Omaha daily bee., 1905-12-15


jurisdiction OF the commission. IT is not I,
recommended at this time that the carriers !
ST. SHOULD o. "a be-, be prohibited from using private
cars to perform the icing service If they |
md that course to their advantage, but the
commission does recommend that these
charges should be put on the same basis
as all other freight charges. so far as they
can be.
Import and Export Tariffs.
The commission has held that the present
law requires the publication and mainte-
nance OF export rates, and that good policy
also demands the same course. There Is no
should be published and maintained when
does not Apply with equal force to export
and import rates; and to require the pub-
hcation in one case and dispense with il
in the other opens wide the door to all
sorts of discrimina lions not only with re-
spect to import and export traftlc itself but
also with respect to domestic traftlc where
the same person handles both species of
business
Through Routes aad Joint Rates.
The commission observes that while the
third section of the act to regulate COM
merce attempts to secure the Interchange
OF trahlc by connecting railways and to
prevent unjust discrimination by any car
rler between Its dinerent connections, IL
has been held, both by the courts and the
commission, that this part of the third sec
ton Is not enforceable because no means
are provided for determining the condi-
tons upon which traffic shall be inter-
changed and the proportion of the through
carriers. 1t follows that connecting car
riers are now under no legal obligation TO
establish through routes or joint rates, and
may, at their pleasure withdraw from such
arrangements when they have been actually
entered into. When it is considered that "A
large part of the most important rates Of
TINS country are joint rates, II will be seen
that the railways have it in their discretion
by this means to largely defeat the purpose
this the commission should have authority
| to order railways to continue through
routes and joint rates which are in eject
and to prescribe the divisions which the
| several carriers shall receive in the dis
| trfbution of those rates, in case the car
! riers fail TO agree upon such divisions. 1t
! is also pointed out that determinations
against individuals and against particular
| species of traffic can be cEectcd by the
| fusal of carrier TO establish joint rate
upon given commodities.
Complaints and Decisions.
| The report shows 56S complaints filed
with the commission during the year. liz
| Guiding both formal and informal proceed
ings The number of Investigations on for
! mai complaint instituted during the year is
stxty-ftve, involving directly the rates and
practices of 521 carriers. seventy -n.He
! hearings and investigations were neld in
Washington and numerous cities in various
parts Of the country SIX cases, were
carriers and twenty-five cases were dis
| continued.
Forty -hve formal decisions have been
rendered during the year. This number,
| greater than in any previous year, includes
I cases of unreasonable rates, discrmlna-
! ton between localities, between coal4no-
dites, and between persons, and also in
/ facilities of transportation, with some cases
involving departure from published tar!n
! rates and some relating chiefly to rcpdrd-
ton Nearly every kind Of action pro-
! hibited by the regulating statute has been
the subject of decision and order during
the past year. The cases are stated briefly
| in the report under these headings. Eleven
of the cases are discussed under the head
of unreasonable rates. and a few addi-
!
in the statement relating to reparatiOn.
statistics of Railways.
one of the publications annually issued
by the commission Is a brief report on the
income accounts Of operating roads, which
is intended to show. at the earliest practic-
able date, the principal items included in
railway income accounts. The preliminary
report for the past fiscal year includes re-
turns for I52 companies, representing an
operated mileage of 24,4I7S miles, which
Is presumably about SO per, cent OF the
mileage that will subsequently, be covered
by returns in the final report for the same
year. The gross earnings of the railways
for the year ending June 30. 1895, on the
mileage just stated We're S2,073,l7i,S25 This
total comprised earnings from the passen-
ger service s572 los, S56 earnings from the
freight service, 81 449, 1S2. 702 and miscellane-
Gus earnings, SOL, $50, 257.
According to the preliminary report. the
sSss per miie Of e Rs aIerage s cen
sderably higher than the like average for
any other year for which a statistical re-
The final report for the year ending June
80, 1904, showed that the total gross earn
ings of the railways on 2l224320 miles OF
| line for that year were 81 975l74,091 being
equivalent to 1896 per mile. OF the gross
earnings per mile of line, the passenger SER
Vice contributed S2,667 and the freight SER
vice S6,757. The operating expenses of the
| railways embraced in the current preimin-
airy report amounted to 1883, 5S4, 404 thus
averaging S6,f5l per mile of line. For the
year ending June 80, 1904. the operating ex-
panseS reported finally were 81 1873 S96, 3d. OF
6.30s per mile. This advance report gives
the ratio of operating expenses to earnings
as 6675 per cent. The Anal report for the
year 1904 gave 67.19 per cent, The prelimin.
airy report shows that the net earnings OF
| essentially the same roads were. for the
for the year ending June 30. 1904. 1854. 674, 561
The preliminary report shows that the
| operating companies declared dividends
during the year to the amount of $685. $50,
| 231 ii further shows that the dividends de.
clared by practically the same roads during
the year 1901 were SlSL313,472 These figures
indicate an Increase in dividends of ST..
r7G6, 766
WOrkmen and Accidents.
The hours of labor on railroads is anothe,
topic discussed in the report and the com.
ard of physical and mental condition foI
certain classes of employees and care on the
part OF supervisory officers to see thai
proper regulations are maintained and
obeyed is quite generally recognized anC
a considerable number of railroads have
prescribed rules limiting the number OF
hours OF work and providing rest periods
but these rules appear to have been very
| The accidents shown in the monthiv ra