Omaha daily bee., 1916-11-21
TRANSPORTATION
INQUIRY OPENS
Railroad Officials and State
Commissioners Maneuver to
Avoid Appearing First.
NEWLANDs MAKES SPEECH

Washington, Nov. 20.-The first
session today OF the joint congress
sional committee investigating the
broad subject OF transportation, de-
veloped into preliminary meeting at
which Chairman Newlands made a
general statement of the purposes OF
the investigation and practically all
the prospective witnesses Unanswered
10 avoid appearing first, Each
wanted the other to take the lead be-
cause, all said, they wanted to avoid
having their plans prejudiced..
The railways were not ready to go
on, and the state railway commits
sioners said they preferred not to be
heard until the first week In Decem-
Der.
Senator Francis G. Newlands OF Ne
vada, the chairman, explained that the
inquiry would cover a wide field, He
said;
1T will relate to every phase OF
the transportation question, the rail
carriers, the river carriers and the
ocean carriers, and the perfection Of a
harmonious system OF transportation
embracing rail, river and ocean car
riers that will meet the demands OF
interstate, as we'll as foreign COM
mefce, and Il will Also be applied TO
telegraph and telephone lines, express
companies and other public utilities.
1T will embrace not only the sub
ject OF government control and rcgu-
lation Of these utilities, but also the
wisdom and feasibility OF government
ownership and the comparative worth
and efficiency OF government regula-
ton and control, as compared with
government ownership and opera
ton" 1890
Senator Newlands said that a con.
clusion will be more quickly arrived
at ''if we have the sympathetic aid
oi practical men who for years have
been conversant with the practical
side OF the transportation question
OF the economists and publieists, ol
railway executives and workers, o'
commercial bodies, farmers and man
ufacturers and shippers generally"
| Referring to soyernrnent owns'
"It Ii i Question that must b
faced. Other nations far advanced II
civilization have adopted the system
Recently, under the stress Of war, al
most sif governments have taken owe
the railways, II demonstrates thst i
conditions Of great crises when auto
cratic powers must appeal TO the gov
ernments all intelligent governments
drift toward absolute and complete
operation OF the roadp as the onl,
solution OF the question.
1T we pursue the exercise and tn
study OF government regulation wise
| ", persistently and energetically, W
may create such system OF regula
ton as will meet every requirement
| both in time Of peace and Of war an
In exigency or crisis, But It seem
| to be a wise thing for the government
| to ascertain now the history Of tn
countries that have adopted govern
ment ownership and operation OF rail
roads and to watch the experiences o
| the European countries IN this grea
war in this regard,
| ''In this connection will come III
question Of the method Of taking owe
| the railroads, Shall i be accom-
lplished by an actual valuation ot tn
railways and q condemnation Of then
or shall they be taken over by III
easier method Of taking over th
stocks and bonds at their marke
value, thus at one step having tn
national government take the positio
Of stockholder and security holder !
these great corporations"