The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-09-26
'orld of Finance
Revenues and Expenses
 InT1016

zzff Elements of the revenues and R & kes of railways for the whole of
 hseal year 1916 covering roads
 la annual ! operating revenues
 bxe>4S I, 600, 900 are now for the first
 1Ae etaSHsilah hle, says the Railway Age Kfs1kttteA In: Hsa current issue. "A com- i bHaftonk bSen made by the Bureau eGsTsajIvsa4& Econ omics from the re- fufn mad 16y tlfe railways to the In lterState4 4C4DrRmerce Commission of the teSclte for tthe month of June, thus So4Gp pletipg the year.
 it5 *TAken, by themselves or in compar- tpoxAwith the figures for the preceding Hear alone, these results to indicate an ]1Baxtng deBree of prosperity. Net op- I 2fHunga revenue, for June was $l03,- &f1s449,s org @4S1% per mile of line, an
 Sfease tsf i24.6 per cent. over the re-
 n5ts for June, 1915. Operating in ]
 ne was S89.912,522, or $3s2 per
 hE4 of lines compared with $311 per
 hn4 Of line fH 3une,r 1915, an increase E2f& 95.ef DAT cent. This. was in the
 &e 0f ian increase in taxes from $50 t}pE1S9 per mile of line, or >17.1 per 4eA Manual figures, however, are
 44ftinportance. Total operating k} Gest during the fiscal year 1916 k1n ted to $3,396.808,234, an aver h4 $b4,818 per mile of line. Op- expenses were $2,220,O04,233, -k SezSper mile; and net operating l1es was $L17Ss04,001. pr $5,134 nile. Compared with the fiscal 39at 19I5.Ath current year shows an Increase ins aggregate operating reve- mes of $508,359,9 1921, or 16.9 per cent t6r miles Aggregate operating ex- fbenSes increased S1s8,807.393, or S.6 per cent per rnile;k and net operating lfevenuel increased $3h9,552,52S, or .86.4 per cent. per mile. Taxes in- {, creased $12.144845,. or 8.4 per cent. ssper mile, leaving, an increase in net Ioperating income of $307,251,11S, or i 41.7 per cent. per rsmile. The mileage covered in these, returns is 22s,22s miles. Y s4s -,ss Ja
 "Considsred by sections and upon f the per -pile basis, the operating rev ! enpes of the Eastern groupe of rail- 1 ways increased, 2O.s per cent; ,operat- ing expenses increased 10.8 per cent; net operating revenue increased 45.0 per cent; taxes. increased 5.6 per cent. ;; operating income increased 52.4 per cent. X
 I"In the Southern district operating !. revenues increased 15.5 per cent; ! 3operating expenses Increased AS per cent; net operating revenue increased 44.6 per cent; taxes increased 10.S per cept.; operating income increased 2 per ceht
 "In the Western district operating revenues increased 14.0 per cent; operating expenses increased 7.9 per cent; net operating reyeilue increased ] 26-5 per cent; taxes increased 10.4 ger cent; operating income increased 5s.5 per cent.
 :, "The average mileage represented is 1,403 miles in excess of the average mileage represented in the results for f915. v
 "The figures show an attractive column of increases; but in any real leffort to determine the comparative prosperity of the railways the com. 1parison will not be made with one of the Worst of preceding years as 1915 was. but rather with one show ing moderately satisfactory record. The fiscal year 1913 was such a period. "Comparison of the results of 1916 with those for 1913 shows, clearly Wherein the very substantiall better fment of the record for last year largely consists.i With an increases in total operating revenues of only 7.5 per c~nt., the roads yet showed net operating revenue 21.3 per cent. bet ter and operating income 22 per cent better than in 1913; but the increase in total operating expense was only IA per cent In other words. the inn proved showing for 1916 is due over whelmingly to the greater efficiency { of operation which the railways them selves have been able to bring about, i and for which they are entitled to all the credit. and only in a comparatively small degree to the increased volume :. of business, which. especially under present conditions, is highly adven- titious circumstance. It is also to be noted that the railways performed their duty as citizens by contributing 14.7 more in taxes than in the year 1913. though their average rate of tax ation in the~earlier year was abnor- mally high.