Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1917-06-08
FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 1917.
A SQUARE DEAL TO ALL.

THE RECORD is firm believer in the square
deal for everybody, even to the greedy, av-
arcious and soulless corporations, that we so oft
en- hear people rail about. Just now the railroads
of the country are receiving q hearing before the
Interstate Commerce Commission on their petit
ton for Is per cent raise in freight rates, and
the request is meeting with bitter opposition on
the part of some politicians, public officials and
newspapers.
Let us stop for minute and forget that the
railroads "soulless corporations" and look only
at the justice of the question. Few if any of the
railroads prior to the war; with the country in
state of almost universal prosperity, were making
more than a very reasonable interest on the money
invested; few, indeed under the conditions con-
fronting them, cared to invest in extensions or
important improvements. We were about at a
point where if we obtained any more railroads, it
was up to the government to build and own them
Private capital did not care to take the risk. The
government advertised for sale large and valu-
able tract of timber in the Kabab forest, but it
required the building of railroad to get it to
ket, and while there strong demand for the
lumber, there were no takers because capital was
afraid of the railroad side of the proposition.
Since that time the war has sent the price of
practically everything we buy ,skyward, with the
exception of very few commodities including
railroad transportation and freight which, not
withstanding the increased cost of labor, fuel,
steel rails and all other building materials and sup
plies remain the same before the war. Why?
When practically everybody else has been raising
the price of their commodities why have not the
railroads followed suit and done the same? 1t is
because the railroads are under the supervision of
the Interstate Commerce Commission and dare
not change single tariff without obtaining their
permission to do So They now requesting the
privilege of making Is per cent increase in their
rates.
Last year when President Wilson and congress
interviewed in the dispute between the railroads
and their employees hours of service and COM
pensation for over time, giving the employees all
their own way in the matter, and increasing the
annual cost of operating freight trains by the rail-
roads by several millions of dollars annually it
with the assurance that a request for an increase
in freight rates would be considered favoraby
That matter is now up for consideration, and
it is up to the government and the people to make
their promise good to the railroads. and grant
them reasonable increase in rates, which the l5
per cent. asked would certainly be-
We realize that this will have tendency to
slightly increase the cost of living, which the good
Lord knows is high enough already, but we do not
believe in making flesh of one and fish of ano-
ther," and the man who invests his money in rail-
roads is just as much entitled to a reasonable re-
turn as the man who invests it in sugar stocks or
anything else. Besides, should it be shown that
any of the railroads are realizing more than an
eight per cent interest on the capital invested they
will be obliged to divide the surplus earnings ev-
emily with the government.
Some people seem to think it is their bounden
duty to fight the railroads and all other corpora
tons representing large capital, just on general
principles. We do not feel that way about it. If
the demands requests of the railroad are Just
and reasonable they are as much entitled to con-
sderation and favorable action as any body else.
We fail to see how the railroads can keep up and
make any money at the old rates, when everyone
else is demanding and receiving higher prices.