Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1910-12-17
An APPEAL TO THE PUBLIC
RAILROADS TELL THEIR SIDE OF
THE RATE QUESTION.
Santa Fe Sends It's Officials Gut to
Speak at Many Public
GATHERINGS.

Topeka & Santa Fee Railway company
started the movement, and the other
roads will follow, each in its own way
The Santa Fe's plan of reaching the
people on its lines is unique. E. P.
Ripley, president of the company, or
dered that a program be made which
would include public meeting IN
every city on the Santa Fe system,
to be addressed by the higher officials
of the road. This work was assigned
to J. R. Koontz, general freight agent.
That the campaign might be Tree
from even the appearance OF politics.,
no lawyers or others who had at any
time dabbled in political affairs were
permitted to accompany the party
When the list of speakers was made
up, it developed that not one of them
had ever made public speech-to ex-
coed five minutes in length Various
officials have been drafted" as the
work has progressed over the system
Those who do the speaking for the
Santa Fe at the meetings in Kansas
are c.. w. Kouns, general manager;
E L. Copeland, secretary and treas
urer; J. NJ. Cornell, general passenger
agent, and j. R. Koontz, general
freight agent, who is in charge of tie
campaign.
These men, by training and expert
ence, are competent to discuss the
several phases of railroading, and
they do it in business-like way, as
one business man talks to another
They invite questions from the audi
ence, and sometimes there are lively
debates.
The attendance at these meetings
is usually large, being made up of the
town business men, and farmers and
stockmen from the surrounding coun-
try The meetings are held under the
auspices of the commercial clubs of
the town visited, and the officers of
the clubs extend an invitation to the
public to attend.
General Manager Kouns makes
talk in which he undertakes to show
that the Increased cost of living ap-
plies to railroads, same as to indi-
viduals. He has a large collection of
data about the increased cost of ev-
-erything the railroad company has to
buy. These advances range from ten
to one hundred per cent Everything
we buy Mr. Kouns says, has in
creased in price, while the only thing
we have to sell-transportation-
constantly hammered down"
General Freight Agent KoontZ,
who has been making freight rates for
the Santa Fee for twenty-five years,
tells the story of freight rate making.
He says that commercial conditions
and requirements must fix the basis
for freight rates. He says that the
state and national commissions grad
ually are coming to that view of the
case. Mr.. Koontz makes it plain that
the Santa Fe is not opposing govern
ment and state regulation, but what
We want the people to do he urges
lis to study the question from all
angles and thereby be better prepared
to advise their representatives in con
gress and the legislature regarding
the proper control of this great indus
try" In other words, according tt
Mr.. Koontzs idea, the public, in as
Stunning the duties of regulating the
railroads must likewise assume the
responsibility of regulating them prop
erly. Mr.. KoontZ says that while tn
Santa Fe does not object to a physi
cal valuation of the railroads to as
certain whether they are over-capi
taliZed, it insists that freight rate
based on a physical valuation woul
be a calamity to the business worl
because of the different values of pal
allel lines, and the constant fiuctus
ton of rates in accord with the fiut
tuation of values, if rates were base
on values.
Treasurer Copeland talks about tn
financial department of the Santa F.
His showing is that the Santa Fee
worth every dollar for which it
capitalized, S5SO.OO0, 900. He says tn
company during the past year pal
out in operating the road, includin
taxes, $75,O00,0O0. The interest Q
the company's bonds of 0,000, 0(
was $lZ,uUU,UUU, the QlVlQ6nu PAID
$279 100000 was $14,000,000. Tt
company set, aside for bettermen
$4,00O,000, leaving a surplus at tt
close Of June, 1910, $365,000. By usir
the per cent in his comparisons, NJ
Copeland brings his large figures wit
in range of the average citizen. H
conclusion is that as the Santa Fe
surplus for the year closing June 3
1910, is less than One-fifteenth of OIL
per cent of its capital stock al
bonds, and as its dividends are sma
the company is not earning as mu,
on its investment as is the ayera:
firm in the average Kansas tow
The company has paid as high as fl
per cent dividend on its preferr'
stock: dividend on the common sto
has run as high as six per cent. B
the average for fifteen years,
Copeland says, is four and thrs
fourths per cent. The interest
the bonds is four per cent. Mr.. Coz
land says that the Interstate Co
merce Commission lately sent TWEEN
expert accountants to Topeka
check over the Santa Fe accoun
The experts reported that the
counts were correct.
General Passenger Agent Conn
closes the meetings with a story
the colonization work done by [
Santa Fe in the new country throu
which the lines run. When Genel
Manager Kouns is unable to acco
pany the party, Division Superint,
dent H. A. Tice, of Dodge City, taxi
his place.