Los Angeles herald., 1906-11-04

with industry, and between terminal cities the
wealth of which is simply incalcuable. Its
patronage will be awaiting its opening day in
eager anticipation. and the golden stream of
holders will bring about wonderful shifting
of the wealth of the country. Many humble
tradesmen and mechanics who had the courage
and wisdom to invest a few hundred dollars
in the electric road at its present low
price will be the rich men of the next few
years
The Chicago-New York Electric Air Line
railroad will dominate a territory having eight
million six hundred thousand population, and
this, by the time the road is built. Will in
crease by million. This is equivalent to
twelve thousand population per mile of road
including branches The population that may
be safely calculated living enough to
be regarded as tributary and likely to patron
lie the line is twenty-six million Our ex-
perts have figured that the earnings from pas
senger traffic alone hardly fall below
thirty-two million dollars yearly, a sum which
would enable the road to pay a very large
dividend. Some idea of the enormous traffic
between Chicago and New York may be had
when it is realized that every day in the year
sixty-eight through trains by the
various steam roads having these cities as
terminals, and that some of these trains yield
annual earnings of more than one million five
hundred thousand dollars.
The new electric road running its trains in
half the time and at half the cost of the steam
trains, will undoubtedly secure the bulk of the
mail contracts and all of the through express
business. The total mail and express con-
tracts between Chicago and New York
amount to many millions of dollars yearly,
and the cheapness. speed and other advantages
of the electric road over any of the steam
roads are so evident that 1t is not unreason-
able to suppose that most of this traffic will
come to the electric road. 1t will be a matter
of business, pure and simple, for 1t to do So
The estimate of the earning power of the
Chicago Now York Electric Air Line railroad
as told herein, is very conservative Such a
gigantic enterprise is sure to bring about new
industrial and economic conditions, and while
base our estimates of the earning power of
this road largely what has been done. there
is reason to believe that the earnings may run
up 20 point far beyond what we have calcu-
lated. There is one small electric trolley
road down in the rice country in Texas which
hauls both passengers and freight. and which
earns over one hundred per cent yearly on its
stock. or course, this is exceptional, but so
the conditions that surround the Chicago
New York Electric Air Line railroad excep-
tional. and a great deal more likely to produce
spectacular results in dividends than any rail-
road project that the country has ever known
Dividends from a railroad are surer than
from almost any other kind of investment
from the fact that no great fire, earthquake or
other calamity can entirely obliterate and ruin
the property. The investment Is spread over
such a wide expanse that 1t is an utter Inn
possibility that more tnan small proportion
one time.
Trust funds which seek only the safest in
vestment, more largely placed in railroad
securities than In any other way. The total
value OF the stock and bond securities OF rail-
roads In the United States amounts TO about
fourteen billion dollars. which is about one
eighth Of all the wealth OF the country.