The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-04-30
RAIL ROADS PAY LESS TO
 LABOR NOW
Experts Show Smaller Pro portion of Earnings to Men Now Than Tn Any Year Since 1898.

; (By Our Staff Correspondent.)
 Washington, April 3o.-Extraordin- ary evidence submitted by shippers in the closing days Of the rate hearings before the Interstate Commerc Com
 mission seems to indicate that the railroads have again been caught with the goods.''
 Even those who have most bitterly
 fought railroad injustices in the past were inclined to believe this year that the roads were telling the truth when they said their net earnings have de- cHned because of increased wages, and E not until recently has there been much reason to believe that the Commission might not grant the five per cent. in crease in freight rates which the roads are asking.
 But all these estimates have been upset by the evidence offered by the shippers at the last Inorn ent. The figures which have been brought for ward seem to show without question that instead of having smaller net earnings than formerly the railroads during the past year have made more money than ever before in spite of higher wages paid to their employees The roads have shown an apparent decrease in profits by methods which practically amount to juggIery in bookkeeping
 of the showing which the shippers have made if the five per cent. in lscrease will be granted.
 One of the most illuminating wit lsnesses who have appeared before the lCommissi6n was pr. Frank J. Warne the statistician, who was employed in this case by the Pittsburgh Coal com pany. Dr. Warne presented an anal I ysis of railroad figures the like of which the Commission had never seen | before. z4 E l working from the railroads own lreports of their finances, Dr. EVarne lcompiled 500 graphic diagrams which. as aswho1e revealed on the part of the frai1roads a most bold and cynical eff 4 fort to deceive the public and the | Commission, and thus secure the right I to muIct the consumer upon an arr | gument based on false pretenses.
 ts4 The Warne exhibits show that the Iapparent reduction in railroad earn ings is not due to. increased wages as | claimed, but ssto a very large increase I in expenditures for maintenance of | way and equipment and structures T Thus the case resolves upon the point lwhether the commission will approve
 these increased expenditur It is 1.-the inference in the Warne testimony, Il that these increased expenditures T were purpose1y made to show an ap- T parent reduction in earnings.
 Il The gross earnings of the American
 greater than in 1a1 ?, the increase be- ing $1 31, ,0 0o. GOO Whether this irI- T erease and more was taken up by wage
 increases Dr-sWarne set out to show. Il me tables showed that the propor- A tion of wages to total operating ex- penses was less in 91S than in any i year since 1898.
 Fl On the other hand the proportion ot I lsn1aintenance of eqHipme ent to total op-
 eratfng expenses was larger in 19 | 3 ! than in any year since 1898. The
 proportion of expense for maintenance of way and structures to. totalg operat- I ing expense was larger in 913 than
 in any year since 1907.
 These two items of naaintenanee in
 creased enormously last year for some Fl stra nge reason. Had they been nor
 nal the. eastern railroads last year : would have shown the most profitable
 year of their history in spite of the
 wage increases.