The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1912-04-27
GOOD FOR COUNTRY
IMPROVEMENT OF WATERWAYS
WILL DEVELOP RESOURCES
OF EVERY SECTION.
FREIGHT CARRIED cHEAPLY

FREIGHT CARRIED CHEAPLY
Make Direct Saving In Cost of Trans
portation by the Water Routes. and
Indirectly Serve to Lower Railway
Carrying Rates.
The claim has been made In previ-
GUS articles-and facts and figures
given to support the claim-that wa
tsrways carry freight more cheaply
than the railways do or can, and that
they compel the railways to carry
freight more cheaply than they other
wise would, making a saving of hun
; dreds Of millions of dollars year, even
under present conditions, and indicat-
ing vast increase in that saving If all
waterways should be improved. And
then the surprising assertion was
made that the surest way to enlarge
| the business and increase the profits
of the railroads of the United States
Is to improve the waterways of the
United States. The best guide to the
so let us see what has actually hap.
pened to railways when waterways
have been improved.
That the improvements in the chan
nels and harbors of the lakes have
been Of great benefit. both to the rail-
ways which parallel their shores and
to those which run from lake cities to
the interior, is a fact SO plain that
It needs no argument to support It,
There are no more prosperous and
profitable roads in the country than
those that serve the region tributary
to the lakes. But no one questions
the wisdom of continuing the improve
ment of the lakes, or of our ocean
harbors. The real question is as to
the improvement of our rivers, and II
we wish to study the effect of river
Improvement, either on railway reve-
uues or national development, we
must go to Europe.
Results in Bohemia.
During the fifteen years that I'M
provements were under way on the
Elbe river, in Bohemia, the river traf
fic, as a natural result of the better
channel, increased f1vefold But traf
fic on the competing railways in
creased still more largely and the div
idends on the main line, from Teplits
to Aussig, rose to 16 per cent. per
Annum.
Similar results followed the canal
!ation of the River MAN, from May
ence, on the Rhine, to Frankfort,
which was finished in the latter part |
Of 1885, The river traffic, which |
amounted to only 10000 tons in that
growing, being 1,273,o00 tons IN 1902.
There are two railroads between
Frankfort and Mayence, one on each
side of the river. What happened to
themf Did their business show Sc.
fious falling off? Or were they forced
into the hands Of a receiver? On the
contrary their traffic, which was Gill;
300 tons In 1886, also began to grow.
and by 1902 had reached 100000
tons, or more than double what it was
when the railroads had a practical
of the business of Frank.
tort
The mere statement of tho in.
creased tonnage does not tell the
whole truth Of the matter. for the
tonnage was not only more than
ioubled in quantity, but greatly
.aised In grade, so that It could pay.
Ind did pay, a much higher rate pei
on per mile.
Fine German Waterways.
Practically all the railways Of Ger
many are state owned and state oper
tied. Out OF total of $4,000 miles
n round numbers, only about $500 .
niles are operated by private com
,anies. Germany also has one Of the
inest systems Of waterways in the
World and a study of the balance
heet OF the German railway system
hows that the results which followed
he Improvement of the River Main
re not an exception, a mere coincl
Ience, but are the natural outworking
# a principle Of general application
n the calendar year 1907, after paying
or operation, maintenance, repairs.
enewals, new equipment, interest OIL
onds, contribution to the sinking
und, and every other item which the
most careful bookkeeping required to
e charged up, the German railways
urned $164,000,ooo OF absolutely net
eyenues into the. treasures of the
arious states. This was $5,050 pei
ale of line operated. while the CORE
ponding figure on United States rail
rays for the fiscal year 1867 wa
My $1,967-a little over one third a.
luch.
Much the greater part of the tota
evenue of the German states is d
wed from their railways, II cents on
every dollar received by Prussia i
907 being so obtained. Yet Germa'
tatesmen keep on, year after yea ]
pending money earned by their raj
avs in building anG improving wStcl
avs to compete with those same raj =
avs, on which they depend as tt
rincipal source of national income
! the light Of the facts given abov
will not do to say that these Ger
an statesmen do not know what the
e about. On the contrary, they ar,
citing, as has been well said, in fur
erance OF a policy the wisdom OF
hich time and experience have full,
Always and everywhere the result i