The New York herald., 1920-01-12
RAILROADS RETURN TO OWNERS
WILL ADVANCE LIVING PRICES,
ROBERT w. WOOLLEY DECLARES
Interstate Commerce Coms soner Says Large Increase of
Rates Will Be Demanded, Adding at Least S2t5
Year to Every American Familys Budget

pay to the extent OF sl,5o0.oc00oo. An
sS75. 900 900 increase in freight rates would
mean Si,375,000,000 the consumer would
pay This would have an immediate effect
Of increasing the living cost OF families of
five by something like $215 per annum.
"Only few days ago the vice president
OF one OF the principal railroads In the
country walked into my office and intro
duced himself to me. He said that he waS
opposed TO government ownership OF rail-
roads. and that he thought the one way
to prevent government ownership by Jafu-
airy I, 1921. was for federal control to con-
tinue until we are well over the shoals of
reconstruction. He cited the fact thar
with little or no increase in passenger
equipment the railroads were handling
something over 80 per cent more passen-
gers than ever before; that with only
moderate increase in freight equipment,
including locomotives an enormously In
creased freight traffic was being effici-
emily handled. and gave as an instance
that. whereas on october ], 1917. the
freight car shortage had been lat 900 cars,
1t was only about $1,000 in October. 1919.
He said he could foresee a car shortage
and a breakdown in service that might
cause the people TO rise up and demand
government ownership forthwith.
Elimination of Waste.
ut is due, of course, largely to the
elimination of waste in handling cars. To-
day car Is at home no matter where it
Is. and does not actually have to move
except in response to traffic demands
But under private control when a car had
discharged it's load IL was started back
to the home line. OF course it was loaded
IL possible. but it went empty il there was
no freight to put into it,
Great Britain saw the folly of this sort
of thing during the war. and by proper
regulation of the moving of cars OF coal
alone eliminated 700 .OO0, 900 ton miles per
annunl on total trackage of some
thing like $4,000 miles. Consider that our
rail mileage is something like 257.00o
and you can see what eliminating waste
haulage means.
Let me correct an impression as to Just
what is occurring under federal control.
The so-called standard return is the aver
age net operating income for the railroads
taken over by the government In the three
fiscal years ending June 80. 1917. In two
or these years, this income was around the
billion dollar mark, but in ono of them,
1915, 1t was s727 ,000, 900. Only twice before In
the history OF our railroads---in 1910 ard
l913--has the net operating income for one
year exceeded the $500 10000 mark In
1918. under federal control, the operating
incor was SIS. .00o, ,100-$t Coz, 900 more than
In 1915 he first of the three years used in
the standard return and $23 ,OO0 moro
than it was In 1914. With the exception OF
six years prior to 1916. 1t was higher under
feeral control. in 1918 than IL ever had
been in the history of our railroads.
Yet one reads of opera ting deficits
There is no deficit. With the prices oe
materials soaring and necossitating an ex-
penditure for maintenance of sl,741, ,4s3, $40.
or $IT. ,G93 more than the yearly average
annual expenditure for maintenance of the
same properties in the test period under
private control--for the first ten months
Of 1919 the governments expenditures for
maintenance exceeded those of tho test
period by 1904 per cent-with a wage In
crease covering twelve months and
twenty-five per cent rate increase cover
ing six months. the government simply
failed 10 earn III 1918 within something over
2co,0oo,U0 of generously guaranteed
rental, based on the returns for one normal
year and two miracle years"