The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1917-10-01
PUBLIC GIVES TO.
RAILROADS BEST
OF COOPERATION
This Fact Responsible for
Wonderful Showing of
Nation

Washington, Oct. Reports just
compiled for the Railroads War
Board indicate that the travelling
public in general and the shippers in
particular are giving the finest kind
of cooperation to the railroads in
the handling Of the increased traffic
that the war has produced. What this
cooperation means may be cleaned
from these facts:
Since May /, the railroads, aided
by the loyalty and understanding of
the public, have been able to reduce
their passenger service by approx
mately 100000 miles This has re-
leased thou sands of train crews and
locomotives for use in the freight
service and cleared thousands of miles
Of track, thereby facilitating the
movement of coal, food products and
supplies needed by the government.
In addition to the foregoing saving
of equipment and trackage, the ship
pers, big and small, have rallied so
splendidly to the slogan Make one
car do the work Of two" that a saving
of close to half million freight cars
has been accomplished. This saving
of freight cars had enabled the rail-
roads to move approximately 25 per
cent more freight since war was de-
clared than during the same period
last year.
Intensive loading and general in.
crease in the size of the trade units"
used by the various industries has rem
dered possible the saving of car space.
Cotton, for instance, which was for
merly moved in units of SO bales, now
moves only in units of IS and IS. As
Q ha1 los 70, "a
by rail each season, the increase in
the trade unit in this one commodity
alone has produced saving of any
where from $4,000 to $4,000 small
cars.
Sugar, on which the carload mini
mum from the South formerly was
only $4,000 pounds per car, now moves
only on a 10000 carload minimum.
The producers of manufactured
food products, especially the Gamers,
have also come to a realization of the
value of intensive loading, and are
now loading virtually all of their cars
to capacity.
Coal, which has been loaded beyond
capacity on most lines since the be-
ginning of the war, is also moving
freely now, although labor trouble in
/
to counterfeit the efforts of the rail
rodas to meet the abnormal demand
for fuel. During the last month the
supply of cars on the lake coaP' lines
has been increased 25 per cent, and
there has been some increase in the
movement of bituminous coal to the
| lake ports but it has not been proper.
/, tionate to the increased supply Of car:
as labor trouble has tended to de
crease the mine production.
! achieved to date through the coop
Although excellent results have beer
Grafton of the shippers, the travelling
public and the railroads, it will b.
necessary for all concerned to exer
| renewed efforts, as the abnormal de
mands upon the railroads in the move
ment of both troops and supplies i
constantly increasing, while the secur
ing of new equipment Is virtually i'm
possible.
From now on, $500 cars a day will
be required by the government t.
move food and supplies to the men il
training at the National army, nation
al guard and other encampments
while the demand of the Allies 70
cars to carry export goods to the sea
ports will be practically doubled. Al
Of this additional traffic must be NOV
ed by the railroads, although the,
have only three per cent. more equip
-ment than they had at this time las