Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1909-10-02
SWISS RAILROADS.

After Four Years of State Ownership
the Outlook Is Not Bright--A Big
Deficit and an Extravasant and In
satisfactory Service.
There Is no more thrifty and law
abiding race In the world than the
Swiss. In spite OF their three lam
guages there is unity of spirit and
purpose which should make national
enterprise a success II 1t could be
made so anywhere. Salaries of off,
Gals are small and the sense OF re-
sponsibility In public Office Is great.
Everything. In fact, makes for the sue
cess of enterprises under state aus
pieces.
In the year 1900 Switzerland voted
TO buy up her railroads. and by 1908
such roads as could be acquired were
completely under public control. No
one expected profit in the first year
or two, but there was fourth deficit
In 1907, which. added TO that OF 1908,
makes up total of considerably over
100000 francs, which, 1t need hardly
be said, is lot of money for that lit
tie country. AS some 25.000.000 francs
have been put into new construction
In the last fiscal year, there Is another
million francs to be added here for In
terest and sinking fund. and the re-
suit. taken all around. Is by no means
cheerful.
1t Is noteworthy also that the num-
Der of passengers has increased yearly.
but against this public pressure has
been sufficient TO bring about reduced
fares and lower freight rates. Operat-
public ownership. Service In certain
important respects. including speed.
punctuality ana discipline. seems to
have deteriorated, and the manage
ment shows the usual disposition In
such cases to become increasingly bu-
reaucratic and Increasingly intelligent.
1t will be seen that the Swiss public
official Is not different from his fellow
elsewhere. He has an assured position
In the government employ. The ex-
tent of possible promotion is marked
out for him, provided he makes no
serious mistakes compromising his SUI
periors: he is taken care of at the end
of his service, and his only real ambi
ton is to serve out his time with as
little exhausting effort or friction as
possible Like most public servants
anywhere, he has everything to lose
and nothing to gain by intelligent In
itiatiye and enterprise, and the result
Ga tbara what N has haan aina " hare
1t need hardly be said that such i'm
provements as have been made have
been dictated by political consldera.
lions or, In other words, that they
have been made to benefit districts and
voters who could make the best polit
ical return, irrespective of the larger
proposition OF the general railroad
service of the country. The manage
ment during the FIVE years In which
the government control has been com
plete has been increasingly extrava
CANT, with the same disposition to re
gard the public pocket as inexhaustible
and the same indifference to running
at loss properties which were former
ly conducted privately at a profit.
Perhaps the lesson will hardly be
needed by those acquainted with the
management OF New York's municipal
ferries. The example, however, should
be interesting to that wider circle Of
not be fully conversant with this our
browning demonstration Of "how not
to do it."-Wail Street Journal