The Dillon herald. [volume] (Dillon, S.C.) 1894-????, 1919-10-16
SCARCITY OE CARS
BOTHERS RAILWAYS
Director General Walker ID Hines
Places Facts Before tie
Public.


times and practically as heavy as they
did last year., says Director General
, Walker D. Hines in statement
which he issued yesterday. This
statement was sent to the various
presidents of the railroads and re-
quests were issued in Raleigh through
the local agents of the. Norfolk
Southern and the Seaboard Air Line.
The statement follows:
The railroads of the country are
now doing a heavier business for the
present season of the year than was
ever done in the history Of the rail.
roaus in mormal years and practically
as heavy business as was done al
this season in 1918, which exceeded
all previous records. They have in
actual operation more cars after ex-
cluding cars held out of service for
repairs, than in 1917 or 1918.
While the bad order car situation was
greatly embarrassed by the extensive
strike among the shopmen inAugust
the percentage of bad order cars is
now rapidly improving There was
an increase of 52,456 cars in service
able condition between August 18th
and October 4th.
While the freight business is prac-
tically as heavy as usual at this time
of year the railroad administration
in performing that business is un-
avoidably deprived of many exceed
ingly important aids which it was
able to utilize last year.
One of these is the zoning of coal,
which last year compelled consumers
to take their coal from nearby mines
and thereby greatly increase the ef-
fectiveness of coal transportation.
This advantage has necessarily been
lost because the zoning was terminal
ed last winter.
Another is that last year there
was much heavier loading of many
Important commodities than it has
been possible to secure is year
and the result is that under existing
conditions more cars have to be used
for the same amount of traffic than
were used last year.
There are various other important
respects in which traffic was con-
trollled in the interest Of the war
last year so as to get the maximum
results out of rail transportation and
with the return of peace conditions
and the resulting insistance of public
sentiment upon release from wartime
restrictions these advantages have
been lost.
The fact that there is still short
age in rail transportation is due to
the conditions that the amount of
business offering is far in excess of
the transportation facilities of the
country This has always been true,
in this country, in times of heavy
business in the autumn months ex-
cepting last year when the matter
could be and was controlled with an
iron hand, with a view sole to war
necessities.
At the same time railroad facil-
tiles have not expanded to the ex-
tent required in the public interest.
Even prior to war railroad faciliteis
were not equal to the demands. Dur
ing the war the addition of new ia
cilities was greatly restricted by the
scarcity of material and labor, since
the war it has been impossible to in
augurate or carry out any extensive
program for enlargement of rail ca
pacity because of the uncertainty as
to the status of the railroads. The
railroad administration was not pro-
vided with the money and, therefore,
could not originate or carry out any
such program, and the railroad COM
panies, in view of the uncertainties,
were unwilling to provide the money,
The result is that the railroad fa-
cilities of the country are decidedly
below what the traffic demands New
ertheless the maximum traffic is be-
ing handled and this is being done
with less shortage of transportation
than manifested itself art times inthe
pre-war period. Particular attention
is being paid by the railroad alminis-
tration to the furnishing of neces-
sary equipment for the transportation
of coal and grain.
It was decided early in September
that in order to meet the coal requir-
ments of the country IL would be nee
essary for the railroads to move a
minimum of II, 100000 tons of btu
minous coal week For the week end
ed Sept, 13, 11,046,O00 tons were
transported; for the week ended Sep
tember 20, 11,24S,000 tons were
transported and for the week ended
September 9th the railroad admin
istration estimated that approximate
ly 11,575,0O0 tons were transported.
Conditions have developed which
have made it necessary to handle the
wheat situation in an Emergency way.
This situation has been complicated
by the fact that many of the elevators
are full and it has been impractible
to move additional wheat to points
where the elevators are full because
to do so would cause large numbers
of railroad cars to be filled with
grain which could not be disposed of
at destination and this would result
in using them for storage and de-