Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-08-05
REACHING AFTER AN ELL
BY THE MEN WHO GOT AN INCH
Why the 5rotherhoods Think They Can
Have the Railroads Turned
over to Them

over to Them
TT Is not government ownership Of rail
roads which is proposed by the Big
Four" brotherhoods in the Sims bill in
troduced in the House Of Representatives,
last Saturday.
1t is railroad ownership by the railroad
brotherhoods for the benefit Of the rail
road brothcrhoods
Government bonds would be issued it is
true. to buy the roads, but the govern
ment would not control them. They
would be in the hands of board Of
fifteen directors. Representing the pub
lie? No. Representing the operators.
Five Of the directors would be ap-
pointed by the President, five by the
operating officers and five by the en-
plOyes. Ten of the fifteen would be men
paid out Of the receipts Of the roads and,
unless we misunderstood the purposes Of
the brotherhoods, every one of the ten
would be creature Of the employees.
They would insist that the general super
intendents. the division superintendent,
the freight and passenger agents, the
superintendents Of mechanical equipment
and the like should ultimately be ap-
pointed from the ranks of the engineers
and conductors and at the nomination of
these employees.
This, they tell us, is the dcmocratiza-
tion of industry.
It may be, but il is not operation of the
railroads in the interests of the users of
them. 1t is not government ownership
as that term is understood anywhere in
the world at the present time.
The plan of purchase is that govern
ment bonds are to be issued to pay for
"every honest dollar" put in the roads
The courts are to decide what dollars
represent honest investment and what do
not. This leaves the sum required in
grave uncertainty. The outstanding stock
and funded debt of the railroads amounts
to more than S21 900, 100000 and about
$3.50, 900 900 year is paid in interest and
dividends on the bonds and stock. The
average dividends in normal years earned
on more than half of the stock are be-
tween 6 and per cent.
To force the holders of these securities
to exchange them for per cent govern
ment bonds would be a form of confisca-
ton. Only a mailman thinks that the
government could float $4,000, 100000
worth of bonds at any time in the near
future with which to go into the open
market and buy the securities at what
they are worth. But the proponents of
the plan would have the government
seize the roads and compel the owners Of
the securities to accept what it chooses
to give.
They want to get hold of the property
so that they can get hold of the surplus
earnings; for their plan provides for an
equal division" of this surplus between
the employees and the public after fixed
charges and operating costs are met with
an automatic reduction of rates" when
the share of the employees in the surplus
is more than per cent of the gross
operating revenues. On the basis of the
latest available figures, this would be
when the share of the employees was
greater than S180,000000 year.
Does any one believe that there would
ever be any automatic reduction in rates?
The railroad men are now asking for
higher wages. When they controlled ten
of the fifteen directors under their plan
there would be so little surplus after
regular wages were paid that there would
be little to divide and none to reduce
| rates.
Under the present system of ownership
! the men have had their pay increased far
| beyond that of men in any other form of
! employment. The average annual wage
! of the members of the brotherhoods in
! 1910 was 1898. In 1919 it is 5000. The
! brakemen are now asking minimum of
/ $500 and the conductors a minimum of
/ S24OO And they are asking further for
a new system of ownership in order that
they may be treated more fairly in the
| future
No one objects to the wage they are
now receiving, but there are millions of
workmen in other occupations whose pay
has not been doubled in the last nine
wears who should receive consideration
before this one group Of men is benefited
still more, and before the property out
of which their pay is earned is turned
over to them that they may take from it
what they wish.
But there are other objections to this
plan than the practical difficulties in the
way Of raising the billions needed to
finance it and than the obvious favorit,
ism toward one group of workmen.
All extensions are to be made at the
expense of the communities benefited
Who will decide what community is ben,
Gifted by an extension of line into new
and undeveloped territory? Will the new
territory have to bear the expense or will
territory thousand miles away to which
the products are shipped be benefited tC
such an extent that it must provide the
capital? And will Congress decide wher
extensions are to be made?
We have had river and harbor porl
barrels that have scandalized the who'll
country. A railroad pork barrel woult
increase the potentialities of scandal t.