The Washington times., 1921-08-20

privilege.
On the other hand, he is a support
of the continued existence OF private
control of big industry. because he Is
undertaking to show that, with brains
and will. private initiative can serve
the people successfully and well with
out graft and without subsidy.
| Some will remember that many
years ago, before he went on the Su-
preme Court, Mr.. Brandeis made the
respectable world sit up in horror by
| declaring that the railroads could save
million dollars a day IL they intro
duced familiar efficiencies which he
pointed out.
Could Save Millions.
Stripped of details. Mr.. Brandeis
| thesis was that at least a million dol
lars q day was wasted by the fact
that railroads were kept below the
degree of efficiency reached by ordi-
| nary successful big business.
What Mr.. Ford is doing with his
railroad, or what he is offering to do
| az the War Department cannot slip
| away from his offer with Muscle
Shoals, is to give to the public ruth
less demonstration of what big bust
ness would look like IL It's dominating
characteristics were efficiency and
| service.
II is a reckless thing to do. The
| figures Ford has turned up In thres
months operation of a dead and rusty
railroad will instigate no end of hos.
tile explanation. They stand, all the
same. The low rates stand. The high
wages stand. The increased business
stands. The decreased cost Of opera
ton stands. The bankers have an un.
enviable job in trotting out reasons
why the roads generally could not do
likewise IL they were conducted by
business men of the right type.
| No wonder the Senate Committee on
Interstate Commerce refused to call
labor representatives and Mr.. Nc
Adoo as witnesses. 1t had spent
months in calling railroad men to tell
them, and spread the reports all oven
! the land how much the roads had los
through the crimes OF labor and the
crimes of Federal control. Why should
1t waste any time hearing the other
side?
Won't Call Hines.
Mr.. McAdoo was all ready TO hand
them a lot of figures which they hac
no desire TO see. They can get alonE
more comfortably without that kline
of figures. j am offering odds of AZ
to l they will not call Mr.. Hines
either. although Mr.. Hines was
brought up in their own school.
Mr.. Hardy, of Texas. observed II
the House Of Representatives the othel
day:
"The Federal control act. as ever,
Republican in this House admitted b.
his vote, was necessary when 4
passed. The Esch -Cummins law wa,
a concoction of Republican states
manship after the war was over
We administered them with such
economy that they cost the people
even by your say-so, only million
dollars day, and you took then
back and gave them to the railroad.
on such terms that they cost the peo
pie more than they did under Gov
eminent control by two or three mil
lion dollars day"
OF course, Mr.. McAdoo, had he bee.
called, would not have conceded the
cost OF a million dollars a day. More
over he would have pointed out. ans
graphically, that he could not run the
roads in wartime from the point o.
view of economy. Freight cars hat
to be not where they would most eco
nomically function, but where the,
would most rapidly get food from the
Middle West TO Europe.
Against Claims.
Locomotives had to be Distribute
not from the standpoint of making 2
good showing on the books, but from
the standpoint of giving the best L
Pershing, no matter what wornou
engines might be used as substitute.
at home.
These sidelights on the Govern
ment's record, as compared with tn,
private record, would have beer
troublesome things to hear. The Sen
ators and the railroad men digest bet
ter without them.
I am not an extremist on the rail
road problem. 1 do not object to thu
mortgage loan of half a billion dollar,
to help the roads, but 1 do most EN-
phatically object to that loan until .
real settlement is made and the doc,
shut firmly in the face of future
claims OF any kind on any ground.