Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-06-10
WHAT |SFUTURE
Of RAILROADS?
Are They Heading Toward
Prosperity or Toward
Bankruptcy?
BY B. c. FORBES.

| NEW YORK, June 10.--Are American
railroads heading toward prosperity or
toward bankruptcy? The question con-
Germs not only banking people not only
railroad managers and employees, not
only investors in railroad securities. 1t
concerns YOU, no matter what your sta
ton in life You can not afford to remain
Indifferent to it, for were widespread
| trouble to overtake our railroads, the peO-
pie as whole would suffer, and suffer
more seriously than the thoughuess can
| imagine. True the public in bygone
years had too often cause for wanting to
punish railroad owners who acted in the
most autocratic. sometimes insolent man.
ner defiant of both reason and restraint
But has not retribution enough befallen
the railroads? Is it not time that a halt
was called in imposing restrictions upon
the running of our railways? Can the
| hands of railway managers be tied still
tighter WITH IMMUNITY TO THE PUB
Lie?
The man in the street can not be ex-
pected to spend hours and effort in an
alyzing intricate railway accountable has
problems enough Of his own nearer home.
| He has a deep-rooted feeling that the
railroads are very well able to look after
| themselves and little more. He has
not forgotten the past In a vague sort
of way he realizes that the railroads have
been tanned a bit, that the government
| has bridled them, that when they planned
| to exact higher freight rates a Federal
commission had the power to say No,
and that in other ways the railroads can
not now do as they please. But that he
should become solicitous concerning their
welfare-well, he guesses that is none of
| his business
Now is it the business of you or me
to worry over the knocks the railroads are
receiving? Should we pay any heed to
the now chronic complaints of fresh re-
strictions and impositons that accord
ing TO the railway people, threaten the
financial and even the physical stability of
the railroads? l am inclined to think we
should
Every one can readily understand that
the country could not prosper were rail-
road after railroad to go under An i'm
poverished, decrepit. langushing railway
| is handicap to every industry and inter
est depending upon it for service. Not
| only So but when d road begins to go
down hill it's power to get capital van
! ishes, and the funds necessary to main
! tain the property can not be obtained
and therefore can not be spent. Stock
holders in course of time suffer the loss
| of their income, and, unless something
helpful be done, bopdhoders also have
to starve, events which hit the pockets
of thousands indeed, if bankruptcies be-
| came general millions of investors would
be involved Is there any danger of this
happening? Railroad authorities of sound
judgment say there is.
Without holding any brief for the rail
roads it can be said in all truth that the
outlook is not inspiring. A railroad man
ager is not today a manager in the old
or full sense of the term. He has now a
superior-the interstate commerce COM
mission This body has a maximum of
power but minimum responsibility. 1t
can-and does order railway income to
be reduced without having to trouble it
self one iota as to how and deficiency in
revenue may be made up. 1t regulates
feceipts-that is, it is constantly lower
ing them; but when the railroads wanted
this same body to decide whether the en-
gineers wages should be increased the
request was refused Thus we have reg
ulation without responsibility. and thus
have the railroads to submit to reduc-
tons in income. and at the same time
contend with demands for larger expen-
ditures.
SO numerous are the orders issued by
the interstate commerce commission low
erng freight rates that the newspap ers no
longer can spare space to print them all
Not few roads of the first Importance
are paying out in dividends far more
than they are earning Illinois Central
is not earning so cents for every Sl00 it
is giving away in dividends. St Paul is
in exactly the same position. More roads
than the layman can realize have been
systematically "scrimping" Almost ev-
cry railroad president will admit that
maintenance and equipment have not
| dealt with generously during the last two
or three years " orse still, there has re-
Gently appeared a tendency to trans
form short-term equipment obligations
into permanent securities, an unpardon-
able financial sin. for plainly long-term
bond based on equipment that will go
out of existence in a comparatively short
period is not worth calling a security r
its security has been cast into the junk
heap Other makeshifts have been re-
sorted to in an effort TO keep up apear-
dnces and div dends
Would the interstate commerce com
mission resent suggestion that it in
terest itself in the other side of the
railroad situation ii nothing be discov-
cred TO iustifV alarm. If nothing be found
calculated to check The daily reductions in
freight rates then The railroads, troubled
investors and some other intelligent mem
bers of the public will feel infinitely re-
HeVed.
Regulation is all right strangulation
would be all wrong
NEW PRODUCE MARKET.