Denver labor bulletin. [volume] (Denver, Colo.) 1915-19??, 1918-06-08
How the Nickel
Has Shrunk
The Buying Power of the Most Active
Less than 312 Cents During Past Few Years

cost of materials for repairs, extensions,
new equipment and cost of service. The
increased cost of all materials used by
electric lines has increased average
of from forty to four hundred per cent. In
addition to this they have been justly COM
PEELED to increase the wages of their en-
ployes.
Among the principal materials and their
increased cost are the following: Cotton
Waste, 1873 per cent; Cedar Poles, 125 per
cent; Cement, IA per cent; Angle Bars, ISL
per cent, Armature Coils, 11S per cent;
Rails, 100 per cent; Trolley Wire, $50 per
cent; Brass Tubing, 1873 per cent; Car
Wheels rs per cent; Magnet Wire, 269 per
cent; Sheet Brass, TIA per cent; Nails, ITO
per cent; Street Cars, 100 per cent; Special
Track Work, rs per cent; Steam Coal, $50
per cent; Dry Batteries, SO per cent; Rail
Spikes, 157 per cent Carriage Bolts, 196
per cent; Brake Shoes, 76 per cent; Pig
Tin, 115 per cent; Bolts, ia per cent; Bar
Steel, 200 per cent; Linseed Oil, 266 per
cent; Railroad Ties, 81 per cent; White
Lead So per cent.
In the judgment of men who have given
the subject of conditions existing in the
there are just two ways to save the street
lines from piling up on the rocks in a
mad, scrambling wreck. To increase the
revenue to meet the higher cost of opera
tion and the needs for additional service, or
cut expenses down to where the cost of
running the street railways does mot in
crease it's income, which of course can only
be done by cutting the service rendered to
their patrons.
If wages were reduced or even remained
stationary as they are, big proportion of
the street railway employees would quit the
cars, shops, track work and offices. This
expectation is reasonable and consistent,
and is of the big reasons why President
Wilson has said: SIT is essential that these
utilities should be maintained at their maxi
mum efficiency and that everything reason
ably possible should be done with that end
in view. l hope that state and local au-
thorities, where they have not already done
SO, will, when the facts are properly laid
before them, respond promptly to the neces-
sites of the situation"
Denvers street railways have been run
ming behind and showing serious deficits for
the past few years. They took in big sums
of money annually-but at the end of each
year they found themselves no better off
than at the start, because they had to pay
out everything they took in and then some
The man running the peanut stand on the
corner has more left, in proportion to his
earnings, at the end of the year, than the
street railway system. Sounds foolish until
you think about it.
Miles of old track should have been re-
placed with new and heavier rails long
ago, but there has been no money for such
expenditures. Increased revenues is the
only answer if street car riders on the older
lines to ride over smooth, fast track
1t takes money to maintain tracks, cars and
power system in good condition to give good
service, and if maintenance were to be
trimmed to the quick there would unavoid-
ably result the knocked cars, bad track
and slow operation that mean poor service
and frequent delays because of some out
worn equipment would be trying to get
along with"