Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1914-12-26
WHY THE COST OF OPERATING
RAILROADS HAS BEEN INCREASED
STRUGGLING AGAINST INCREASED COST OF
LABOR AND THE SUPPLIES ON ONE
HAND-REDUCEDs RATES
ON THE OTHER

4 -
railroads Las been somewhat persist
ent in the public press and the mat
ter is referred to here, not with any
idea of combating this propaganda,
| but merely that the people may
briefly see both sides of the picture.
| So long as a lot of men welcome the
wrecking of the railroads on the
theory that the government will take
them over and that such a state OF
affairs would be preferable to private
ownership, it will be impossible to
| obtain from them fair judgement
of the latter system which now pre-
walls in the United States 1t is i'm
possible to go into this great question
at any length at this time, but here
are a few facts worth thinking about.
Much as has been said in recent
years about the water" contained
in American railroad securities, and,
in this connection the valuation OF
the government owned railroads of
Europe is very interesting. In Ger
many the state owned roads are cap
italized at S114, 1S5 per mile, in Aus
tria at s12O, 692, in Hungary at SOS, 21O
in Italy, 1926, 1856, in Belgium at 800,
9I4, in Switzerland at S102, $50, in
Roumania at s90,113 in Japan at
S88, 104, in New South Wales at 81,
39l-while the privately owned lines
of the United States. regardless of
what water may have been forced in
to them in specific instances, are cap
italized at only 1858, 944 per mile.
Whatever imitation 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 government owned
railroads of Europe, and what is still
more important, the rates charged
are the lowest and the service rem
dered ADMITTEDLY the best in the
world.
In this connection, a statement
contained in the last annual report
of the Deutsche Bank of Berlin,
which has paid-up capital and re-
serve fund of SIS. 900, 600, is interest
ing: american railroads need high
er rates. The present rates are the
lowest in the world-representi
but fraction of the English railway
rates, for instance-and this in the
face of the fact that wages in the
United States on the average are
fully twice as high as in Europe"
Certainly this view of the privately
owned lines of the United States
coming from Germany, which has the
most successful state owned system
of transportation in the world, is
worthy of grave consideration.
Letting Well Enough Alone
In view of these facts, the average
citizen may well ask himself whether
it is not best to let well enough alone
rather than invite other ills we know
not of-whether it is not wiser to
cure such defects as may cucumber
the present system rather than run
the danger of plunging this mighty
industry into the whirlpool of party
politics for all time, with its attend
ant opportunity for evil of which the
past affords such rich variety of ex-
perience. The United States is still
a young country, and in many sec
tions only partially developed. Many
new lines and extensions are needed
here and there to give wider oppor-
tunity to expanding agriculture and
commerce. and nothing could be
more unfortunate or disastrous than
that these favors could henceforth be
obtained only by leave of the domin-
ant political factions Which Will reign
at the nationol capital in years to
come. Political parties are intense
| ~ human institutions, and the aver
age cautious citizen will prefer to
leave the railroad expansion of the
future to the economic law of supply
and demand of the different commun-
titles rather than place such tempta-
ton for power in the hands of those
twho rise and fall in the field of poll
tics. Furthermore, should the time
ever come when the government
takes over the railroads, it means
that the people will have to forego
the millions of taxes which they now
pay and which help TO support the
public schools. public highways and
other public expenses. Many other
things could be said upon this phase
of the question, but space forbids.
For some time, the government,
through the interstate Commerce
Commission, has been engaged in
making a physical valuation of al
our railroads as matter of guidance