Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1920-08-25
COST OF TRANSPORTATION
DOUBLES THE DISTANCE

Washington, D c., August 26.-"Chi-
cago Is more than twice as far from
New York as it was six years ago. More
than that-every place in the United
States is now about twice as far from
every other place as It was in 1914"
These rather startling assertions are
made by Secretary Thompson of the Ma
t1onal Rivers and Harbors Congress in
statement released today. The state
ment goes on to say:
OF course. the number of miles be-
tween New York and Chicago, or any
! other two places that might be named,
Is aust the same now as it always was
but miles are not the only things to
! measure by. We might use time, for in
stance, and it has been we'll said by an
English writer that 1T is not mileage
but cost of transportation, which con-
stltutes the true commercial measure
of distance
Geographically Chicago is still 1000
| miles from New York, but, because of
the increases made in freight rates dur
| Ing the past six years, the city on Lake
Michigan Is now, commercially, 2.100
! miles from tidewater, and every COM
| mun1ty In the country has been pushed
| back until it is twice as far away from
| the markets in which it either buys it's
supplies or sells it's products as it was
| in 1914.
The whole increase was not made at
| once-the country never would have
| stood for it If it had been. First it was
hive per cent in 1914; then fifteen per
| cent In 1917; then twenty-five per cent,
| Dy Mr.. McAdoo's order, in 1918; and now
an advance varying from twenty-five
per cent for the Southern and Mountain
racine groups to 40 per cent for the
Eastern group, and averaging accord
lng to an estimate made by the Bureau
| OF Railway Economics, 1858 per cent
| for the whole country.
stated In another way. this means
| That for every dollar paid to the rail-
| roaos for freight in 1914 we must now
| pay two dollars or more. Now it is Just
! as certain as fate itself that every in
crease in cost of transportation increas-
es Doth the cost of living and of doing
business and decreases the territory in
Whlch our products, whether of farm or
| FACTORY, can be sold. But the most vital
question today is not whether we shall
pay on price or another for the trans
portation of our goods, but whether we
| can get them carried at ALL
IN Europe they use waterways as
wei! as railways. France, Belgium, Hol-
land and Germany Gas it was before the
war; whose combined area is only one
| seventh that of the United States. have
23,2OO miles of waterways, of which
| they make continually increasing use.
! Inc tonnage of goods transported on the
waterways of Germany in 1905 was five
tunes as much as was carried in 1876
| ana 1t is more than coincidence that in
every one of the twenty years ending
in 1913, the foreign commerce of Ger
many. which is $4,000 square miles small
| Ter than the State of Texas, exceeded
That OF the United States by hundreds
| OF millions of dollars.
why should not the $4,000 miles of
| inland waterways in the United States
De made available for user
(Raymond NewC)
~ Martin BOSNIAN and family os Oaks,
N. Oak. returned to his home after
two weeks visiting at the Max Hintz
! home Wednesday.
Mrs. Julius Bauman returned from
fanum. Neb, Thursday after visiting
| the past six weeks in Dakota. Colorado
and Nebraska.
Prof. and Mrs. L. sherwood Of COL
! umb1a Heights and son arrived Satur-
I DAY Tor a visit at the home of Mr.. and
Mrs. Chris. Miller.
Jim Torkelson who visited the past
week with his mother. Mrs. H. c. John
son and family and with other relatives
| returned to Minneapolis Friday
| Miss Della Mcmahon and Miss Edna
| Herring of New York arrived Saturday
for visit at the home of-Mr. and Mrs.
e. j. Ericsson. Miss Mcmahon is a Sis
| ter OF Mrs Ericsson and will be we'll re-
| membered by most of our town residents
as she lived here some time in the past.
Miss Annie Miller of St. Paul arrived
| Saturday for visit with relatives here
and at Willmar. On Sunday. she accom-
panied Fred Walker and family on
motor trip for a visit at the Emil Miller
nome In town of Crate. Mr.. and Mrs.
, Fred Harmed and August Gabbert and
family also motored out for a. visit
J with Mr.. and Mrs. Emil Miller.