Connecticut western news., 1913-04-10
COSTLY AGITATION
What the Spite of Political Mercensries May Cost New England.

May Cost New England.
 An experienced and we'll known writer on economics sends the following to Ti,s News. It IS we'll worth while-read. ponder, and inwardly digest 1t:
 The 22,7l8 shareholders who draw dividends from the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Company are not the only persons to whom the maintenance of tho present dividend rate 6 matter of vital conc ern.
 A reduction of this dividend rate would cripple many of the small share holders. Incomes would be reduced, tlss family's clothing bill would have to be out, the expense of the table curtaiied There would be less pinmoney in pocket books.
 But what would be the result of alI this Shortsighted persons are likely to confine their commiserations in time of financial stress to the large holders of securities. overlooking the fact that the effect of any such curtailment of pur- chasing power is widespread. In fact. it is like the ripple from the pebble cast into the pond, which may be felt upoa its farthest shore. Not the shareholders alone would feel the loss but hundreds, nay thousands. of shopkeepers would feel it as well. Upon them, upon the butcher, the grocer, the oandlestickmak- CT, the loss would fall and the effect be felt almost as keenly as ny those persons who received the dividend checks.
 Some figures recently made public with reference to the distribution of the New Haven's shares throw a decidedly interesting light on this matter. Take Massachusetts. for example, the state in which Louis D. Brandeis and his coteris are making their attacks. There ars b57. .8i9 shares of stock held by residents of that state, which means that there la returned to these stockholders for dis tribution to large extent among the local business interests at an per cent rate, sum amounting annually to $4, ,462, ,552.
 Let MT. Brandeis and his fellow agl- tators continue their attacks. lef rths Boston and Maine pass Its dividend and the New Haven reduce its annual return to shareholders to per cent. and what will be the result9 The s4. .462, ,562 now annually added to the spending money of residents of that state would shztrrk to sS,846,9l4. That means loss af $1, ,ll5, 63S. It means that much kesa in the pockets of the stockholders and 1t means likewise that much less to the butcher, the grocer and shopkeeper, to whom dividends eventually hnu their way.
 While Massachusetts would suffer severely in this respect, it's residents holding. as they do S5 per cent. of the company's stock, the effect of such reduction in the earning power of the company would not be lost in New York state.
 In that state are held 6i5,0o9 shares. In other words. every year the portion of the New Haven's earnings distributed among shareholders living in that state amounts to s4, ,l2o,072, tidy cum, i'm deed, as shopkeepers look at things. Reduce the rate and there would ha &, ,090. .054. a difference of q, ,o3o,01S.
 Connectiout's 5.llS stockholders TO- ceive s2,S56, ,4s0. About S5e0, 900 would be the loss to them. to be in turn passed on to Connecticut shopkeepers. Even little Rhode Island would have to charge off loss of sl00,8i4 to the attacks of these agitators. that being the sum taken out of the pooketboohs of her people.
 It would be in the states mentioned that the loss would be most seriously felt and it is necessarily to these ststes that Mir. Brandeis and those who are iR- citing the present agitation are looking chiefly for support in their attacks. whose inevitable result, if continued, is the impairment of the credit of the New England lines. And impairment of credit means reduced dividends.
 Of the company's shares less than q per cent. are held outside of these states. Furthermore, contrary to general i'm precision, the shares of these states are not closely held, another fact pointing to the widespread effect reduction in the rate would have upon the general public. Forty per cent. of the hoAden had only from one to ten shares, while 80 per cent. had only from eleven to fifty shares.
 Political agitators aud mercenaries invariably impoverish to the public
 Roharf "a Manfat1