The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1913-03-25

the various state railway or industrial
commissions to be made up even in
part of privately chosen members.
In determining the actual value of
every common carrier in the country,
three great facts will be brought u
l. The value of Zach piece of prop
erty owned n used by each and all
of the railway, telephone and tele-
graph companies. This includes every
thing in detail, terminals, rights Of
way, land holdings, rolling stock,
shops, etc. For the railways alone this
means 100000 miles to be inventoried.
2,225,000 freight cars, 10000 locomo-
tives and millions of miscellaneous
property.
1.-THE original cost to date. This
means the history of every common
carrier concern in the United States,
in itself a tremendous undertaking.
The workers will have to 20 back as
far as 10 years in some instances.
Some historical data will never be OBJ
tained owing to natural causes. The
Baltimore & Ohio line lost valuable
records in the great Baltimore fire and
the same is true of the Southern Pa
cific in the San Francisco disaster.
This line of research was insisted
upon by Senator La Toilette and others
despite the protests of the railways
and the opinion of President Hadleva
of Yale university that the fact sad
duced would not justify the honey
and time k to ascertain them. This
was deemed important, however, as it
will lay bare the methods, not always
the most honorable, employed in the
organization n coddling of the pio-
neer railroads, and for the first time
will let the people know just how
many millions or billions of their do
main has gone to the railroads in the
form of land grants concessions,
aids etc. On the other hand, it will
show whatever benefits the govern
meht has derived by reciprocity from
the railroads in fulfilling their part of
the agreement by which they were as
sisted. The stock manipulationS, in
fact every official act in the history of
common carrier from one end of the
country to the other will be revealed
by the proposed historical delving.
3. The cost of reproduction new,
the cost of reproduction less dGprecia-
ton, and an analysis of the methods
by which these several costs are OBJ
tanned, and the reason for their diff
%ferences, if any. BY the cost of repro-
duction new is meant exactly what the
outlay would be if the lines now in
operation had to be built all owe again
today at the prevailing scale of mater
ial, wages, land values, etc. Depre-
citation will be considered not only
yrn,,, ~, -+,~ E $500
will take into account obsoles-
cence, that is. good, workable ma
chinery rendered suddenly archaic by
new inventions,
Merely the skeleton of the tack fac
ing the interstate commerce commits
sion and it's army of valuation sleuths
impresses its magnitude upon the
mind. There must be investigated,
tabulated, and summarized such ele-
ments as rates, capitalization, earning
power, commercial value, market
value, cost accounts or book accounts
of the carriers, cost of reproduction
and original investment, engineering.
franchises, discounts on stocks and
bonds, adaptation and qualification of
roadbed, unit prices, land values, in
- ~ 'ttSt ~ SpIildl, LII
earned increment, depreciation, general
expenditures and contingencies.
This one clause Of contingencies is
momentous. Michigan officials esti-
mate 10 per cent for contingencies, but
the railroads consider it unjust. Wash
ington allows five, Nebraska four, and
others two. Accepting . per cent,
this allows for a variation of $3.50.
600, 600 alone in finding the total value
of railroads now roughly estimated to
be worth $4,000, 000, 900. The inter-
state commission estimates
the stock market valuation at $lS,-
600, DOC, 600. The railways now are pay-
ing $1lo,OO0,0 600 in annual taxes where
as ten years ago they paid only $4O,-
600, 900.
The Adamson act authorizes the
commission or its employees to admin
lister oaths examine witnesses, take
testimony and use any other legal
means that may seem necessary to
bring out the desired information. ANY
carrier, receiver or trustee who re-
fuses to comply with the demands for
information will be subject to a fine of
$500 for each o~ffense, plus $500 for
each day of the continuance of the Of
tense. However, the railways are not
expected to ~antagonize the investiga-
tiCn. They recognize the ultimate
benefits of the probe to them and sew
eral leading magnates already have
endorsed the undertaking. 1t is likely
that the result will be a much be-
ter understanding between the corpor-
atoms and the public. The invest.-
CATION will be very expensive t, the
roads and telephone and telegraph
companies and at first may cause a
certain depreciation owing to uncer-
tainty.
The findings, when completed, VIII
represent the conflicting opinions Of
the delivers and the companies as wei
as their cooperation. The law pro-
vides that when the valuation of a
company is completed. and before final
action is taken, notice must be given
TIE carrier concerned, the attorney
general of the United States, the gov
crnor of any state in which the prop
ertN of the company concerned is 10
catcd, and to others whom may S en-