The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1903-05-02
RAILROAD WORLD.

|
A. H. Plant, auditor of the southere.
and ]. j. Hooper. both with headquarters
in Washington, were in Birmingham yes
terday.
j. H Kinzie is now no longer connected
with the Central OF Georgia. He has
gone to Charleston. s. c., to take up his
| new work as manager of the Charleston
Ice company. Mr.. Kinzie has been travel
ing passenger agent of the Central here
Tor a number of months and has made
| numerous friends who regret To see hin,
ieaVe, although they are glad his ability
has been recognized so substantially by
the Charleston company,
His successor here has not yet been
appointed.
ABOUT twenty men did not report for
work at the shops of the Southern yes
terday morning. They included the cop
persmlths, timers and pipemen, who
struck for a restoration of the scale
| which was In effect In 1894 They have
oeen getting 2.65 per day, and ask for
an increase to S2.75 and $780, 1t is not
tnought that the strike will be of long
duration. The matter has been taken IN
with the officials at Washington and IT
Is felt that some agreement will soon he
/ rea ched.
! Inc official announcement of the
! changes In the officials of the Alabama
Great Southern and Cincinnati New Or
leans and Texas Pacific has been issued
from the office of President Samuel
spencer The appointments went into ef
fect yesterday. W. J. Murphy is third
wee president and the general passenger
agent and general freight agent viii re-
port 10 MIN. w. A. Garrett is general
manager and is In charge of the trans
portation' roadway and machinery de-
partments He also reports to Mr.. Mr.
| ply. ="
A Chicago dispatch to the Globe-pemo-
crat says; Reports were current TODAY
tnat negotiations have been renewed Nv
me Rock Island people for the acoui-
sluon OF the st. Louis and San Francisco
system. Onicfals of the Rock Island In
inns city disclaim any knowledge and ere
not inclined to credit the rumor S+b..r
railway officials, generally well infoy ,,ad
say they have positive information thar
.ile report is true They do not believe
however. that the Rock Island naonia
VIII get the Frisco unless thew make a
inucn better cash offer than before Tho
previous offer was $40 a share In cosh
ana the rest in Rock Island securitias
some OF the stockholders of the ST Louie
ana san Francisco have little faith In
the ROCK Islands new stock and demand
at least one-half In cash.
IL is generally accepted that the next
oeVeiopment In the Southern railway sit
uation since the extension OF the Sea-
bord Air Line to Birmingham, will be an
estern extension of the Illinois Central to
reaoh birmingham, says the Wall Street
journal IL Is also believed that the
Goulds Will find a wy of pushing the cast
ern terminus of their southwestern Iines
from Memphis to Birmingham. Railroad
men are OF the opinion that the Goulds
seek an outlet to South Atlantic ports
and that besides reaching Baltimore thew
want ports further south. Should thew
build from Memphis to Birmingham ana
make deal with the Seaboard. they
would have the choice Of the various
ports reached by that system
There are evidences Of joint relations
between the Goulds and the Seaboard in
terests in other quarters that make such
arrangement. practical II desired. II the
Illinois Central builds to Birmingham II
would have the choice of an outlet over
the Morgan roads or the Seaboard. 1t IL
hardly probable that they would seceiye
much encouragement from the Morgan
influence, as the Frisco will no doubt get
preferential relations In this respect.
Under such conditions the building of
the Seaboard, an Independent system. to
Birmingham holds out the promise of an
open highway to the South Atlantic portA
to either the Illinois Central or the
Goulds Railroad circles In the south are
interested in figuring which of these two
western interests win secure this outlet
or whether they will both get traffic ar
rangements with the Seabord from the
Birmingham district.
The traffic congestion at BIRMINGHAM
leaves no doubt of the success of the new
line. and Seaboard interests own a
number of furnaces and extensive coal
and iron properties in that district it will
not have much difficulty in controlling a
part of the tonnage. 1t is estimated thai
the gross earnings of the Birmingham di-
vision will be $1,125.000 for the first year.
and that 1t will add a like sum to the
revenues of the Seaboard system.
The policy of diverting profits to i'm
provements, while strongly in evidence in
roads, is shown very clearly in the state
ment of the Central of Georgia road,
says the Wall Street Journal The Central
extent from the improved conditions as
well as from excellent management, as
any of the southern lines, as is shown
by an increase of some IL per cent In
gross earnings in 1902, and an increase
In gross earnings for nine months of
the current year of over II per cent, but
the extent to which this additional in
come has been diverted to the operating
department is indicated by the fact that
in the year ended June 80. 1901, the road
was operated for So per cent of gross
earnings, while in 1902, the cost of opera
ton was 71.3 per cent and in the nine
months ended March 81, 1903, the operating
ratio was IA per cent.
II net earnings during the balance of
the year increase on the same ratio as
in the preceding nine months the final
results will probably show something un-
der ~ per cent earned on the second in
comes.