New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1917-06-27
BRITISH EXPERT
lAuDS RAILROADS
OF UNITED STATES
Tells Congress Committee That
They Lead World.
NO GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP

NJ 0UyEkHmtnl UMnfkShlr
II Would Mean Political Control and
Loss OF Efficiency-DecIares That
Crisis Confronts Country on Account
of Transportation Stuation-Lowest
Freight Rates to Be Found In United
States.
| Washington. May 14-That the Unit.
ed States is face to face with a serious
| crisis in its commercial affairs due to
the conditions by which it's transporta-
ton system is confronted, was the opin-
ion expressed by w. NJ Acworth, Eng
lands leading authority on railways.
before the Newlands joint committee
on interstate commerce at a special
session held here to enable the com
mittee to hear his views before his de
parture for London this week. Two
steps are necessary, according to Mr.
Acworth, to avert this crisis and to
solve the threatening railroad problem
confronting the country.
The first is to allow the railroads to
charge freight rates sufficient to meet
the great advance in operating ex
penses which is taking place and to
enable them to command the credit
necessary to provide the extensions
and improvements needed to meet the
growing demands of business. The sec
and ia To do svifh ho nj
and conflicting systems Of regulation
that now hamper railway operation
and to provide one centralized regula-
tory agency with such local subdivt
sions as may be necessary.
Higher Rates Public Necessity.
Mr.. Acworth's views on the transpor-
tsstion situation in the United States
we're expressed in answer to questions,
by members of the committee. who:
asked him to apply his knowledge
world and of the experience of other
countries with government ownership
to the present problem before the Unit
ed States.
THE fundamental factor in the sit
nation is very simple" said Mr. Ac
worth. 1T lies in the fact that Won
cannot get three-quarters of cents
worth Of work done for less than three
quarters of cent, no matter whether
the agency performing it is govern
ment Or private enterprise. Freight
| rates must advance when the cost Of
performing the service advances as
1T Is doing at present, Just as the price
Of bread or meat or any other COM
modify Increases with increased cosr
Of production"
In answer to ; question Mr.. Ac
worth said that he thought AmericaD
| freight rates had been at much too low
level for several years past, that they
| had reached this low point during the
| period Of cutthroat competition among
the roads and had since been held
| there by regulating bodies. Unless re-
lief were afforded to the carriers very
| promptly, he said. the result would
be tremendous loss to the people OF
the whole country through insufficient
cy of transportation facilities:
Weakness of Government Ownership.
On the subject of government owner
ship of railways Mr.. Acworth said:
1T is impossible to obtain satisfac>
tory results on government railways
in a democratic state unless the man
agement is cut loose from direct polit-
ical control. Neither Australia nor
! any other country with a democrat
ic constitution-perhaps an exception
ought to be made Of Switzerland-has
succeeded in maintaining permanent
severance In France, in Belgium, in
Italy, parliamentary interference never
has been abandoned for q moment
The facts show that government in.
reference has meant running the rail
ways not for the benefit Of the people
at large, but to satisfy local and sec
tional and even personal interests.
Prussia. Mr. Acworth said, was thu
best example of an efficient govern
ment railway system, and he pointed
out that military considerations were
/ treated as of para mount importance II
, the Prussian railway system. While
American freight rates had been re
duced nearly 40 per cent in thirt.
years, rates in Prussia were nearly a.
high as at the beginning of the period
While the charge for moving ton o
freight one mile in the United State
S was trife over three-quarters Of
S cent the rate in Prussia was Id
o cents. ..- IN. -
t AS illustrating the difference in rate
n. between government and private road
) Mr.. Acworth compared the railway
of New South Wales, Australia, wit
those Of Texas. While the amount Q
y traffic to each mile of line was abou
g the same in both cases, he pointed GU
e the Texas railways performed for th
s., public four times as much service 9
h the government owned roads of Ne,
!. South Wales. The charge in Texa
E !! fol hauling ton Of freight one mi
was less than cent while in the Au
tralian state it was we'll over 2 cents.
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