Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-12-20
Sees FAILURE
INg0VERNMENT CONTROL
Disaster, Editor OF Manufac-
- turcrs' Record Believes.
SAYS PRICELESS TIME WASTED
Cites; Congressional Investigations
asi-Argument Against Placing Gtii-
tiles in Hands OF Men OF No EN-
peSience-PrediCts Victory.

FSttCtNS-~I tVdbkte tot
~ ------------t--
Government control OF the raiiros'
Z SYSTEMS Of the United states woul,
serve, only TO intensity TO a great dc
srcc5;thc present cong ested condition
Of tho transportation lines OF the coun
try. and in the end would result disas
trousiy for that factor upon which The
= life of the nation and civilization ab
{ solutaly depends" Richard II. Ed
Z monds. of Baltimore. editor of th'
y Manufacturers Record. declared las
= night in an interview with The Times
3 DisJ&tch. lie believed ;hat the failure
OF various government undertaking <
y which has been brought out dn:ins
: the R3s, few days by congressional III
z vcstjsa lions. clearly demonstrated the
j follYiof attempting 10 control the rail-
8 aN,systems.
81 From my point of view. govern
+ ncnt control OF the ra'lroads would be
) II dipaStcr" said Mir. EdmondS. . no
would simply intensity to a great de-
4 gree the present cong cstcd condition
on al tho Transportation lines OF the
country The prscticsi breakdown o.
the railway system has leen caused
+ by regulation by the Interstate Com
merct Commission and the legislation
q by the government. which has for ten
wears SO haInpered the operation oil
I The roads that amy man OF intelliScn
8 who studied tho situation could have
foreseen the present condition.
II am not speaking inadvisedlN. be
cause in 1906 published an elaborate
review OF the whole railroad situa
iion,tin which ] said that within ten
years railroad traffic OF The country
would neccssar iiy double. and that UNI
less s., zoe, 100000 was spent. in addi-
ton 10 the usua! expenditures for re-
pairs, and requirements, We would by
Iai6ihave complete breakdown The
tremendous growth OF the country. as
compared with the ina bility OF the rail
roads to expand a. the country expand
cd !nsde this condition absolutely GER
lain.
PESNSYLNANIA'SE EXPERIENCE
=. DUPLICATED EVERYWHERE
Whiic some railroad people foreSa W
thisucon dition and urged il upon the
puhiir. all OF them did not themselves
realize the magnitude Of the task re-
auired 10 double the entire transporta-
lion ma ndiiny facilities OF the coun-
try.
MIR. Ednonds told how President Cas-
satt,S1f the Pennsylvania Railroad.
some years ago undertook TO double the
entire facilities .: tia; system al an
expenditure OF several hundred million
dollars. He had planned his system
lbr SDla co. N'sA''''
vet Philadelphia papers seriously dis
cusSed whether he had not become
mentally unbalanced in daring 10 make
such expenditures. Before he died.
however MIR. Cassau rcaiizcd that his
I, planning for Twenty-Five years would
only handle the traffic for ten years,
because OF the great growth OF bust
ness.
s The fact that The penmsylvamia,
railroad system in the country III many
respects" Mr.. Edmonds continual. has
been compelled 10 cut out a large plrl
OF its passenger trains and cat oul all
through trains TO Florida. and its
+ crack New York 10 Chicago special
because it is unable 10 take care oil
The traffic. only serves TO SHOW the mag
nitudc OF tho growth Of business Oh
that road. and what is eoing OH with
the Pennsylvania is being duplicate Cd
everywhere else in the Tilted States
Il have no figures as To tho total
< tonnage OF traffic on the railroads @!
Great Britain sine" the war. hut just
before tho war the total mileage tons
of freight handed BY all railroads oi
the United Kingdom WAS less than INC
mileage tons oil tho Pennsylvania,
alone.
rNFtvoRAnLE LEGISLATION
NlSf w bRt.tNboN '
{ The railroads Of tho whole couN-
i Try are facing this situation and the
e Pennsylvania system is typical Of them
y all. Fa!sccinc men for years have been
4. warning the country that tho break
Z down would come about with On enci-
NOUS loss TO the ~ointgii a whole ii
& tho railroads w~rc'fl6, given more IA.
vorablc -!dcra,ion' by legislation
t. and enabled 10 make such earnings "A,
would attract capital 10 the lines Sc
p curities on an enormous scale Vi
would surely require more than s..
"o0,ooo.ooo. Il tha, sun, could ne eS,
pendcd imm cdiate!y. 10 pm the roads !,
shape 10 Adequately handle the couu
lry's business. but no such amouu; q
money could he expo ndcd by tic rou d :
lne!.forH. "c must make the best ",
IAN %! the existing mileage aud rolln;
stock. Govcrumsn, control would.
think, prove disastrous in the cxtrcm,
III is now about TWO and onc-hA !
Neais sinc" President Wilson practi
ca!ly thrcatcncd Germany with wr
and since that time he and other think
ing mon must have known that wa
was inevitable Bu, We wasted w
year OF the most priceless time h.
human history doing nothing. Tn
congressional inleSl CATIONS now I'm
der" ay show a lach II foresiGhi an
OF preparation OF Inc part Of the arm
and other dcparime Ms .ha' : almos
criminal.
Hundreds Of ,.etlsa.,as or live
ard billions o. dollars wiII bc los, be
cause OF the failure Of Tie rcyarn,,c,
10 get ready TO meet me wa, .nat Ina
d been Inevitable since the day the I.usi
an!a was sunk. Tho lua0agcrn.,f .
the fuel administra has been wo.
81 July uhS"tSiector! - the hc2innir