The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-08-17
TO BUY HER ROADS
Japan Reaches Solution of the
Railroad Problem.
Government to Own All the
Trunk Lines of Road.
DEBT OF S21O,OOO,OOO.
Expects to Pay 1t Off in Thirty
Two Years
With the Net Profits Obtained
From the Traffic.
DEBT OF S21O,OOO,OOO,

The Japanese Official Gazette o.
March 81. 1906. contains what is known
as the railway naturalization bill The
record shows that there were in opera
ton at that time 3.531h miles Of state
owned railway and 3.2471z miles of rail-
way of private ownership. The private
lines represented 81 different companies
large and small The Nippon company
controlled $50 miles, while the Ryu-
Rasaka line was only a little more than
two and a half miles in length. Inc
Sanyo line had 406 miles. and the kyu-
shu 446 miles. There were three lines
of respectively $50, POI and 15S miles:
There was line of IS miles and one OF
20 mikes The remainder were all less
than so miles.
Government to Buy Lines.
report recently made by the de-
partment of finance makes the follow
ing comments on the conditions OF that
time: In view of the necessity Tor a
definite postbellum programme and for
the increase of national wealth ana
DEVELOPMENT of national resources, IL
has become of the utmost Importance
to Introduce effective means of internal
transportation and communication;
and yet on looking at our railway sys-
tenn we find that in addition to the
government lines there are more than
80 private railways and that even trunk
lines are under the control, some or
the government and others of various
private companies, so that the tramc
on them lacks order and uniformity.
The consequence is that they offer no
facilities for direct traffic over long ols-
tances, thereby raising the cost or
TRANSFORMATION and causing delay there
in; in short, they hardly appear to keep
pace with the general progress of So
ciety. For these reasons the govern
ment decided upon the state owner
ship of all railways which are used for
those
merely local Importance"
Debt VIII Be $4,000, 900.
Under the bill as 1t passed the i'm
perial diet seventeen companies, rep
resenting ASH miles of line. are to be
purchased and paid for by public
loan bearing 8 per cent interest on
the face value OF the bonds. The
amount of the loan is calculated at
not less than $40. 100000, and it Is
assumed that the obligation thus in
Cured will be discharged within thir
ty-two years after the purchase is
made, the redemption fund coming
from the net profits of the purchased
lines. 1t is further assumed that the
loan bonds. will yield to the state an
annual revenue of a little more than
SIS. 900, 600. Some of these lines have
already been taken over and the en-
tire list is to be- taken up by or be-
fore 1915. The plan includes the
the purchase, made last year, of the
Seoul-Fusan line in Korea. The loan
to be issued on account of this line is
$40, 900, 900.
Japan is also the proprietor of a
railway system in South Manchuria,
taken over as a result Of the late war.
The capital of this enterprise Is $780,
one-half was contributed" by the
government and one-tenth was sub
scribed by the public. These lines
were taken over by the civil author
tiles and are now under government
control and management
Cost of Construction.
The authorized capital of the seven
teen lines bought or to be bought by
the government, the bonding of which
sis calculated at not less than $210,-
100000 Is about S121 900, 900. The
paid-up capital Of the lineo already
owned by the government is not given
In the report of the finance depart
ment. The reported ccSl of construc-
ton for the LEI miles OF line owned
by the government prior 10 the pass
age of the bill OF March 81. 1906, Is
$Te, ,S23, or about $4,000 a mile.
The reported cost CT construction OF
the lines acquired and 90 be acquired
10 @1t3.3o0, 900, or about $4,000
these figures, even without the capt.
talization figures Of the older lines. in
dtcates that the system when complee-
ed stands very good chance of being
reported cost of construction and even
for little more than the old figures
In a Transition Stage.
Japan's railways are thus shown as
In transition stage. and figures quot
ed for equipment and operation must
be those of the latest year reported,
1s05-1906. The total number of loco
motives on all lines is LII; passenger
cars, 5,340; freight wagons" 27,1SB.
The total number Of passengers car
ried was lis, 675.403; total passenger
receipts, $17.0oo.oOO. The total freight
carried was 21.53o.o64 tons, and total
freight receipts. $12, 100000. The pas
genger mileage was 250O.00o.OOO and
freight mileage 1852. 100000. The
average passenger receipts a mile
were IS cent and average freight re-
ceipts .93 cent a mile a ton. The re-
oeipts a ton and a mile were higher
on the state lines than on the private
lines. The gross earnings for all lines
are reported as s34.516,6S2. the ex-
penses $1s.077.5s7 and net earnings
31s,49S.9s5. The average receipts a
mile were, for state railways, $3.50:
average expense. $3,7s5; average