The Washington herald., 1909-07-11

and sailors IN the army and navy OF the
United States
The public should recoIecJ, TOO. that
81. approximately. out OF each 500 earned
by the railroads Is spent for labor or for
equipment and material which are largely
the products Of labor-S40 goes directly
20 the employees OF the railroads. $ IS
paid for fuel. waste, OIL and water. SIS
Is paid for rails, ties. cars. engines. strUc-
tural steel. and so on. and $ IS paid for
additions 10 yards and tracks and for ex-
tensions. OF shops. roundhouses, and the
like. Out OF the 800 only s. reaches the
pockets Of the owners OF shareholders
OF the railroads. which. 20 state IL in an
other way. is less than 4 per cent in
terest on fair value Of their stock.
Cost stm Going Up.
Although the railroads are earning
about 5000, 900 for each OF the $50 days in
the year" Mr.. Brown said with much
earnestness. THE problem OF the con-
st2ntly increasing cost OF everything
which enters into construction and Op-
Grafton Is an extremely serious one.
While everything the railroads are using
is advancing in price, there has been no
corresponding increase IN the charge for
transportation. In the ten years between
1897 and 1907 fuel increased 3S per cent in
price; ties, IS per cent; steel rails, sI per
cent; cast iron wheels. % per cent; bridge
timber. q per cent; car axles, Il per cent
locomotives, 50 per cent: cars, = per
cent. and labor about 30 per cent
'On the price basis OF 1897 The railroads
in 1907 would have spent $751; 600 less
for material used IN operation and main
tenance. S254, 10000 less for labor, and
S219 10000 less for cars. locomotives. rails
f.o In r-anurfrr,o frofunr - rou
on S97 articles have been increa sed, Il Is
true. but the rates on SIC articles have
been decreased, the net result IN money
being q reduction OF about II per cent 20
the profit o: the public and consequently
to the loss OF the railroads.
'DO you know" Mr. Brown asked.
that railroad transportation IS 90 per
cent cheaper here than anywhere else IN
the world but that the wages Of the en-
plOyes are 30 per cent higher than in any
other country where railroads are in
| operation?
While political demagOgues and the
editors Of sensational publications have
been violently attacking the credit and
| integrity Of railway corporations. the men
who are responsible for the management
Of our great transportation systems have
/ been walking the floor by day and lying
awake at night in an attempt 20 solve
/ the problem Of increased expenses and
/ decreased net revenues. IN my opinion
/ tte limit has been reached. east OF Chi
/ cage in cheapening the cost Of operation.
! Locomotives, IL seems to me, are as
/ powerful as they ever viii be. Cars can
not be made much, II any larger than
those already in use. Curves have been
eliminated and grades have been reduced.
Millions More Needed.
Furthermore, the future loudly calls
for the expenditure o: hundreds OF nil
lions IN extensions, new equipment. and
other improved facilities. Economists tell
Us that the freight traffic OF the United
States IS doubled every ten years. Mr..
James J. Hill, one Of the ablest business
men in the world. has said that the rail-
/ roads need ore billion OF new rnoney. a
I year for I'VE years IN order 10 prepare
adequately to meet the demands which
are sure TO be made upon them Within
/ the decade and a half between 1882 and
1907 the population increased almost H,-
( e0G.jo0 Moro than 5000 miles OF rail-
roads were constructed. The production
| OF pig iron. to set at e vital and illus
trative fact. jumped Isl per cent. while
the increase iE steel was 374 per cent
And yet in that period we passed through
a severe business panic and argued and
rightly settled the free silver question.
II am not an unreasonable optinlist con-
cerning the future growth OF the coun-
try" Mr.. Brown went on TO say. 1T is
conditions and to try and look ahead. I
have lived in the West nearly all my life
aad have zivan considerable tina 10 Lha