New-York tribune., 1919-12-22
The Cumrnins Bill

The Senate or Cummins railroad
bill has one marked advantage over
the Esch or House bill. 1t looks
further ahead and attempts to apply
in a courageous way the principle
Of beneficial public interest in the
operation of the railroads.
Railroad transportation has been
definitely taken out of private
hands, although, technically, the
two pending measures end govern
ment operation and nominally re-
store the roads to their owners
Under both of them government
regulation is to be extended and
strengthened, and the idea under
lying both is that the transporta-
tion systems are to be converted,
with reasonable consideration for
the stockholders, into instrument
talities Of national welfare.
Conceding this theory, it is plain
that the public ought to be pro
tected, first Of all, against artificial
Interruptions of operation. The
strike belongs to the old era Of I'M
restricted private ownership and Of
industrial friction between the rail
road corporations and their en-
ployees. 1t is an anachronism in
an era in which the employees are
to be admitted to partial partici-
uation in the profits of operation
and are to have their wages fixed
by government agencies. 1t is
rational that they, as we'll as the
owners, shall yield something in
return for the stabilization of their
industry and for other benefits which
may flow from broad public regu-
lation They and the owners should
both frankly recognize their CORE
spending obligations to the public.
Regulation as formerly prac-
ticed by the Interstate Commerce
Commission aimed almost exclu-
sively at benefting shippers If
their freight bills were kept low
it was assumed the public would be
the gamer. But the public profted
little from this narrow policy What
the country needs is efficient and
continuous service. A railroad
freight rate is the cheapest thing in
the United States to-day-the least
considerable factor in the cost Of
living. And if a general strike
should occur. such as the brother
hood threatened in 1916. nation
wide tie-up could easily soon cost
the country more than it had saved
in year through the scaling of
rates to shippers
Old-fashioned regulation penal
lied the railroad owners and starved
railroad service, without really
benefiting or protecting the country
1t made transportation something
of a pariah industry. The results
of that policy are evident in the
present lamentable Discrimination
Of railroad properties, whose securi-
ties are selling lower now than they
sold when the dollar was worth a
dollar instead Of fifty cents. The
Interstate Commerce Commissions S
policy was destructive when it
should have been constructive.
The Cummins bill is praiscworthv
because it breaks with the deplor-
able traditions of the recent past.
1t authorizes Federal incorporation
of railroads. ends obstructive state
interference with them, protects the
owners against decentralization
and guarantees q moderate but GER
tain return on railroad investments.
These are hopeful SIGNS of a return
to reason in railroad regulation.
And from the public point of view
the most hopeful sign of all is the
provision eliminating the strike and
guaranteeing continuous, orderly
operation.