The Columbus dispatch. (Columbus, Miss.) 19??-1922, 1920-06-23
COOPERATION OF SHIPPERS
AND RECEIVERS URG-
ED BY RAILWAY 4
AGE.
FACILITIES LIMITED
Transportation Situation Critical
and Likely to Become Desper-
ate Unless Every Concern
Does all Possible Help.

IF ever there was a time when
transportation conditions imperative-
" demanded that shippers. and receiv-
ers Of freight should, for their own
interest, and even their own salvation,
cooperate to the utmost with the rail-
ways in securing the most efficient
possible use Of railroad facilities that
time is now" says the Railway Age
in an editorial in its current issue.
\ almost the only possible way in
which the amount Of freight the rail-
roads can haul can be Immediately
increased is by securing the move-
ment Of every ton Of freight possible
with every car that is available. The
amount of freight that can be moved
with existing facilities is absolutely
dependent upon how much freight can
be loaded into every car, and how
many miles day every day can be
made to travel.
"The number of miles per day that
each car can be made to travel is
mainly dependent upon the efficiency
with which the railway managements
and employees do their work. 1t is
also largely dependent, however, upon
the promptness and celerity with
which every shipper loads cars and
every receiver Of freight unloads
them. As to the heavy loading OF
cars, that is a matter which Is mainly
in the hands of the shippers. The
only way the railroads could force
heavier loading Of ears would be by
general advance in minimum car
load weights, and while probably there
should be such an advance made, it
would meet with opposition and might
do injustice to many shippers.
"The most effective thing the ship
pers could do to help themselves, and
help the industry and people Of the
United States, in the present emerg-
ency would be for every individual
shipper, regardless of minimum car
load weights, to follow the policy of
loading every car with every pound
Iof freight that it could carry. The
average capacity Of the freight cars
Of this country exceeds 40 tons. The
average tons loaded per loaded car
at present is only about 28 tons. 1t
should be easily practicable to in
crease this average loading 10 or 15
per cent. The effect would be to make
it practicable for the railway to handle
10 or Is per cent more freight busi-
ness than they otherwise would be
able to. Surely, it must be plain to
the business interests of the country
that their own welfare, if not their
actual economic salvation, is depend-
ent upon an increase in the amount
Of freight moved.
"Some shippers organizations are
carrying on an agitation among their
members to influence them to in
crease the loading of cars. The manu-
facturors Of Portland cement and of
steel have long been among the lead
ers in promoting heavy loading. The
American Newspaper Publishers AS
sociation recently has been circular
izing its members urging them to
unload cars as promptly as possible.
Such agitation ought to be carried
on by every organization Of industrial
concerns in the country. The rail-
ways are doing good deal Of this
kind Of work and are going to do
more, but uniformed or prejudieed
people are likely to think that they
are doing it for their own selfish in
terest, and therefore be less respon-
sive to appear from the roads than
to appeals from organizations Of con-
Germs Of their own class.
"Even if normal conditions with
respect to the handling of freight
traffic existed it would be impossible
for the railways, with their present
facilities, to handle all the business
that would be offered to them. The
conditions, however, have been rem
dered abnormal by certain recent
developments, the most important Of
which have been the coal strikes and
the recent railroad strikes in all parts
of the country.
Business men and the general pub
lie ought to be made to understand
ftn.. ctk