The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1912-04-18
PRESIDENT
Cbntlnned ffom na 40.


ment. The hours Of service ana the
number Of men that shall be em-
ployed in various capacities, so that
not only is the income OF the rail-
roads under the complete control Of
the public. hut their expenses are
also largely Influenced by legislative
action:
iAmple transportation facilities are
vitality neeessarydn country Of such
great distance as ours, and / fully
believe that the people are willing
that the earViers, should be be al
lowed toqmale esuch rates and
charges as will fairly compensate
them for the service performed, and
enable them to so establish their
credit as to Justify and make posi-
BILE the necessary expenditures Of
the future. The people demand.
and properly 80, that charges shall
be the same. to all. They demand
that there shall be no partially
shown as between shippers or COM
munities and they will expect fair
ana reasonable service at reason
able prices! They are entitled to all
this, and ample machinery has been
provided to insure their getting It.
Having accomplished this It is equal
lily important that they should sec
that no real. injury is done to the
carriers; otherwise in the end, the
people will be the ones who will suf-
fer most from such conditions. 1t
should be clearly understood that in
the end the people must pay the
bill. The. law of compensation is
inexorable in. It's workings. If the
people demand more from the rail-
roads than they properly and fairly
should, through the reduction Of
rates. etc. they will surely suffer
from lack OF necessary facilities in
the future. II the people through
unwise legislation impose unneces-
isary burdens upon the carriers, the
expense so incurred will sooner or
later be reflected in the rates, which
the people must pay. The railroads
have come to "a full reconition OF the
changed order Of things, and they
have accepted the situation. In all
fairness, the people should now see
that one of their greatest, and !
might almost say their most neces-
sary, institutions should also be
treated f&irly, and in the end be-
lieye it will be, because no matter
how doubtful the outlook may seem
at times, 1 am at heart an optimist
and Lean not help believing that
in the end this very important ques-
ton will be. settled right. :
In connection with this same mat
tier, it's also interesting to note that
the wages paid railroad employees in
this country are Fom one to three
times as great Is they are in the
European countries. The last pub
llished reports show, for instance,
that the average wage received by
locomotive. engineers in the United
States is s455 per day, compared
with $1.69 paid engineers in Eng
land, and $1.O1 for the same service
in Belgium. With all this N mind,
1t seems to me that if there is any
institution, distinctly American, of
which all Americans ought to be
proud, it is their railway system,
because, in spite OF all that has been
said and urged against it, it is still
a fact that its capitalization is the
lowest in the world; that the wages
paid railway employees in this
country are from two to three times
as high as they are in European
countries, while the rates paid by
shippers are lower in America than
anywhere in the world. and 4 sub
nit that this is a record that can
not be paralleled by any other
American Institution, If the facts
concerning the American railroads
we're only better understood, In my
opinion, much of the criticism that
has been made in the past would
not have found utterance.
In conclusion, the Baltimore aud
Ohio Railroad Company has been
subjected, with the railroads gener-
ally, to all the Influences which I
have above referred to. We have
gone along with our improvements.
however, during the last two years.
firm IN the belief that in time bet
ter understanding would come
about and that we would be permit
ted to reach such reasonable return
upon the money so expended as