Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-16
TO RESUME THE TASK
Improvement to Be Taken Up
by Southern Roads.
SOME Recent STATISTICS
Depression Following Panic Felt Less
Than in the North.
MORE PASSENGERS CARRIED
Good Effect of the Adjustment OF
Diversified Industries-Cost OF
Maintenance Greater.
MORE PASSENGERS CARRIED
BY WILLIAM F.. CURTIS.
| Special Correspondence OF The Star ana ny
| Chicago Record Herald

/ arrested by the panic OF OCTOBER i'os'
and. although they have suffered consio-
erably since that date. the falling OIL III
| traffic and in revenues has not oeen SO
great as on the northern trunk lines. Ihe
south felt the financial depression ou.
| the north felt it more, and the statlstcai
| reports Of the transportation lines OF the
| two sections afford an interesting study
| Of comparisons. This is the more re-
markable because Of the adverse ieSlsla-
ton which assailed the railways from the
capitol of every southern state at Tue
very time when they needed support ana
encoura cement. The agitation has SUP
sided. however: the healthfui conditions
| throughout the south promise an carry
| restoration of the activity and prosperity
which were enjoyed in 1905 and 1907 up
to the panic. and the prospects are qniIe
| as favorable as in any other scctioh ol
the country
The statistics of traffic upon the South
| ern railway. for example. for the call
endar year of 1908. as compared with
| those of 1908 and 1907. show that the
growth of the smaller and dlverslhed m
dustries throughout the south Atiantic
| and gulf states is strong and healthy,
and that they have kept on growing DUR
! ing the recent financial depression. While
the big industries. such as mining, the
| manufacture of iron and steel, the cut
| facture of cement and the quarrylng OF
building stone. have suffered.
Comparison Of Freight Moved.
! A comparative statement of the CLASH
fcation of the freight moved by the
| Southern railway during the last three
years has been published. but it is diff
| ficult to understand. Why, for example,
should there be falling off in the ship
1
grapefruit and FISH because of the panic
and an increase in the shipment of mer-
| chandise? People ate just as much of
vegetables and fruit and fish, and they
| wore cheaper clothing and spent less
! money for luxuries, yet the traffic sta
J tistics show that the movement of the
| latter was greater than usual and that
| the former diminished. We can under
stand why the shipments of coal. lum-
Der. cement. building stone and other
construction materials should decrease
during a financial depression; but why
should there be an increase in the ship
ments Of miscellaneous manufactured
goods
| In 1906 Of the tonnage of the Southen
railway handled II per cent were asri-
cultural products; in 1907 they were
12.4o of the whole. and in 1908 they
| were 1104 per cent of the whole.
| In 1906 of the tonnage handled by
the Southern railway 3.91 per cent
were tile product of mines and
quaries: in 1907 the percentage was
81 and in 1905 the percentage
3S.17 per cent.
| In 1906 of the tonnage of the South
ern railway 1892 per cent were the
products of the forests: in 1907 the
percentage 1887 and in 1908 1t was
| 1916 per cent.
| In 1906 2D.65 per cent of the tonnage
i of the Southern railway was miscella
neous manufactured merchandise: in
1907 the percentage was 29.60 and in
4
! In 1908 the banner year Of prosperity
! in the south. the total of manufactured
merchandise handled by the Southern
| railway was 6,973.SJS tons; in 1907 the
/ total was 1.1J2. $50 tons and in 1908
| 7.070.564 tons. notwithstanding the IN
! dustrial depression.
! This shows how diversified manufac-
turing is being developed in the south.
Falling Off in Steel and Iron.
| There was a large falling off in the
| tonnage of articles Of iron and steel.
| which arc one of the principal items
Of freight handled by the Southern
railway: there was also a large falling
| off in tho transportation of marble.
/ stone. cement and other building ma
terials which are produced in enormous
quantities in the south: the decrease in
| the shipment of logs. timber and Ium-
4 Der. for which there was practically
| little demand in the northern states
! for year after the panic. was also
noticeable: but there was IA marked m
! crease in fertilizers. i'll manufactured
articles Of AL kinds and in merchandise.
which means store goods" shipped
from the north to the south. That
| was the largest item in the traffic.
the calendar year 1908, and the total
Tin comparison with the two preced
| ing years was as follows:
,oo, .ou,,.n,,.o Tons Tor
1907 merchandise .................... l.777,776
1905. merchandise ................... a.479.50s
| This means that the innumerable
small factories OF all sorts throughout
the south have been kept running flll
| time throughout during the financial
| depression when those in the north
| were shut down or Were r1nning on
| half time.
| handled by the Southern railway caused
by the panic is shown in the following
/ table:
1905 ........................ 22,634.3ss
The falling off of ,133. 0-9 tons OF freight
/ handled during the year 1903 is repre-
| products. 10000 tons of forest products
/ and 10000 tons of mineral products in
/ round numbers. but only -. o)6 tons of
manufactured products. and that was al
/ most entirely iron anu steer, cement,
/ bricks and other building material.
Diversified Industries.
The rema rkable growth of diversified
industries in the south in recent years
has furnished the railways an internal
! IRA ffic largely local and distributed over
! q vide field: hut it has grown steadily
! every year. and gives such lines is the
| Southern railway commanding position
in its negotiation for traffic from outer
I sources. The extent and diversity of this
| small manufacturing. and its beneficial
effect upon the development of the south.
| cannot he adequately understood or fully
| appreciated by reading the statistics Of
| the railway companies and the chambers
| of commerce. The south now melts more
| than half Of the pig iron and weaves into
cloth more than one-fifth Of the cotton 1t
! produces Its phosphate beds are the
| basis of enormous revenues. and have
made the farmers independent of outside
| sources of supply Of fertilizers, and have
| added considerably to our agricultural
| productiveness. The manufacture of fur
| niture has grown to such proportions that
| the greater part of the hardwood timber
! is now worked up within sight OF noun
| tain sides upon which it has been cut.
| vet there has been no decrease in the
| volume of lumber shipped abroad and to
| other parts in this country. Several hun
| dred Woodworking plants have been es-
| tablished on the line of the Southern
railway during the last few years, and
High Point, y. c.. town that was never
| heard of until a short time ago. produces
| more furniture than New York or Chi
cago any other city in the country ex-
| cept Grand Rapids.
| ynooI D,,l,>