will bear it. and this is as intelligent an
explanation as can be made. In like
manner a rate sheet, submitted to q
hundred men of admitted judgment and
knowledge on questions of transporta-
ion, and no two of them will be found
in agreement in criticism or proposed
amendment"
''It is easy to say that rates should be
lust and reasonable, and only enough in
the aggregate to insure earnings suffi-
tent to meet cost of operation and main
enance, and a given rate of interest on
he cost of the road and its equipment
out where is the man with wisdom to
make such a rate sheet. To do it, he
must be possessed with a prophetic Wis
:on which can look into the future and
determine quantities of all commodities
TO be offered for transportation, for ii
requires the sum of quantity before a
ate can be made to realize any given
sum of money. The contingencies of,
operation, cost and amount of tonnage
offered for carriage, are such that for
my man to assume to provide for one
with the other by fixed rates, which
shall leave neither surplus or deficit, is
10 impeach his own intelligence orr
sanity"
/ think it will be conceded by all per-
sons of intelligence, that in no State of
this Union can passengers be trans
ported at say one cent per mile-I
mean as a regular rate, and yet condi-
lions may sometime in the future, make
such Il rate reasonable, but the only
condition which can make it possible
with steam as motive power and other