The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1913-07-16
IS
SENT OUT BY
RAILWAY MEN
EXPLAINING THEIR SIDE OF THE
TROUBLE OVER DEMAND
HIGHER WAGES,

The following is an authorized
signed statement TO the public rror
the Order Of Railway Conductors and
the brotherhood OF Railroad Train
mon, published by request.
A l:Icu:ar has been sent ont in III.
name Of forty.four eastern railways
regarding the unreasonable wage dc
mands OF conductors and trainmen.
The statements contained therein art
framed TO purposely m.slead thos,
who may come into possession of tn
document, and the facts are. that il
stead OF eXtravagant wages being dc.
mnnded, the wage which Is insisted
upon by the eastern conductors ant
tlainmcn Is exactly the wage whirN
has been paid for two and one.hai.
years past by every railway company
west Of Chicago and st. Louis. and
few cents higher than paid south o.
the Ohio, and We contend that |; !.
worth exactly as much TO run trails
100 miles cast of Chicago ard ST.
Louis as It is 10 run the said train
west or south OF Chicago and 81.
Louis.
Comparison of the earning abilit;
Of the eastern railways per mile witH
the earning capacity of the wcster!
always per mile or which the rail-
ways south OF the Ohio river per mile,
will readily determine whether tho
eastern railways are able TO pay tn,
same rate as is paid by the western
md southern roads.
AS to the extravagen"e OF the 1atc
| If pay. it is admitted by even the most
2onservatice estimators that the in
:rease In he cost Of living in the las,
wenty years has been, at the very
lowest, tifty.nine per cent. In tn,
asst twenty years railway employee
! have received an Increase of exact,
-hirty.nine per cent Therefore, the
conductor Or trainman, living accord
ing TO precisely the same standard
purchasing precisely the same amour,
If the same commodities that he con
sumed twenty years ago. has. ale,
| paying the Increased price for thos,
commodities less money at the enG
Of the month than he had In 1897
IS 1t reasonable 10 suppose that h,
will. rest content with what const
utes n considerable decrease In wag,
during the period named?
Meanwhile how has the owner II
the railway stock Jared? In the yea
1890. according to the report furnish
ii by the railways to the Interstate
| Commerce Commission. the tO;a
amount paid in dividends on railwa.
stocks amounted TO SI6Tf.Gi3. In tn
year 1911 the total amount Of none,
paid in dividends. according to In
'ame reports, amounted to $i6O,i 1873
'76. and II must be borne in min:
that the returns for 1890 include
switching and terminal companies
.hese being some Of the most rcmur
aratiye properties in existence. Her
you have an increase in the amount
Hatd in dividends OF about 1923 ne
cent, while wages have increased ,
per cent.
Attention is further called TO IN
fact that in the year 1890. only 81
'9S,l3l,93S OF the then existing raj
way stock of the country, which euua
ed SO per sent of the amount thon il
existence, paid dividends, while l
1911. $5.73O,2N.32G of the existfn
stock, equaiing 81 per cent Of tn
sock that year in existence. paid d.,
idcnds.
Attention is further called to III
fact that the average dividend rat
in 1890 was as per cent while 1
1911 the average rate was S.oS pt
cent. the difference in results bein
largely produced by economies whic
Paced far more onercus duties upo
every conductor and trainman in III
service.
These figures have been in III
bands Of the managers committe
more than thirty days. although the
new but commendable devotion 10 IN
public interest and the loudly adve
tised although late developed desir
for publicity growing out OF said d.