The Sentinel=record., 1909-10-20
BY REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MOST PROMINENT SHIPPERS
 AND OTHER INTERESTS.
A PhamphIet, "The Diminished Pur- chasing Power of Railroad Earn ings," Is Published for Ed
 ucaton of the Public.

Cincinnati, Oct 19.-That any pro posed general advance in freight rates will disturb existing business condi- tions and that such an advance Is not lrsr flied, and will be vigorously con tested by the leading shippers or. ganizations in the country, was the tenor of resolutions adopted late to- day at a meeting of representatives of shippers and other commercial or. ganizations from many parts of the country, held in the Sinton Hotel here
 The day was devoted to a discus. sion of the freight situation and it was determined to at once inaugGrate strong movement In opposition to the contemplated advance in rates, a committee being created whose duty il shall be to propagate a campaign of education of the public on freight rates and to have all of the powers of the general conference in dealing with that subject.
 The resolutions adopted were as follows;
 Whereas, as MT C. c. Mccain chairman of the Trunk Line Associa ton, composed of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, Buffalo Rochester apd Pittsbuag Railroad. Central Railroad of New Jersey, Delaware and Hud son, the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Reihpad; Erie Railroad Grand Trunk Railway. Lehigh Valley Railroad. New York Central and Hud son River Railroad, New York, On. tario and Westeam Railway, Penn sylyania Railroad, Philadelphia and Reading Railway, Western Maryland Railroad, and West Shore Railroad has complied a pamphlet entitled The Diminished Purchasing Power of Rail way Eearnings,' and,
 Whereas, said railroads have ass sumed the responsibility for said pamphlet by circulating same gener- all yamong the public and.
 Whereas, the avowed purpose of circulating said pamphlet is to edu cate the public; and,
 Whereas, the true purpose of said pamphlet is to prepare the public for a contemplated advance in freight rates; and,
 Whereas, said pamphlet is biased, partial and misleading and gives only q section of the truth bearing on the situation by emitting, among other things, the following facts and fig. ures:
 The net income of railroads per mile in the United States for 1907 exceed that for 1897 by $1,5S4, an in. crease of 34.5 per cent.
 The net increase per mile of road in group one (New England) for 1907 exceeded by $74O that for 1S97--an increase of fl per cent.
 The net income per mile of 9oads in group two (Trunk Line territory for 1907 exceeds that for 1897 by S2,. 525-an increase of ITO per cent.
 "The net income per mile of road of the roads in group C. F. A ter ritory) for 1907 exceeded that of 1897 hy I$1.607 an incrIeasel of 521 per cent.
 The surplus from operations of all roads in group for 1907 was s25S per mile greater than the net income of the roads in said group for 1897.
 "The net income of all the railroads in the United States for 1907 was $44s, s,461, ,1ss, for 1897, $S1 ,257, ,506; ex. cess of 1907 over 1897, $36S, ,203, ,6S2; an increase of 453 per cent.
 "The surplusf rom operations of all the railroads in the United States for 1907 exceeded the net income for 1897 by s60065,79S
 The amount of stock paying divi. dends increased from s1 eos ,549, ,97S in 1897 to s494S,7 ,756. .2O3 in 1907, an in. crease of $3,345. .25e.225
 The rate of dividend on stock in creased from 543 per cent in 1897 to c2S per cent in 1907, an increase of 14.7 per cent.