The Washington times., 1919-12-27
B0ERSIANER'S
COM MENT ON
BUSINESS
~ BoERsIANER.

To the few who bid is per cent foy
call money after hours YESTERDAY
there should be comfort in the fact
that rates nave always fallen and the
supply has ever been abundant In jan
usry. This L. a record OF forty years
Farther back IL Is not necessary to TO-
IL were difficult even for the cu.-
tooians OF superfluous conservatism
to disestablish the precedent Money
Is already easier In the West After
the turn Of the year its ease and
abundance Will be such as TO inundats
Wall Street IL an attempt is made to
continue the strange restriction in the
demand market.
Recollections Of what has been en-
perienced in Jsnusry may have been
a minor prop under the stock market.
A few days more or less OF the long
monetary. strain could not avail in
view OF the certainty OF q change for
the better.
Germs the rails was the postponement
TO March ] OF private operation aDA
ownership. IL had become patent that
the return OF the properties on JAM
usry had been extremely embav-
RAISING, as sure Of confusion. as ~
they had been turned back Septem-
ber /, which was the original inten-
tion OF the ADMINISTRATION. The Gov
eminent evidently means TO fulnIi a.
nearly as possible its moral contract
Of relinouishing the properties in the
same condition IL took them over.
To do this physically TO the letter
were quite impossible. New equip
ment had been limited, fresh mileage
nominal Contrariwise, the wear an1
tear had been void of ruth. Wars
stern exigence necessarily impelieA
rough usage of everything from
tracks TO passengers. Hence complete
1 replacement was not TO be expected
although liberal money indemnity
would not be out OF place.
But what the Government can -
is to put>the roads In a position 70
earn at least as much as was earned
prior to January /. 1918. The pro-
posal may sound ironical. and 80 IL 10
in a sense. Yet, bad as was the rev.
enue condition before the Government
stepped In, the net returns since then
have been shockingly inadequate. The
standard properties had more than
made their dividend requirements In
the last two years these have not
done so; their deficits are large.
The fusion plan TO be considered
by the conference Is certain to guar
sntee fair margin in the 5h per
titled: for manifestly II were coarss
onjustice, amounting to breach Of
faith and confscstion OF property
without compensation. for .se Gov
eminent to seize the roads, which
under private management were pay
ing their expenses and dividends; to
alter their traffic arrangements snl
| increase their fixed charge so a. 70
make their operating expenses more
than their revenue. and then revert
them in that potentially tnsolvent
condition without providing means
for restoring them TO solvency.
The market, despite continued lose
registration. indicates confidence IN
the Government doing the fair thing
which will mean, further. an Inn
mense amount of wcxk for the steel
mills and the equipment compAnies
What IL there about Washington
that isolates IL from the country at
large? There are times the recur-
renee becomes more frequent-when
one inclined to Gambetts's view that
the capital of a nation should be In
the largest city. in no other way may
representatives feel the peoples pulse.