Omaha daily bee., 1905-12-02
ROOSEVELrS ISSUE
AND RAILROAD WAGES
BY j. NJ Mason.

BY J. NJ Mason.
NO. III
When speaking the other day to a dele
cation which PROGRESSED to represent rail-
road labor, the president said that. In his
opinion, railroad rates. taken as a whole.
arc not too high. This means that present
revenue Is not too large to pay operating
expenses. including labor. and to pay full
interest on all the capital which has ever
been furnished
The president teaches sane and safe
theology. The public is very willing to
pay the biggest price for the best services
OF the best men and In view OF the charac-
ter of much of the work, the amount given
to labor is not excessive. l pointed out
yesterday the percentage of revenue given
to labor, towit, a. per cent, and the per-
centage given to capital, towit. Is per cent.
IF asst years revenue was $4,000, 200. then
the 10000 employees (this includes high
salaried officials, but excludes attorneys,
lobbyists and newspaper owners). got $780,
100000. and the $4,000, 100000 of capital fur
nished got $54O,OO0O0O. In other words,
labor averaged $500, and capital received
13ih per cent
But the point is, that the Wall street cap
tains OF railroad finance are not only
claiming full interest on Ss,OOOoOO.OO0 of
capital which was not furnished. but are
also claiming the right indefinitely TO in
crease the bonds and stocks issued to rep
resent UNFINISHED capital.
1t will be observed that Mr. Roosevelt
has not as yet made public utterance as to
whether rates will be too high when rail-
roads pay full interest on $500, 10000 of
pure water.
In his speech to the Roosevelt club Of
| G H..
cago Great Western, mentioned an in
stance where a combination not only re-
ceived a rebate of Is cents on a IS cents
rate on all its own shipments. but on all
the shipments by it's competitors. OF
course, eastern water holders are very
anxious for legislation which will prevent
rebates and thereby increase revenue. But
these water holders and their western at
torneys profess to think 1t sacrilege to
suggest that the public should not be
MIXED to pay interest on capital which
was never furnished, and they also profess
to think that it's populistic to suggest
that when capital receives more than y
per cent then labor ought to receive more
than AZ per cent of the amount taken from
the public.
Some figures are interesting in this con-
nection Twenty-seven per cent on $1,000
100000 is s6O.OOO,OOO in excess of ~ per cent
on the $4,000 100000 capital which was fur
nished. This s6OOOO,0OO ought not to be
taken from the public, but If 1t Is taken,
then. on the basis of q and AZ per cent of
gross revenue. labor should receive so 9O-23
per cent Of it and capital 80 2-23.
A railroad organ has suggested that,
''Wall street will panic If Roosevelt pro-
mulgates the Iowa resolution" But this
was answered in the October Era, as fol-
lows:
action would not be precipitous. Wall
street generally discounts the inevitable.
The truth is the wiser heads already
realize that they will never be able to un-
load directly on the outside public, and the
| insurance scandals intimidate trust off,
Gals; hence, these wiser heads are adjust
| ing conditions accordingly. A few rich men
will he disappointed about expected future
profits, but the $1,000 00O 900 of railroad is
sues may be converted into 1900 900, 900,
bearing ~ per cent. without Jostling legiti-
mate trade. The loss outside of frenzied
finance will not fall on a sufficient number
of persons to work general distress.
Again, business will rebound the instant
| enterprising men have a certainty that the
Iowa resolution has come to stay. Besides
this, wages will be better and the housewife
will not contribute so much to interest on
railroad water every time she buys sugar.
| salt or shoes"
Again, it is evident that traflc officials,
| adjusting rates with reference to a limited
revenue, could take into consideration and
weigh every fact or feature whic hey may
legally consider when fixing rates with
reference to unlimited revenue.