The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-09-07

 least the cost of construction. 'Assured1y, the Louisville and Nash | vile Railroad Company has in the past thirty-five years been of untold benefit | to the citizens of Alabama, and 1t is entitled to their good will. commenda- | tfon and cooperation. Only thus will | it be encouraged and aided in making l further investments to create much needed additional facilities. Unfor- l tunately. violent antagonism in the | State, developed under your leadership | for several years past, has all but ut terly destroyed the ability of the com
 pany to make any further develop ments;--its credit has been paralyzed At a hearing of the Railroad Com
 misison of Alabama on April 5. 1905, at which you as President presided, after | calling attention to the needs of the l Louisville and Nashville and South and | North Alabama Railroad Companies | for large amounts of additional capi- | tai in order to create facilities for handling the rapidly increasing traf- | fife, l said:
 Now if this Commission enters up- | on campaign of antagonism against | the railways, If 1t should reduce the | rates so as to make the operations | still more unprofitable, 1t will certain | ly tend to paralyze, if 1t does not para | lyze, the efforts to get additional capi- dI, l the efforts of the railways to increase | the traffic and develop the business of | the State and of the, country Tt is known of all that what l then feared has come to pass. The Louis vile and Nashville Railroad Company | cannot now borrow additional capital l to reduce grades, cnstruct second track,
 and create other facilities so badly needed to enable 1t to transport with | reasonable promptness traffic now
 seeking movement in and through Alabama.
 Long time obligations of the com
 pany can not now be disposed or, ana the management having-l fear unWise- ly-entered into obligations to build certain extensions and make additional betterments, has been compelled to is-
 sue, upon onerous terms, what are termed short time obligations; and 1t
 must necessarily withhold the enor- nous expenditure involved in reducing
 grades and double tracking the line be-
 tween Elkmont, Ala, and Mobile, Ala.
 which 1t has for some time past been considering, and which the necessities of the traffic really require. Instead,
 1t must confine it's operations to ex- isting lines, and restrict its traffic to existing facilities.
 .'Other railway companies operat- ing in Alabama are in the same con dition There is not one of them that can, at this time, prudently make ad- ditional capital expenditures; and6 nke the Louisville and Nashville, they would, if they could, gladly suspend work on extensions and Improvements now under way. As soon as work now under way is completed. there must be an abandonment of all additions ret quiring new capital.
 "EnEaged as you are in agricultural and manufacturing enterprises, you know that there has been very heavy increase in the cost of conducting all business operations. That this increase Is especially applicable to railroad companies is most true; and yet they are the only ones that are prohibited from increasing the price of their pro- duct (viz: transportation to corres- pond to the increased cost of produc- ton.
 The gross receipts of the Louis- vile and Nashville Railroad Company for the twelve months ending june 1906, were $43,00S, ,996.00; for the twelve months ending June, 1907. $4S.263,S45.- %; increase S5,254,949.OO. The fn- crease in the net result after paying operating expenses, interest, taxes and dividends (the amount of dividends be- ing the same in each year) was $l0z'- 147.00.
 "of the increase of $5,254,949.OO in gross receipts, over ninety-eight per cent was absorbed by the increase in operating expenses, Interest and taxes And vet it is your purpose to stlii fur- ther aggravate such an unfavorable re- sult hv reducing the remuneration which the railway companies receive for transportation; by increasing taxes and in all other ways that your ingen- uity can suggest
 m of taxes four and half million dollars A year.~ The railroads levy upon Alabama about thirty-hve millions Of dollars a year You presume upon the ignorance or indifference of those who may listen to you by asserting that the remuneration received for servlces rendered by transportation lines is a tax.
 'You know that the remuneration re- ceived by railroads for their product, (viz: transportation is no more tax than the remuneration you pay to those who cultivate cotton for you is a tax, or the amount received by you Tor the cotton products of your farm Is a tax upon the cotton mills, or the amount received by you for the product of your cotton mills is tax upon the consumer, or the amount received by you as rent for real estate is tax.
 You might as well say that the sums the people of Alabama pay an nualIy for services of laborers, mechan- ics, doctors, lawyers, preachers, or for the very bread and meat they consume, are A tax, as to say that transportation charges are a tax upon them. The ono statement would be as accurate as the other.
 "Furthermore, in your published etaetment. you omit to tell the public that of the four and half millions of dollars in annual taxes paid by the peo- ple of Alabama, the Louisville and Nashville and South and North Rail- road Companies paid last year one-siX- teenth, or $s of every $100. To be ex- act, the total amount of State. county and municipal taxes in Alabama paid by these two railroad companies in the year ending June 30. 1907. was S272.- 157S6
 Not only so, but upon assessments made in pursuance Of onerous revenue measures passed by the present Legisla- rure and approved by you. the annual State, county and municipal taxes to hn paid in Alabama for the current fiscal wear by these two railroad companies will, am reliably informed reach ap- proximately $400,000 or nearly ten per cent of the entire annual taxes you say the whole people of the State. individ. uals and corporations, have heretofore paid.
 "In conclusion, I respectfully urge that Instead of converting the Legisla- ture for the avowed purpose or enact ing tnimical legislation to still further harass the railroads, and of urging. as won are doing by your public express