New Britain herald., 1916-08-26
SAYS ALL MUST COOPERATE
 IF U. s. IS TO LEAD WORLD
Investors Turn from Transportation Stocks, He Says-Banl<s, Insurance Companies and Thousands of lndi- yiduals Interested in Financial Suc- cess of RaiIroads-Compan Not in Shape to Grant Employees De- mandS.
Especial to the Herald)

Especial to the Herald)
 Washington, D. C., Aug. 26.-Pres- ident Howard Elliott, of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Rall- road company, and chairman of the board of directors, who is here at tending the conference of railroad presidents in the effort to arrive at satisfa ctory adjustment of the de- mands of the Big Four" Railroad Brotherhoods in a statement issued today said.
 ''Personally, as well as officially, I have believed and I still believe that a question of such great importance as the eight-hour one should be set tied only after all it's aspects have been carefully considered by tribun- al free from prejudice and partisan ship. The 1OO,OOO,OOO of our people can have, of course, the kind of laws, working hours, and railroads they de- sire. If they want growing and efficient railroads and believe they can have them on the basis of an eight-hour day they must be willing to continu- Ously pay higher rates for transpOrta- tiOn and in that event the develop ment of the railroad system of our country will be checked. With a de- cline in our railroad development all other industrial as well as agricultural growth will be checked. To my mind the true patriotic policy for the well fare of the whole country at this time is for every man to do all he can to t0 check it and to reduce its output We are far behind other countries in many ways and we have great task before us in the next ten years to keep our proper place in the world. I hope therefore, very much that in the in terest of all our 1OO,0OO,O0O people some solution of the present situation may be found rather than it sh ould be settled off-hand and solely in the in terest of the 40O,00 who are now pressing their demands.
 "All thinking people agree that the United States should have good rail- ways, well equipped with sufficient facilities to do the total business of the great population with safety and despatch.
 Nearly all agree that the railways should increase their capacity to fur nish transportation as fast as the Don- ulation increases, if not faster
 Tn other words, it is to the inter- est of the public that the railways be ready to serve at all times and able in times of emergency to carry the peak load. This is not the csca today, and the fact that it is not is a serious menace to the present and future welfare of the United States
 "Today there are 1OO,OOO,OOO neo- pie in the land who must be fed clothed, sheltered, kept warm, many of them travel for health, pleasure and business, The railway systems are in many places overtaXed in doino this work.
 'WhateVer the reasons for the pres ent condition of the railways. two facts stand out prominently in the history of the railways of the United States for the year 1915. One is that less mileage was built in that wear than in any year since 1864. There have only been three years since 1848 when there was a smaller mile age of new railway construction than in 1915. The other fact has to do with the amount of railway mileage in the hands of receivers in 1915 With only one exception, 1893, was the mileage that entered into tha hands of receivers larger than last year; and 1893 was a panic wear
 There was a total mileage of 4l,9SS in the hands of receivers In 1915, the total capitalization of which was $2,264 4OO0,OOO. In that year alone 2O,143 miles of road went into the hands of receivers and these roads had total capitalization of S1,O7O,- S08,62S. This compares with 4,222 miles in 1914 with a total capitali- zation of $199,571,446 in receivers hands. This is not a healthy con- dition; it is a malady that affects di-
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