The Liberal democrat. [volume] (Liberal, Kan.) 1911-1924, 1914-12-18
increased Cost Of Operation

high cost of living" has been every.
where abroad in the land. Time was
not so many years ago, when the
| farmer sold his corn at 25 cents per
bushel. Now it brings from 40
cents to rs cents. So, too, he sold
hogs at 3 cents per pound, which now
readily bring from cents to ~
cents-while good steer calf, which
used to bring from $40 to $12, now
sells for from $50 to $25. Nobody
who knows anything about present
land values or the farmers cost Of
| production will contend that he Is
not entitled to these increased prices.
AS a matter of fact. unless he is an
exceedingly good manager and util-
ICES the best of modern agricultural
thought he is by no means getting
rich at present prices-high as they
may seem to people in the cities who
do not understand the cost attached
TO present-day farming. To go back
TO the old prices he used to receive
would bankrupt, in a little while,
every farmer in the country-and the
tendency of the future will be for
he prices of farm products to go still
higher rather than lower. Agricul
ture is the nations greatest funda-
mental industry and society must
make the farm game sufficiently
profitable to justify the man who is
on the farm today and the farmer
boys of the future to stay by the
plow Much has been said recently
about the fact that the farmer does
not receive enough for what he pro
duces--that there is too big a waste
in the channels through which his
products pass before they reach the
consumer, and that he has some
cause for complaint in this respect
Is undoubtedly true. However, the
railroads can face such an inquiry
with clear conscience-for an eX-
haustive investigation conducted by
the Lehigh Valley railroad some time
ago shows that the farmer gets 509
cents out of the average dollars
worth of products he sells; the pack
ers, local shippers, distributors and
retailers get 44h cents between them,
while the railroads receive only 3
cents, or one-twentleth of the dollar,
for the transportation services they
render.
So, too, there has been a steady
advance in practically the entire
realm of merchandise and manufac-
tured products, whatever their ma
ture, and the ever increasing toll in
the cost of labor, steel products, lum-
her, cars. locomotives, and other sup
plies has levied tribute of untold
millions upon the railroads, which
have not only .een forbidden to in
crea &c their rates, but, on the con-
trary, in many instances compelled
to lower them.
Big Increased Cost of Labor
To give the reader an exact idea
of how the cost of labor has ad-
vanced in the operation of railroads
we quote the following increases in
the daily wage from 1900 to 1914-
period of only fourteen years: In
the case of engineers it increased
from $3.6S per day to $5.76, or an
increase of sc per cent; firemen from
S2.21 to $3.50. or GA per cent: con-
ductors from 1891 to $4.S3, or 40
per cent; station agents from $1.9S
to sale, or 8 per cent; other sta
ton men from $1.62 to $3.50, or II
per cent; ordinary trainmen from
$1.97 to 1895, or 20 per cent; ma
chinists from $272 to $3.52, or 30
per cent; carpenters from 1921 to
$2.59, or IL per cent; other shop.
men from $1.93 to $2.20. or IA per
cent; section foremen from $1.51 to
$1.S3, or 81 per cent; other track
men from $1.15 to $1.52, or 80 per
cent; telegraph operators and dis
patchers from 1925 to $2.65, or II
Der cent. This means a general aver
cent-and all other classes of rail
road operatives and employees in
more or less similar degree. While
these advances have proven a great
boon to the nearly two million men
employed in the railway service and
increased their capacity to buy from
merchant and farmer, they have eX.
acted many millions annually from
the railroads themselves-all of
which made the general public
richer, but the roads poorer. I'm
l5Ou Tue IdllTOduS paul Sl.4f per
ton for coal. Now they pay $1.S1.
Then they paid 3Sc for ties. Now
they pay 52c,)
Other Increased Costs
But there are many other items
which have enormously increased the
cost of railroad operation which we
cannot go into because of lack of
space. The public is constantly de-
handing more efficient and a safer
service, and hence the railroads have
had to spend vast sums in installing
block signals, steel passenger cars,
DONG away with grade crossings,
Strengthening lines, heavier locomo-
tives, better roadbeds, and supplying
many other precautions protecting
both their operatives and the public
all things very necessary, yet very
costly.
Now, while labor, farm products,
merchandise and manufactures and
supplies of all kinds have steadily in
creased in price, the railroads, as
stated before, have been compelled to