Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1920-08-01
25PCT. FREIGHT
RATE RAISE in
SOUTH GRANTED
Passenger Fares to Go uo
"a Per Cent by
Ruling

WASHINGTON, July 31-The In
terstate Commerce Commission to-
day granted twenty-five per cent
freight rate increase in the South,
forty per cent increase in the east,
thirty-five per cent in the west and
twenty-five per cent in the mountain
and Pacific territory.
Passenger fares, excess baggage
and milk rates were increased twenty
per cent and fifty per cent sur
charge on sleeping, parlor and chair
cars was granted.
In presenting their applications for
freight rat increases the railroads
contended before the Interstate Com
merce Commission that 81, 0,000,-
600 was necessary to advance their
income to the six per cent basis per-
mitted by the. new Transportation
act. Shippers and state commissions
generally agreed that some advance
were necessary but they opposed both
the total and the method of applica-
tion.
Passenger rates, the carriers pro-
posed, would be left unchanged and
their program of advances, applica-
Bile throughout the country, did not
take into account any wage increas-
es made by the railroad labor board.
Rates as Proposed
The advances proposed were:
Eastern roads, 30.4 per cent, to
yield an advance in all revenues of
FL. 1 per cent, or $544, 900, 900.
Western roads, 1873 per cent to ad-
vanie all revenues IL per cent or
1852, 900.
Southern roads: 30.6 per cent to
provide 20.7 per cent larger revenue
or $120,770,000.
Apart from these advances, 38
roads in the southwest asked separate
treatment from the western classi-
fication, and rate increase of 1928
per cent.
An estimated valuation of $20,616.-
100000 placed on the transportation
systems by their owners was ques-
toned by both shippers and state
utility commissions, who complained
that "book value" was unreliable,
while the carriers contended that
their figures were conservative, es-
pecially because of rising cost of ma
terials and equipment. Increases in
passenger rates, and flat freight in
creases instead of the percentage sys-
TEN, also were advocated by ship
pers to equalize the burden of any
advance.
Net Income Falls
Setting out the necessity for the
increase, the railroads claimed that
the net income of all the country's
roads fell from $1,056, 100000 in
1916 to $50, 100000 in 1919, while
their investment was increased more
than $2.000,00O,000. Operating ex-
penses, the roads said, have increased
90 per cent since 1916, and reve-
nues 36.37 per cent Operating ex-
penses, it was added, are now SO per
cent of the revenues, against 68 per
cent in 1916.
Arguing for the increase, the rail
road executives said the one billion
dollars of added revenue was neces-
sary if the roads were to handle the
nations commerce satisfactorily.
They contended that savings promis-
ed by them could not be effected at
once because the roads were not re-
turned to them in the same conditions
as they were when taken over and
because of unsolved labor difficulties.
Clifford Thorne, of Chicago, rep
resenting shippers, recommended to
the commission that the roads be un-
flied for operation as they were in
1917, declaring that only in this way
could the roads solve the existing
transportation problem.
Mr.. Thorne also argued that the
rate advances asked were excessive as
the carriers had not made any pro-
vision for more efficient operation or
for decrease in the cost of materials
He also argued that the companies
set too high value on their proper
ties and that they were capitalizing
land granted them by federal and
state governments without cost and
asking the people to forever pay a
| tax on these free gifts.