New-York tribune., 1918-02-21
The Requiem" of Private Rail
road Ownership


from California, comes from state
which, for long years, suffered grievously
from railroad domination.' Those were
the days of high buccaneering in the rail-
road world, and especially in the con-
struction of the Pacific transcontinentals
This latter work was no child's play;
it brought forth brood of resolute and
dominating men, who were not slow to
seize all the fruits of their pioneering
When they had amassed great fortunes it
was a natural part that they should uti-
lize their power and wealth to elect them
selves Governors and Senators and TO re
gard politics as their especial private
game This inevitably resulted in a great
following of itching palms and a general
reign Of corruption.
The people of California are slow to
forget these evil days, and their hatred of
railroad rule" survives much of the
abuses from which they suffered. Because
Of these memories they gave their then
Governor majority Of 275,000 for the
Senatorship, where Mr.. Hughes could gain
no majority at all.
1t is very natural that Senator johnson
should project the sentiment of his own
constituents into an image Of the whole
country. We believe in this he is very
seriously mistaken. After its experience
with the fuel administration, we do NOT
believe the country at large is hungering
deeply for a vast extension of govern
mental powers a huge addition to the
number Of Federal employees.
There are now nearly 100000 railway
employees Is Senator johnson ready to
add this great force to our political life
compactly interested in bargaining politi-
cally for shorter hours of work and more
pay? Or would he disfranchise the rail
way vote? And. if so, would he disfran-
chisc every government employe or official?
This is a vital question. But there are
larger issues. In his grand way Senator
Johnson denounces the return on their
capital which the railways viii receive
while under government control as eN-
orbitant. Fifty per cent of railway shares,
he declares, are simply watered stock.
That is four or five billions. Does the
Senator from California really believe
this? We do not know Of any sane rail
way economist who does.
If we are to have government owner
ship this stock must either be paid for or
confscated. Does Senator johnson advo-
cate contiscation?
This is q large order.
In the same vein the California Sena-
tor gives new voice to the cry that the
railroads of the country in the last few
months "havc broken down." This is an
easy and sweeping accusation. If the Sen
ator really believes this is true, we invite
his attention to brief resume which We
reprint IN an adjacent column from the
current issue of "Colliers Weekly"
y On 70 per cent of the trackage of the
n country there has been no ''break-down "
no congestion. The entire freight tie-up
came on a relatively small amount of
trackage, over which was pouring all the
huge volume of freight destined for for
elgn shipments or for the war industries
plants. And even here there was no tio-nn
until priority orders from the government
had disrupted the whole traffic movement
Up to this time-that is, for the first
six months after our declaration OF war
the railroads were carrying a volume of
merchandise estimated at more than one
third greater than in any year prior to
1915. This was a tremendous increase.
It's like has probably never been known
in the last forty years of railway develop
ment in this country.
1t is a libel upon great achievement to
call this "break- down."
Out of the present urgences of the ma
ton may come larger order and a better
system for the conduct Of our transporta-
tion machine. But it is we'll to remember
that that system as it stands is still the
finest III the world. The freight move
ment in America, either for volume or
cheapness, has 10 parallel in any other
nation. In the minds of many it is even
TOO great and too cheap, and because of
this tcmpts the nation to an actual waste
of largo dimensions.
This system is an achievement of pri-