The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-12-12

Plea OF THE RAILROADS.
THE PRESIDENT OF TNiE PENN.
SHLVANIA STATES THE SIT.
UATICN.
An Equitable Basis for Revenues
should bc Established at Once.

New York, Dec. IA plea that
President Wilson and congress
shouid. without delay, order that an
equitable basis for railroad revenues
be Instituted at once" was voiced by
samuel Rea, president of the Penn
syivania Railroad company, in a meg
sage read today before the Annual
convention of the Association Of Life
insurance Presidents, in session here.
Let us have an end OF restrictive
cramping punitive regulation and be-
gin an era of constructive, broaden
ing work, said Mr.. Rea. Let us con-
sider how much the railroads can
wisely spend. rather than how little
they can get along on"
Owing to his duties with the Rail-
roads War Board. President Rea was
unable to deliver his message in per-
son. Instead, he wrote in part:
Let me say. most emphatically
that neither American agriculture
nor industry can possibly progress be-
yond the capacity of the transporta~
uon facilities of the nation to handle
their raw materials and their pro-
ducts. When you stop railroad ex-
pansion. in a country of such dis
tances. population Industrial and ag-
ricultural activities as ours, you au.
tomatically set a dead limit to the
expansion of commerce and produc-
ton.
AS one OF the chief under
lying causes which have been sap
ping our resources of transportation.
would name the continued failure
to provide an adequately remunera-
tive basis of rates. The direct effect
or this error has been to make it diff
hcult to raise and sustain sufficien.
capital for the improvements and ex-
tensions which are sorely needed. In
the mania for restricting the charges
for transportation. the financial pos
sibility OF permanently maintaining
quality OF service seems to have been
overiookt 4. Aside from military
we. in the railroad in
dustry. know from personal observs.-
ton that what the public and indus
tries need is service. rather than the
saving of fraction of a mill per ton
mile. We know that there are many
in this country today who
would gladly pay more than the es
tablished rates to have their COM
modities moved promptly and regu-
arly. The operating results and the
net returns Of the railroads for many
years show there has been q constant
Use in expenses and taxes. and a de-
,reasing return on the investment In |
'oad and equipment.
II do not want to convey the i'm
PRESTON that the railroad situation Is
hopeless or that the credit of the
'oads is entirely crippled. Such is
lot the case. Their credit can be
and their usefulness in
'reased through the adoption by the
authorities Of a responsible
Ind unified policy Of fair treatment
n the matter OF freight rates. The
government is allowing reasonable
prices and profits to industry: why
not to the railroads?
such a policy. and not the loan of
government credit. would, under nor
maj conditions. be permanent So
tuition for the problem of railroad
'reo'' 10 not wish to be under |
stood as saying that government loan
might not be desirable exnedient
H. under war conditions. the entire
capital market is to be absorbed nv
the government. But il should lac re-
garded as an expe dient only iusti-
fable. if at all, as. an en,araao,
measure.
me war is. to great extent ro
H'S'V"I congestion
Of traffic and it's movement ma.
normal channels. but the corr,ors
would be far better able To cono ,,,,,
this condition if they had received
more liberal treatment in the matter
oil rates during the past at n ti,,o
when they could have marketed So
curities and financed improvements
while labor and materials were reo-
sohabie in cost. and the supply OF
both adequate. The end of expan-
sion and improvements on railroads is
the beginning OF decay and the lettinr
down OF the standards of service. The
lack of a sympatetic attitude toward
the railroads i'm governmental quar-
ters has unquestionably led to apprc-
hension as to the future OF their Sc