The Adair County news., 1921-10-25
te of Return Earned by Railroads
OF the United States on Their
Property Investment

. . . y
1t will thus be noted that during
the years wheDi other industries WSlra
making very large profits, when, the
prices of farm products and the wages
of labor were Soaring to, Eunheard-of
heights, the earnings upon railroad in
Festment in the United States were
held within. Very narrow limits and
that they have during the past four
years progressively declined.
Ro5cs Handicapped More Than
Ofher Business.
z The railroads are responsible to
the public for providing adequate
transportation, Their charges ara
limited by public authority, and they
are in very large respects (notably for
laDor3 compelled to spend money on a
basis fixed by public authority The
margin within which they are permit
ted 60 earn return upon their in,
veStment or to offer Inducements to
attract new capital fOr,eXtensions and
bettermentS is extremely limited.
However, much the, railroads might
desire, therefore, TO reduce their
charges in times,6f depression, it viii
be perceived that the limitations sur
rounding their action do not permit
them to give effect to broad and elias.
tic'policfes which might very properly
govern other lines of business not thus
restricted.
1t has beeen urged upon the rail-
T98ds that a reduction in rates will
STIMULATE traffic and that increased
traffic will protect the carriers from
the loss incident to a reduction in
rates. The railroad arrangements can
not disguise from themselves that this
suggestion is merely conjectural and
that an adverse result of the expert
ment would be disastrous not Only te
the railroads, but to the public. whose
supreme need is adequate transperLa-
ton. Consequently the railroad man.
agements cannot feel justified In plac-
ing these inStrumentalties, 50 essen
Cial to the public welfare, at the haz-
ard OF such an experiment based solely
upon such conjecture.
Farmers Especially Need Lower Rates
1t Is evident, however, that existing
transportation charges bear in many
cases a disproportinate relationship
to the prices at which commodities
can be sold in the market and that
existing labor and other costs of
transportation thus imposed upon in.
duStry and agriculture generally a
burden greater than they should
bear. This is especially true of agri.
culture. The railroad Arrangements
are feeling sensitive to and sym.
| pathetic with the distressing situa,
ton and desire to do everything to
assist in relieving it that is compati-
Bile with their duty to furnish the
| transportation which the public must
have
At the moment railroads in many
cases are paying 40 cents an hour
| for unskilled labor when similar la,
! Dor is working alongside the rail.
roads and can easily be obtained by
| them at 20 cents an hour The rail.
roads OF the country paid in 1920 a
total of considerably over $1,000, 000,.
900 to unskilled labor alone. How.
ever desirable it may be to pay this
or that schedule of wages, it is OBJ.
| vious that it cannot be paid out of
railroad earnings unless the indus.
| tries which use the railroads are cap
able of meeting such charges.
| The railroads, and through them
the people generally, are also ham
\ pered in their efforts to economic
by schedule of working rules and
conditions now in force as heritage
from the period of Federal control
and upheld by the Railroad Labor
Board. These conditions are expen.
sive, uneconomic and unnecessary
| from the point of view of railroad
operation and extremely burdensome
upon the public which pays the bill.
This schedule of wages and of work
ing conditions prevents the railroads
from dealing equitably with their la
Dor costs in accordance with rapidly
changing conditions and the great
variety of local considerations which
ought to control wages in different
parts of the country. The railroads
are seeking to have these rules and
working conditions abrogated.
The railroads will seek a reduction
in wages now proposed by first re
questing the sanction of the Railroad
Labor Board The railroads win pro
coed with all possible dispatch, and
as soon as the Railroad Labor Board
shall have given its assent to the
reduction of wages the general re
duction in rates VIII be put into ef