The Somerset reporter., 1899-02-16
Two Gent Mileage.

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Maine legislature At this time. Such a
law is in force in some other States and
the leaders IN the movement al Augusta,
urge that it should be in force hrre.
This is not one. sided issue. Some Of
the railroads in Maine can afford to sell
two cent mileage books, some may not
be able to afford it, and still others abso-
lutely cannot afford to do it. The Bos-
ton and Maine and the Grand Trunk, We
understand, already do this; the Maine
Central and the Bangor and Aroostook
sell 1000 mile books for two cents per
mile good TO the purchaser, and 500 mile
books good to all who hold them for pa
cents per mile. We are not aware just
what the plan is on some other roads
that would be affected by this proposed
law.
The average receipts from passengers
on the Maine Central is trifle less than
pa cents per mile, while that on the
Bangor and Aroostook is above ~ cents
per mile, II the figures we have seen
given are correct. 1t may be doubtful
whether the Maine Central can afford to
reduce the rate 10 cents per mile to all
passengers. The Bangor aud Aroostook
aud the new Washington County rail-
road with their long lines through
mparatively sparsely settled territory,
positively cannot do the business for
that money. Hence the application Of
this proposed law might possibly be a
hardship to the Maine Central and must
be to the b. Il A. and the w. C. roads.
The passenger tariffs on Maine rail
roads is not the most important issue.
The freight tariff is of much greater
moment to the business interests of the
State. There are many inequalities in
freight rates on the Maine Central rail.
road that could be adjusted to the great
relief to shippers and receivers of freight
in our towns which have no advantage in
the way of transportsti N by water.
Here is where the iron hand of the rail
severity. The inland towns have to pay
their own freight bills and a portion of
the freight bills of places where rail
roads are brought into competition with
freighting by water. This feature the
strong arm of the law ought to remedy.
1t may be said that this has nothing
to do with the mileage book question.
1t may have to do with it. II the legis-
lature should enact an arbitrary law re-
quiring the issue of 2 cent mileage
books by roads upon which the passen-
ger business will not Justify il. and the
road thereby loses money on passengers
it must make it up on freight. If this
should be the case the law would be an
evil instead of good. 1t would help
railroad passengers at the expense of
freighers.
One objection that is urged against
mileage books being made good to the
holder is that it gives opportunity for
traffic in books, or rather gives parties
opportunity to buy them at 2 cents and
rent them at cents to others, who then
make n saving over the purchase of
tickets tor "shOrt hauls." Thus rail
roads divide the money with scalpers or
dealers in books. But railroads can
obviate this by putting their short dis
lance tickets at reasonable rates. There
Is no good reason why railroads should
sell tickets for ten or twenty miles at
the same rate they do for one thousand
miles, neither is there any justice in
doubling the price on "shorL hauls.a Ii
they can afford to sell 1000 miles for 2
cents they ought to afford to sell tickets
through their ticket Office windows for
/ Pa to 2l3 cents instead of 3 TO cents
as at the present time. The present
arrangement is altogether too great a
discrimination against the person who is
either unable to buy a 1000 mile book
or who. by reason of small amount of
travelling, does not find it practicable to
/ do So
Theories Go not always work out in
/ practice as we expect them to, but We
have theory in regard to the mileage
I hoph isSut anu IL ldhtS puJ Ilillt SpaCt
/ IN our columns to give it for what il is
worth, and we do SO.
Sell mileage hooks with miles enough
to come to So 90 at "a ceuts per mile,
current in the hands of any person; put
way station fares down to from pa 10
| % cents per mile according to the dis
lance and then sell to special purchasers
/ 1000 mile books at eeAts per mile, good
To The purchaser only. These figures
are not given as arbitrary ones. They
may not be large enough for the new
/ Washington County road or even the
Bangor and AroostoOk road but, with
the increase of travel the reduction on
way fares and on small mileage books
would cause, we believe the Maine Cen
! trail could do it and get As much money
out of it as it does under the present
! inequitable arrangement. If the revenue
! from passengers under this plan would
not be sufficient then it would be
good plan to cut off some OF the dead
heads or even all of them.
There was little room for doubt among
unpreiudiced people that the disease pre-
| vailine at WaterVille was small pox