Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1914-10-15
WHY COST OF OPERATING
RAILROADS IS INCREASED
How the High Cost Of Living Has
Affected the Transportation Com-
panies
cosT on LABOR IS GREATER
As Cost Of Food Has Gone Up So
Has the Cost Of Operating the
Railroads Advanced

In the previous article the question
of what the railroads do with the
money they take in was briefly anal
yzed.
In this connection, it is opportune
to remind the reader that nine-tenGns
of the abuses not only in the railroad
world but in the entire field Of indus
trialism were committed in the past
and that American Business stands TO
day on the threshold of new ideal
ism which should mean much for the
future. In a great new country like
ours whose growth and expansion has
been the marvel of the World, it was
but natural that greed and selfish
ness should frequently show them
selves in all lines of business activ-
ity and the railroads, of course, were
no exception. But one by one these
wrongful practices have yielded to an
aroused public conscience which has
not merely affected the business
world but which has likewise taken
hold of the realm of politics. Time
was, not so many years ago, when
large corporations were considered
the legitimate prey of all who pur-
sued them-and if they sometimes
employed like means to protect them
selves it must at least be admitted
that the provocation was very great.
But fortunately these things are
past and gone. Never before in the
history of the Republic has its poll
tics and its business been conducted
so much in the open as today and
that every honest corporation in the
Country welcomes the change goes
without saying. 1t is therefore need
less and futile to cucumber the splen-
did era which lies ahead Of Us by con-
tinually reverting to things that con-
stituted the mistakes of other days.
The Government Ownership Idea.
During the last few years the advo-
Gates of the government ownership Of
railroads have been somewhat persist
ent in the public press and the mat
ter is referred to here, not with any
idea of combating it but merely that
the people may briefly see both sides
of the picture. So long as lot Of men
welcome the wrecl6ing Of the rail-
roads on the theory that the govern
ment will take them over and that
such state of affairs would be pref
cradle to private ownership it will be
impossible to obtain from them fair
| Judgment of the latter system which
now prevails in the United States. 1t
is impossible to go into this great
question at any length at this time
but here are few things worth think
ing about: much has been said in re-
| cent years about the "water" contain
ed in American railroad securities and
| in this connection, the valuation Of the
| government owned railroads of Eu-
rope is very interesting. In Germany,
the state owned railroads are capital
lied at $114,1S5 per mile, in Austria
at $120,692, in Hungary at $69,210, in
Italy at $126,SS6, in Belgium at
| S190,914, in Switzerland at $102,9h0,
in Roumania at $90,113, in Japan at
| SsS, ,104, in New South Wales at SILL
391, while the privately-owned lines
of the United States, regardless Of
what water may have been forced in
to them in specific instances, are only
capitalized ut $685. ,944 per mile. What
ever initiation may therefore have
been put into these properties in the
past, the fact remains that their
present valuation is much lower than
that Of the state owned railroads OF
Europe and what is still more impor-
tant, the rates charged are the low
est and the service rendered admit
tedly the best in the World. In this
connection, a statement contained II
the last annual report Of the greai
Deutsche Bank Of Berlin which has {
paid up capital and reserve fund o.
J S7b, ,000,000 is interesting: "Americar
I railroads need higher freight rates
, Their present rates are the lowest II
the world--representing, for instance
but fraction Of the English railwa,
5 rates-and this in the face of the fac
: that wages in the United States, OF
: the average are fully twice as high a
in Europe" Certainly this view o
the privately owned lines of the Unit
ed States, coming from German
n which has the most successful stat
owned transportation system in tn
World is worthy Of grave considers
ton.
= Letting Well Enough Alone.
; In view of these facts, the averag
'. citizen may let well enough alor
II rather than invite other ills we kno
l not of-whether it is not wiser to cul
u such defects as may cucumber II
present system rather than run Il
% danger of plunging this mighty indu
,e try into the whirlpool of party POI
=. tics for all time with its attendant o
- portunity for evil of which the pa
affords such rich variety of expel
Mt enee. The United States is still
III young Country and in many sectio
he only partially developed. Many ne
= lines and extensions are needed he
~ and there to give wider opportu
Is ty to expanding Agriculture and &c
sr, merce and nothing could be more U
ii fortunate or disastrous than tn
- these favors could henceforth be
'" tanned only by leave of the DONNA
:. Continued on Page Four)
w