Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-01-24
ne final report of the Federal Elec-

The final report of the Federal Flee
trio Railway Commission. appointed
late last summer by the President to
investigate financial and operating
conditions of the street traction COM
panies and interurban electric roads
in the United States will be given to
the President the first week in Feb
ruary.
c. T. Ogburn. secretary of the COM
mission. tn week sent out letters
urging the seven members of the COM
mission to meet in Washington at an
early date to draft final report. The
meeting will proba bly, be held next
week. Edwin +. Sweet. who is vice
chairman of the commission. has beer
occupied for more than a week with
the pan-American financial conference
here. but will be free after today to
go into details of the traction report
Other members of the commission
have been busted with their own af-
fairs in the interim between the con
clusion of hearings and the present
but will get together before the emo
of January and draft report. which
as soon as printed. will be placed be
fore the President.
Charles +. Elmquigt. A lawyer of st
Paul. who has practiced before the In
terstate Commerce Commission fol
several years and is a prominent au
man of the commission. Mr.. Sweet wa:
formerly mayor of Grand Rapids an'
in drafting the report of the commits
sion is expected to put FORWARD
strongly his opinion that electric
street railways should be classed as ;
necessary public utility in the sam'
class as the public water supply, an'
| should he operated not for the con
venience of bondholders. but for thu
convenience of the public.
Some Discount Increases.
The final decision of the mission
as to federal remedial legislation fol
intrastate and and interstate electric
carriers cannot. Of course. be made
known at this time. 1t is known
| however. that several members of the
| commi ssion. discounting the genera
| increases in rates granted the ma
! iority of electric traction companie:
| in the United States. hold the view
{ that the scent fare was too high Z
| fare before operating expenses AND
| cost of maintenance mounted to {
| degree which the carriers claim en-
| title them to change in franchise
! sufficient to bring them more reve
nue. than the scent fare provided.
! Testimony introduced before the
| commission by public utilities official:
at the hearings last fall and particu
| larly by Gen. Guy E. Trip, chairman
|
| inghouse Company, proved that thu
popular conception of a scent far
| for street railway companies hai
! been relegated to the past and tina
the vast majority of such companie
cannot operate or exist on such ;
| fare. Realizing this. utilities com
missions almost universally hav'
| granted the electric carriers fare in
| creases ranging from l cent to
cents. In Boston. the testimon,
/ showed. when the street railwa!
| compa MES went into a receivership
/ the receiver informed the travelling
public that they could pay the 10
i cent fare or walk. He was deter
mined. testimony showed. that thu
| company should meet operating eX
penses. Similar action has beef
| taken in other cities.
See Dividends on 'Water."
| The claim that the 5-cent fare wa
| too high before the war is based OIL
| the conclusion that Notwithstanding
the fact many companies gave ava.
| blocks of common stock with the sal
| of their bonds. they continued on tn
scent fare to pay dividends on thi
water which was given to tn
bondholder as a premium. It is no
claimed that the money thus paid Il
| dividends was taken out of casl
needed for maintenance. nor for nee
essary operating expenses. but tina
| the roads earned SO large surplus