The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1921-09-23

tack a big per centage on their factory
cost to allow for Selling cost" The
Ford products are sold tGru az ncies,
but only a small portion Of She price
the buyer p"ye is chargeabia to sell
ing cost" for the machines sir:ualiv
sell themselves.
SO perturbod is the business world
over what Ford has "starrd" that a
writer in 4 trade magazine says that
Ford's demonstration is enough to
command the interest OF every con-
Germ that has a salesman on its pay
roll" The question is raised wheth-
er in most cases the salesman is not
a superfluous and expensive middle
mana "non-essential" as Ford calls
him.
1t is in the railroad field that
Ford has caused the most consterna-
ton of late. AS everyone knows, he
bought up the old bankrupt Detroit,
Toledo and Ironton railroad. This
road was "A failure, as the railroad
men ran it, for they ran it into the
ground They went on the principle
of charging all the traffic would
bear; they rode the road. instead Of
making it serve the public, and they
employed an army of freight solicit
tors and other statesmen to get bu-
siness.
Ford at once got rid of a whole
lot of useless employees. OF courg
the labor unions kicked. He shocked
the whole railroad world by doing
away with the freight soliciting de.
partment. He went on tho IDEA tina
if the service was mtic good enough
and cheap enough the road would not
have to - cit AMI beg FIR business.
Service 70 the public" was the mot
to he aduD.ad. US; as with mis- auto.
The road was soon making good |
ami the only thing he has 10
Of IS that the government |
will not allow him to lower his rates
as fast as ne would like. He knows
hat the lower he makes the rates |
he more business he will get, while |
he other roads go on the principle |
hat the people must patronize |
hem any way and that service and /!
economy have nothing to do with the
,ase
Now comes Henry with the still
more revolutionary proposition that |
he railroads are built on altogether
90 heavy a scale. He condemns
he present huge locomotives and
rains as moneyeaters. His idea is
o us rolling-stock that will weigh
My a third of what the present type
Weighs The 200 ton locomotive
# today cannot be justified; it only
years out the rails, when such rails
ught to last a hundred years" he
avs.
He figures that with lighter roll
cg stock larger amount of business
an be handled, with far less fuel
consumption and at reduced rates,
lille at the same time the employees
an be better paid. The present rail
pads confess that they are making
o money and that they are a failure
hey have come TO what the French
al an mpasse"-a place from
hich there is no exit. Their trains
ave been getting heavier and more
,stly tracks and bridges therefore
,quired. The investment is so great
lat cheap service is impossible. 1t
a mathematical problem and it has
} answer.
OF course the hidebound old rail
'ad men scott at the Ford idea, just
the hidebound auto makers scOffed
him when he said he would max
ltos so cheap that everyone who /
anted one could have it. Ford now
lis more autos and makes more
oney than all his old rivals put to-
,ther, and he can afford to smile in
at their feeble efforts.
The fact is that the railroads are
ready being put out of business to
large extent because they are un-
lie to furnish the good and ecOnOmi-
/ service that the public want. Mo
r-trucks are competing with them :
rongly and taking business away
ON them.
The Carrollton and Worthwhile
ilroad in Kentucky, a little road, is
E only one in the state that has not
ised rates. The managers solved
e problem by laying up their steam
and substituting gasoline
iyon cars. A trip with the steam n
tfit cost the company SIS while IS
tn the gas outfit it is only 50. 9th
railroads are now studying this
"a.
Des Moines is without street-car te
vice for the reason that the trolley
es have also come to an "impasse" III
d can M 1Oupar cuDnlV SarVicp AZ "a