Evening journal., 1905-08-28
RATE LEGISLATION
FOR RAILROADS
Interstate Commerce Law
Convention Wilde Held
in October.
PROGRESS MADE BY THE B, & O.,


of railroad rates Dy a government COM
mission has alarmed those who are
primarily responsible for the agitation
and the executive committee OF the
Interstate Commerce Law Convention
is contemplating issuing cali for
another meeting of the convention at
Cincinnati IN October. IL is now en-
gagged in sounding the business and
commercial organizations Of the
country TO see what support can be had
for the meeting and what bodies will
be represented. For several years the
railroads were inclined to scott at the
movement, but when President Roose- J
welt came out squarely I'm favor of
the correction of excessive rates by
government commission, they realized
they were up against it hard and
strong.
Since that time a strenuous campaign
of education has been i'm progress and
the railroads apparently have unlimit-
ed sums Of money for this purpose
How we'll they are succeeding is shown |
by the fact that last winter it was be-
lieved that if something was not done |
at that session, Congress would be con- |
voked in March in special session to |
consider the subject Later the date
for the special session was changed to
September to October, to November
and now il has been abandoned al |
together
/ Congress will therefore meet in |
December and sit probably until June. |
although strenuous efforts will doubt !
/ less be made by the stand patters"
/ and the railroads to secure an earlier
adjournment. Whether the railroads |
.,g
session extending over five or six
months is very doubtful notwithstand- |
ling all their power. At least the
executive committee of the Interstate
Commerce Convention thinks not for
tits latest circular says:
In the judgment of this cimmittee
1.-THE prospect OF bringing the legislation |
to successful completion at the coming |
session Of Congress is highly favorable |
ana in its opinion greater impetus will
be given to the movement by a good
rousing convention than by any other
means that can be adopted The rea-
son for such a convention is stated as
being: In order to im~ress upon Con-
gress, and particularly the Senate. the
earnest desire of commercial, manu- /
featuring and agricultural interests Of
the entire country for the speedy enact
lment of such legislation"
When the subject of rate regulation
is considered by Congress next session
the marvellous progress OF the Balti-
more and Ohio Railroad within the past
few years will undoubtedly be cited by
both parties to the argument. Advo-
Gates of the regulation OF rates by the
/ government will point out the fact that
, a bankrupt road can be lifted from
! its low estate and placed firmly on the
road to prosperity its stock elevated
Il from almost nothing-as a matter of
fact I believe it was less than nothing
for / think there was an assessment
standing against ito lis or more all
in less than a decade and regardless of
the millions spent i'm improvements; to
this they viii point and declare that
such enormous profits only indicate the
railroads rob the public. On the other
hand the opponents of rate regulation
will contend and the evidence seems to
! support them. that it was only the free
5 hand which the management had and
3 exercised that enabled il to work this
miracle and that. If hampered by the
supervision of a rate-making commits
sion the stockholders would still be
whfstling for their dividends and the
passengers would yet be suffering from
the inequalities of the road bed.
Leaving Congress to decide whether
the shipper or the stakeholder is most
deserving of consideration it may be
said that here I'm Washington great
y pride is takenin the strenuous but skill
full manner i'm which the Baltimore and
Ohio was lifted out of the slough. No
b city, excepting Baltimore, is more in
terested in this railroad. 1t goes TO
cities westward not reached by other
4 roads; it is a great highway following
5 the Potomac almost to its source and
reaching Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago
and st Louis; and, finally, its compe-
tition to Baltimore, Philadelphia and
New York keeps the rapacity of the
e Pennsylvania system i'm bounds. That
the "Pennsy" can get almost anything
it wants from official Washington goes
a without saying, when it is considered
who rides over it and how, but the
paying public is with the B. & o. at
Y least between here and New York.
S Some years ago riding on the b. & O.
was a joke and the old story of the
- man being jolted from one berth to
another across the aisle while round
ing a curve. was currently believed.
Things are different now and while a
S train leaves a dingy station at this end
l. to enter one quite as dingy in New
e York. the train itself. the locomotive
= which pulls 1t along at fifty miles an
hour or more. and the tracks are all
q that could be desired. Back In the old
z days when b. & O. was considered a
q gilt-edged investment the dividends
were satisfactory but We're paid at the
texpense OF the equipment. When the
e late John X. Cowen and Oscar Murray
y were placed IN charge as receivers they
IS reversed this policy and made improve
N ments at the expense OF dividends.
u To the outside world it seemed al
~ most as though they had entered OF
H. an insane course of riotous expendi-
lures. A single order was placed fol
ne $50 locomotives and 10000 freight cars:
1 S14. 500.0 900 was spent for equipment and
ie in the few years the receivership lasted
'r between forty and fifty million dollar.
q went into ibetterments. AS a result the
III passengers no longer fan off the plat.
forms, curves have been eliminated OF
- reduced; the locomotives get there and
" the box cars don't fall TO pieces. Who
can adequately describe the suffering.
OF the stockholders during this period
while the B. & O. was undergoing III,
process of regeneration?
But doubtless their sufferings hav,
long since been alleviated as tn.
II dividends have Increased steadily unit
now five per cent. is paid on the com