The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-07-21

bob-tailed freight will come by and we
wonder why II ran at all. Were fat
through trains run and lean locals ?
The Seaboard Air Line rode mostly its
RED Bali freights-high grade
h ,ughs and leftover locals-second
sections. Would we have agreed to
this if we had been present? Never
Why you can't take a deposition or
survey "A disputed piece of land with
out giving tie other side notice to be
present-"Audi alteram partem"-
was the rule in law until this ~ase.
But again what proportion Of the
total annual freight train mileage did
ern ride during these ex parte testing
periods.
Southern .0045 per cent.
Seaboard Air Lin .006O per cent.
Little wonder that Mr.. Forester and
MI. Creight n state that one-half OF
one per cent is so small a faction OF
the whole; that it has no value what
ever for the purpose lntended-about
1900 of the whole yearly mileage,
There are 365 days in the year. Can
you by observing two of these DAYS
forecast the weather conditions for
the coming year? Can an insurance
calculate the length Of q
human life by observing the lives OF
only two or three men out of as many
hundred? II you point a pistol -four
inches long at a small object a mile
away you must aim with great &C.
curacy or else you will miss your oh.
1ect badly.
Record, page 351: MIR. Plant yo.
did not take the trains as they wen
out consecutively ?" Answer. mo
In this connection permit me to cal
attention to h was one in respec
to this matter in the Minnesota rat,
case-at page 426 of the brief of tn,
Attorney General of Minnesota, w,
read:
From the beginning of these case
both sides had agreed that the month
of April and October, in each yea
were typical of the years business am
so percentages derived from the to
tails Of those two months were &C
eepted as accurate"
And speaking to this subject in tn
Minnesota case the court says that tn
test periods must be properly select
ed, and, at another place on the sam
subject in the opinion, we e tina
this ratio could clearly be arrived a
only by prolonged and minute investi
cation of particular facts with respeC
To the actual traffic as it was bein
carried over the line.
How far short these tests hav
fallen of minute and prolonged in
ve~stigation." and how ~valueless !:
evidence is any ex-parte test, mad
without the other side present to chez
over the every varying, ever chang
ing freight trains until a representa-
tive one could be agreed upon to b
tested!
What we have said on this head az
plies only to Seaboard Air Line an
the Southern-they alone made an
tests. No doubt the other carriers. tn
Atlantic Coast Line, and Norfolk an
Western and the Norfolk SOuther
agree with us that no test is NOR
Illuminating of this ratio than a 1-20
of ! per cent test; and that a re;
good guess at it is better than to III
dcrtake a ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS task
having to dream a dream and to il
terpret it too.
Six Per Cen Ought to Be the E.arnin;
Assuming hat this commission vii
however, pass on to the queStlo
Whether this act will cOnfiscate II
railroads property We come next 20 II
Quire, What is a reasonable retuI
upon an investment of money devote
to intra-state freight business?
will be recalled that Mr.. Hillman, o,
%eyIeIt, over our objection, gave It
his opinion that a rate might be mol
compensatory and yet not cOnfiScatOl
and, with that candOr and fairne
which characterized his whole test
rory, stated that a railroad $40"
earn Z 1-2 per cent on its investme1
in order to earn a fair return. v
say hat we objected to this, becau
our view is that h legal rate OF
per cent is the maximum limit, mea
uring the fair return upon investmen
Of this kind.
We say this because in the Mimi
sofa rate case the rate of interest u
held and sustained by the court
the total business of the railroads w
as to the Northern Pacific Rallro;
s is per cent and as to the Gre
Northern Railroad 6 per cent. '
think, therefore, that if the railroa
receive s per cent on their investmer
this will be a fair return on the san
In passing we will say that the Fl. u
used by the Supreme Court In I
Minnesota rate case in overthrow
he case Of the railroads was hat
our expert, G. w. Hi1lman, from who
he court often quotes and to wht
refers as "a professional accoul