The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-06-14
CunHENr TOPICS.

CURRENT IOIICS.
Tie Baltimore Sun notes an improve
ment in railroad financing OF the age.
We quote the following
improVeu nd' from its columns: "A
r0ed financing. fa,t,,ra of railroad hnanc-
Ing introduced largely in the last decade
promises well for the permanent stapliity
of our larger Eastern and Southern rail-
way systems This feature is ploW!ng IN
the surplus in improvements instead OF
turning it all over to stockholders III dlvl-
dends. 1t used to be the vice OF railway
mana cement, in this country to exagserate
net earnings by leaving necessary I'M
nrovements of roadbed or rolling STOCK
unp,,ovided for. Money was even borrow
ed sometimes for dividends. Frequent re-
organizations necessarily resulted Now
this is alI changed by the better managed
railways. The Chicago, Milwaukee and
St. PAUL. says the Railway World.
though, earning 10 per cent. on its common
stock is paying but per cent. in dividends
on it. and is blowing in the surplus
in improvements Several other prominent
railroad companies are pursuing the same
policy
The Southern Railway. to come nearer
home. is known to put a large proportion
-, its net earnings into improvements
rather than into dividends The British
method is similar, but different. tlaViiis
commenced operations, says the w oI4a,
only after they were fully completed ana
equipped, British railways consequently
treat any fresh outlay to provide Tor IN
1-tr RI H.
tanning the money fer it by calling UP
fresh capital. The advantage OF thus
method is that it allows Of greater d1v1-
dends from earnings; its disadvantages,
that capital on which dividends must be
paid steadily grows larger and larger, and
unless net earnings grow proportlonaGeiy
the rate of dividends t2as to be cut
down.
The policy of the past was to wreck
railroads; the policy of this age Is ITO run
them on business principles and make
them earn q fair interest on the lnYeSt-
ment The railroads of this country can
bs made to pay, if they are properly con-
Quoted, and it is TO the interest OF the
country that they should be made to pay
They are among the greatest Industries
Of the United States, and ii is as ullWlse
to operate them at a loss as it is TO
operate the factories of the country at a
loss.
The gloomy reports concerning the wheat
crop of 1900 takes on a different phase
when brought to book.
Inc V1siook The New York Journal of
o' Commerce points out that
in spite of the fact that five and a quarter
million acres of wheat have been aban-
doned the acreage to be harvested is
greater than that of sast year. 1t says
that the present area of winter wheat is
less than a million acres. and less than
1 pc. cent below the area harvested last
fall The present condition is reported TO
be most unsatisfactory in several States;
but. taking the whole winter wheat sec
ton, the Department OF Agriculture
states the condition June lst-since which
there has been further observation-disclosures a
percentage which corresponds to 1871 bush
els per acre. while on June 1st of last year
the condition figures corresponded TO a
yield of 1913 bushels per acre. This i'm
,rovenent il adds, in condition very much
more than offsets the slight decrease in
area and translating the condition figures
into crop figures, the promise Of winter
| wheat on June lst was 100000 bushels
| better than the promise on the same date
| last y Sdl
Coming to speak of spring wheat il says:
The officially estimated acreage OF
spring wheat is 4 little larger than a year
| ago, and the condition promises Z of a
| Dushel per acre less. Translating the con-
| dition figures into bushels we haze a
! probable decrease of 100000 bushels in
! the yield. The condition on June 1st then,
| promised 59,GOoG00 bushels more of winter
| and 100000 bushels less of spring wheat
| than the condition figures of June /, 1893.
| The crop last year, as officially stated, was
| SO per cent. less than the promise On
| June LIST. a like shrinkage in the figures
| for this year would result in i total wheat
! crop OF 5gl 600, or fifty million more
! than last year. In view of the unfavora-
| bic news since the first of this month 1t
| may be anticipated that the shrinkage
| will be considerably greater than last
| year But the condition figures on June
| 1st pointed to a crop of GIG, oG0,o20 bushels;
| the harvest of last year, as stated by the
/ Department of Agriculture, was $4,000, 0G0
1t would require a stn"inkase of lie PEI
| cent to bring the indications On June lst
down to the official figures of the last
| harvest
The crop alarm is, as usual, largely a
| Sr,eci1lafnr'S affair