The Elk Mountain pilot., 1920-05-27
GOVERNMENT owNERsH,p BEING ADVOCATED
The Othsr Fellows Now Ws.t usess Sam to Taks Hold
OF Their Propsrty
By PAUL HANNA, Staff Correspondent

|
i By PAUL HANNA, Staff Correspondent
| Washington Railroad managers have begun private
negotiations for the of the
tenn to the Two months Of renewed private
operation has convinced the wisest of that
other way of the crumbng financial structure in
which they have been caughtdespite guarantees
and subsidies of the Esch-C -Cummins law.
| When the managers made their recent appeal for a
special government loan of hundreds of millions
of dollars to buy equipment gesture fnan-
cial despair, public confession of bankruptcy real
lied the prediction made by Glenn E. last winter
that the insolvency of the railroads would
in less than after private operation
Desperate efforts have been made to conceal the
wreck of the steam lines until after the presidential
election and Congress- Financers and politicians
have common interest in such conceament They have
both planned to keep the public mind the treaty
and league of nations and entirely away from
economic problems until the should be counted.
Last weeks cry for huge government showed,
however that the is too for the
resist in silence for another six months Money
had in large and almost Immediately and the banks
have frankly informed the railroad managers that
not be had from the usual sources
Coupled with the plight of the railroads the gen
eal disposition of the banks instigated through the fed
eral system to trim all credit sails
for general business squall, similar
than the which is still sweeping Japan which
is believed to be about due in the principal of
Europe.
Were not for the nearing general election the rail-
managers would insist upon huge government
until granted but actual circumstances forbid
gift from the public treasury at present Every
Der of Congress who voted for the Esch Cummns law
already the before constituents being
forced by rival candidates explain the guarantee of five
and half per cent provided in the law all the real
and fictitious value of the roads.
In justification of their votes for the these pol
iticians have explained again again the Cummins
scheme constituted the only practicable method left
the railroads firm and permanent basis of elf-sup
porting public service. Last weeks request by the
gers for big fresh loan itself lurd contradiction
of all the politicians have said about the ability
of the corporations to stand their feet from
on To grant the loan every member of Congress would
have convict himself of either fooshness fasehood
in the public eye.
All chance for this loan being dead. the railroad
have turned to consultation with responsible gov
ernment officials regarding the possibility of early and
permanent ownership and operation of the
roads Members of the Interstate Commerce Commission
have been approached the matter simultaneously with
preparation by the roads to demand freight rate
increases of 80 per cent which, granted
known to be insufficient estimated expenditures
for the coming year.
An enormous addition to the pay roll expense of the
roads is held to be inevitable and necessary if trains
to be kept moving with any kind of regularity Starva-
on and industrial deserons by the workers have
wrought such Generalization that certain of freight
is scarcely moving at ALL In effort this evil
the railroad wage board, it is said, will early
preliminary award of higher wages to clerks main
tenance of way employees.
Despite all efforts preserve silence in the
until after the election full realization of the
stng in steam rail transportation under renewed private
operation is expected to dawn upon the people
large and show that despite the hundreds of millions
the dividend guarantee of the Esch- Cummns law the
roads not only faced by insolvency but utterly
to the commodities upon which life of the ma
tion depends.