Mansfield mirror. (Mansfield, Wright County, Mo.) 1908-1957, 1917-06-28
BRITISH EXPERT
LAUDS RAILROADS
OF UNITED STATES
Tells Congress Committee Thai
They Lead World
NO GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP

no GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP
Il Would Mean Political Control ane
Loss Of EficIsney-Dselarss Tha,
crlsIs confronts Country on Aeeeun,
Of transportation eItuatIon-Lewss,
Freight Rates to b Found In United
States.
Washington, May l4.-That the Unit
ed States is face to face with q serious
crisis In Its commercial affairs, due to
the conditions by which its transporta.
ton system is confronted, was the opin.
Ion expressed by W. M. Acworth, Eng.
lands leading authority on railways,
before the Newlands Joint committee
on interstate commerce at q special
session held here to enable the com.
mittee to hear his views before his do.
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 tho 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 tho extensions
and improvements needed to meet the
growing demands of business. The sec.
ond is to do away with the multiple
and conflicting systems Of regulation
that now hamper railway operation
and to provide m centralized regula.
tory agency with such local subdivi.
sions as may be necessary.
Higher Rates . Public Necessity.
Mr.. Acworth's views on the transpor.
tatton situation in the United States
were expressed In answer to questions
by members Of the committee, who
asked him to apply his knowledge Of
railway conditions throughout the
world and of the experience Of other
countries with government ownership
to the present problem before the Unit.
ed States.
1.-THE fundamental factor in the situ-
alton Is very. simple" said Mr.. Ac-
worth. 1T lies In the fart that you
cannot get three-quarters Of q cents
worth Of work done for less than three
quarters Of q cent, no matter whether
the agency performing 1t Is q govern
ment or private enterprise. Freight
rates must advance when the cost Of
performing the service advances a.
It is doing at present, just as the price
Of bread or meat or any other com.
modify increases with increased cost
OF production"
In answer to a question MI. 40
worth said that he thought American
freight rates had been at much too lew
a 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 a tremendous loss to the people Of
the whole country through insufacien-
cy Of transportation faciliheA
Weakness Of Government Ownership.
On the subject of government owner.
ship Of railways Mr.. Acworth said,
1T is impossible to obtain sahsfac-
tory results on government railways
in a democratic state unless the man.
agement 10 cut loose from direct polit.
zeal control Neither Australia nor
any other country with q democrat
&c constitution-perhaps an exception
ought to be made of Switzerland-has
succeeded in maintaining a 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 ran.
ways not for the benefit Of the people
at large, but to satisfy local and section.
al and even personal interests.
Prussia, Mr.. Acworth said. was the
best example of an efficient govern.
ment railway system, and he pointed
out that military considerations were
treated as Of paramount importance In
the Prussian railway system. While
American freight rates had been r.
duced nearly 40 per cent in thirty
years. rates In Prussia were nearly a.
high as at the beginning Of the period.
While the charge for moving q ton Of
freight n mile In the United States
was . tribe over three-Quarters Of q |
cent, the rate In Prussia was 1.41
cents.
Al illustrating the difference in rates
between government and private roads
Mr.. Acworth compared tho railways
Sf New South Wales. Australia. with
those of Texas. While the amount Of
traffic to each mile Of line was about
tho Same in both cases, he pointed out
the Texas railways performed for the
public four times a. much service a.
tho government owned roads Of New
South Wales. The charge in Texas
for hauling q ton e freight one mile
was less than 1 cent,N while in the Aus.
tralian state It was well over 2 cents.
american railways lead the world"
said Mr. Acworth. "Nowadays when
men In any other part Of the world
want to know how to run q railway
they come to the United States and
study your railways here. The Amer
--l1---- --Al-N- 1919