The new era., 1910-03-31
RADICAL RAILROAD REGULATION AND TTS
EFFECT ON BUSINESS.

To the Business Man:-With enor-
nous crops commanding the highest
prices ever known; with every kind of
business on a safe and sensible basis;
with merchandise stocks of all kinds al
most at a minimum; with everybody
desirous of making good all the neces-
sary improvements which the past two
years depression would not permit Of,
and to fill up stocks which have been
almost depleted, with plenty of money
and credit to do all these things, there
is hesitation by the greater part OF
the business community, for the
reason that something has appeared
calling a halt in the progress which
had so fairly started In the latter half
of 1909. The one great and most ap-
parent element which has caused this
hesitation, is that the railroad cor
porations of this country have stopped
the purchase of anything beyond their
immediate necessities. so much so
that betterments which had been
projected, (Which are not only better
ments. but in great many cases are
almost, or soon will be neCessities)
amounting to over one thousand mil
lions of dollars, have been held up. 1t
is customary for railroads to prepare
their budgets of expenditures January
1st If these budgets had been pre-
pared on the lines of necessities the
outlook for general business, particu-
larly among manufacturers, would be
exceptionally good for 1910. These
budgets have not been presented, and
are not within the call, or even within
the sight of those who would gladly
welcome them, and it is doubtful when
we will be able to make any reason
able forecast in the manufacturing and
commercial world. 1t is unquestion-
ably true that the railroads would
gladly enter into a year of liberal
expenditure, but as matters stand now,
it is quite possible that they will be
compelled to drop back into the con-
dition they were in the latter part of
1907 and during the year 1908, that is,
purchase nothing except that which
is absolutely essential, and the reasons
are exactly the same as those that
existed in the early part of 1907, that
is Radical Railroad Regulation"
Our Legislators seem to be unmind
full of the causes of the depression of
1907 and 1908, and give every indi-
cation of re-entering the field with
even more laws to interfere with and
discourage the investment of money in
railroad enterprises, whether it be for
increases or improvements in existing
lines, and absolutely calling halt on
new projected railroad enterprises.
And the railroads have not reached
the position that they now occupy
through any concerted plan; they all
realize and appreciate the necessity OF
renewing their tracks and equipment
that the recent depression would not
permit of. This in the face of very
general actual or threatened demand
for large increases in the wages of
their employees, and knowing that the
only way they can grant these ad-
vances will be by corresponding ad-
vance in their revenue, and the only
way in which they could increase their
revenue would be by raising their
rates. and certainly the outlook for
this is far from promising. They have
islation to come; they are in positive
fear of Congress, and are warranted
in that fear by special bills already
introduced, which is a sufficient cause
for them to hesitate. They are not
certain that the people generally
would favor any increase in rates, and
they are equally uncertain as to
whether the public would not side with
labor in its increased demands upon
the railroads. They feel as all owners
of property naturally would feel, that
the earning capacity of their property
is now absolutely dependent upon the
manner in which they shall be gov
erned. They do not know what that
government is going to be; they are
almost positive that there will be no
legislation which will cause an in
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