The New York herald., 1921-10-25
What Do You Think of These
Facts, Mr.. Citizen


Theeconomic emergency which con-
fronts the railroads of the United
States to-day is not theory as. to
wages that were too low before or
wages that are too high now, meas
ured by the general standards. 1t ID
not v ther the chief fault is with
the wage scales or with the shop
rules and other working conditions.
1t is condition which the railroads
face, and this condition. is that, what
ever causes the grand total Of labor
charges, the roads cannot stand their
payrolls. The country which has to
put up the money for them cannot
stand those payrolls.
In the three years of 1912, 1913 and
1914 the average annual labor cost
Of the railroads on the direct pay
rolls was some $1,000, 100000. But
in 1920 the labor cost of the rail
roads on those direct payrolls was
S3,6sS, 600, 600 The payroll increase
of $2.4O0, 100000 was thus not far
from twice what the whole payroll
had been before the war. The pay
roll. total was not far from three
times what the total had been before
the war
!. That was not all. The locomotive
fuel had amounted for the three
year, average. before mentioned to
about S230,OO0, 900: in 1920 it was
s672,Oo0, 900. Here again the coal
bill increase of S44O, 100000 was not
very far from twice what the whole
coal bill had been before the war.
The coal bill total was not far from
three times what the total had been
before the war And the cost of coal
is largely labor.
Similarly the bill for material and
supplies had run up from s425, ,000,.
600 for that three year average to
S1,O63, ,000,00 in 1920. In this in.
ctance the increase of S63s,000, 900
was not twice the original total; it
was about one and half times as
much. The total bill was not three
times the former bill; 1t was about
two and half times what it, had
teen before the war.
Taxes also had done their share
Of the bankrup:ing work. From an
average for that three year period of
Sis 200, 900 a year they had gone up
in 1920 to $27S,000, 900. The increase
of $165, 100000 was nearly one and a
half times as much as the old total
tax bill. The, total tax bill was nearly
two and a half times what 1t had
been before the war.
To try to pay these bewildering
multiplications of crushing bills the
traffic rates were increased and then
increased and then increased again.
The total operating revenues of the
roads we're thus forced up from an
annual average of some three billions
OF dollars for that three year period
to the terrific total in 1920 OF six
billions of dollars. This was an in
crease against the public. which pays
the freight, OF three billions Of dol
lars a year. But the four items of
labor, coal. materials and taxes,
without counting anything else, had
gone up that whole three billions of
dollars and six hundred and forty.
three millions besides.
Then came the smash. The in.
creased railroad wages and other bills
broke the railroad back, and the car.
riers could not go on with the load.
The increased traffic charges bent
the public's back, and the public
would not go on with the load.
The small wage readjustment
which was ordered by the United
states Railroad Labor Board to take
effect last July was not enough to
enable the railroads to pay their cur