The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1913-12-19
ERIE R. R. COMMISSIONER
JACKSON IN HONESDALE
HAD PLEASANT INTERVIEW
WITH A CITIZEN REPRESEN-
TATIVE.

Tells About Erie Company Improve
ments-The Development of Rail-
roads-Relates Things Seen in
Land of Midnight Sun, From
Which He Has Just Returned.
Luis Jackson, of New York City,
Erie railroad industrial commission
er, was visitor in Honesdale on
Wednesday. While in the Maple City
Commissioner Jackson called at The
Citizen office and we had a very
pleasant interview with him. Refer
ring to business conditions at large
Mr.. Jackson stated that one of the
things that would help business
would be the increase of five per cent.
freight rates. Quoting Mr.. Jackson,
he says, Il find that the entire man
ufacturing community of the country
is in favor of the increase as it is eX-
pected to give an immense impetous
power of the railroad and will en-
able them to secure more necessary
capital for rails and equipment.
Little or no money is now being
invested in railroad securities and
as money, like water, flows to its
level, investors will seek a field for
American capital abroad. Any busi-
ness man can tell by instinct that the
high cost of living effects railroads
in their purchases and in their la
Dor costs. The trouble is that we
have too many lawyers in congress,
and they are too slow in grasping the
business end of matters.
THE Erie railroad has it's line
double tracked from Buffalo to Chi
cago. This road has always had a
double track to Buffalo, but from
that city to Chicago has been a sin
gle track. During the past two years
the single track has been abandoned
and the double track is now within
40 miles from Chicago. AS soon as
this track is completed to Chicago
the Erie will take rank as one of the
great freight carriers in the United
States, and with this main line
doubled it will be able to take care
of every detailed improvement on
the lines of the whole system. l be-
lieve that the antagonism against the
railroads has about ended and that
the public is discriminating against
charging the faults of the few to the
many. believe that the railroads
will push ahead with the development
of their lines. The railroads busi-
ness is too big an interest to be scar
ed or disheartened by temporary
feeling"
Commissioner Jackson has just re-
turned from the Land of the Mid
night Sun, and among other interest
ing things related, he said:
Between Boden and Narvik is
the great Swedish iron ore district
The principal mines are at Gellivare
and Kiruna. The Gellivare mines
ship to Lulea on the east coast o1
Sweden, where there are ore docks
From Lulea the ore goes chiefly tc
Germany. The mines at Kiruna shiI
to Narvik on the west coast of Nor
way. Much ore from this district il
shipped by rail and water to furnaces
in Sweden. The total production o.
Swedish iron ore this year (1913)
is estimated at 100000 tons
Amout 3,500,000 tons of this will b,
handled by the ore docks at Narvik
Norway. (These figures are not au
thoritative). From Narvik most o
the ore is shipped to Emden in Ger
many, and is thence taken to th
steel works in the Ruhr district-Es
sen (Krupps), Dusseldorf, etc. Ship
also load at Narvik for the Unitet
States. Nearly all such ships run di
rect from Narvik to Philadelphia. Il
1912 Philadelphia received 33S,S6;
tons of iron ore from Sweden. Phil
adelphia is, practically, the only por
that receives Swedish iron ore. /
is shipped from there to differen
American furnaces, to enrich othe
ores, being a very high grade ore. Il
many cases it contains as much a
sc per cent. of iron, and in som
cases as high as SO per cent