New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-04-26
Atchison Earns
SlO.42 q Share
OnIts Common
Showing Contrasts With That
OF Many Other Railroads
in 1920; Result Is Laid
TO Expansion Program

'"S Tor $o,209,000, and its common divi-
dends calling for $13,44t, 900 in 1920
me corporation set up a special charge
tor maintenance of way and structures
a'iu maintenance Of equipment to
winch there was debited S13.375 900.
inns, however, is in excess of the
actual expenditures and the ordinary
depreciation charges. and is not taken
into account in arriving at the state
ment of earnings just made. The show
ing OF the Atchison is EXCEPTIONAL the
majority Of roads having failed in so
1ar as operation Of the property is con-
cerned to earn interest charges.
he corporation income account
which shows rental for two months,
guaranteed net made up by the gov
eminent Tor the next six months, and
me results of railway operation for
ene last tour months only. shows a
surplus after the payment of interest
changes, taxes and preferred and corr
mon dividends Of S17,S8l 400. con-
paraed with S23 439,0 900 in 1919. The
amount earned per common share after
the payment of preferred dividends in
wv was S10.d2, compared with S21 in
( 1919.
Federal operation of the railroads
lasted tor twenty-six months. During
TINS period the government paid a
rental OF approximately SD, 500 900 an
nually, or "A total of SOC, 600, 900 for the
Sante Re. The operation of the prop
erty brought in a total of SAL ,o20 600.
operating expenses were $500 ,019 900
Iaxes paid by the government, exclu-
slVe OF war taxes paid by the COM
pany, were SIS, 263 900, and after sub
tracing rentals the net income to the
government was $96,9l9 600 In other
words, the operation Of the Atchison
topeka d. Santa Fe proved profitable
to the government, whereas the opera
ton of the railroads as a whole for
the twentyslX months period left the
! government with huge deficit.
To explain this position of the Santa
re, it is necessary to go back over
the history Of the property since it
was taken out > the hands of receivers
in 1896. AT that time the company
operated 6,445 miles Of road. and total
operating revenues were 500 ,941 900.
Interest on bonds called Tor %5.36S 600,
and there was 81 ,l6S 600 remaining
after the payment of operating ex-
penses and this bond interest. Ry 1917
the mileage had crown TO II ,229A;
gross revenues were $3.50, 123 600; in
tercst charges on bonds called for SILL
$4,000, and there was q remainder
after expenses and interest charges Of
$38, 1856, 600. While bond interest had
only about doubled and mileage d lit
| tie less than doubled. gross revenues
increased by between five and six
times.
Expansion Explains Showing
TIC expansion OF the physical sys-
tenn and the methods used to finance
this expansion explain the remarkable
showing made by the Sante I'e under
government operation and ia the latter
part of 1920 under restored private
operation.
During these years Of expansion the
road was under the direction of Z. p.
Ripley, who died in February. 1920.
Atchison was operated without bank
ing control. The board Of directors
was a strong one, but almost the entire
responsibility and authority were given
to President Ripley. The Southwest
and California were developing rapidly,
but unevenly. There was keen compe-
tition between the Atchison, the Rock
Island. the ST. Louis & San Francisco,
the Missouri, Kansas g.. Texas and the
Southern Pacific, and each rapidly eX-
tended its lines to develop new terri
tory. The South-~A Pacific and the
Atchison were sue. siul. The other
three roads ended in receivcrshins. The
Sante FEES expansion is peculiarly note
worthy, because Of the conspicuous alb
sencc Of mistakes.
Scientific Development
Along with this extensive develop
mcnt went an intensive development
which was criticized at the time by
9TH n
men as being scientific but unneces-
sarily expensive. AS a single instance
it might be cited that the Santa Fe was
one of the first roads to try out the
screw track spike and even went so
far as to import oak ties from Japan
for portions of its lines where climatic
conditions appeared to Justify a high
first cost tie with long life.
There was period when many
Santa Re officers themselves thought
that the Santa FEES standard of malnte-
as that of the Southern Pacific, but at
the time that the property was taken
over by the government both equip.
ment and roadbed were in the best of
condition. The vice president in
charge of operation, W. D. Story, was
appointed Federal manager, so that
there was minimum OF disturbance
of the organization. frcsldent Nlpley
retired, and when the roads we're
handed back to their owners Mr.. Story
was elected president. In his annual
report he says that the road was not
turned back to the company in substan
TALLY as good concition and complete
euuipment as when taken over in De-
cember, 1917. 1t is presumably to
cover this factor, which is the basis Of
a claim now before the government,
that the reserve Of $13,000,0OO for
maintenance was set up.
Figures on Freight
The average revenue tralnioad OF
freight on the Santa Fc in 1920 was
500 tons, and in 1919 557 tons. The
average loading per loaded car was
twenty three tons in 1920 and twenty
two tons in 1919. The average rev.
enue per ton per mile was 1915 cents
in 1920. and 1913 cents in 1919. There
was not great change in the char
acter of traffic in 1920 as compared
with 1919; the tonnage OF products Of
agriculture did not increase IN proper
ton to the total tonnage carried, while
lumb Der and forest products furnished
greater proportional tonnage IN 1920
than they did in 1919
OF the total sc, $50 553 tons of rev
enue freight carried by the Santa Fe
in 1920, products of mines, which in
cludes bituminous coal, ore, crude
petroleum, etc. furnished 35 per cent
and manufactures. which includes
such things as sugar. household goods
and also refined petroleum and its
products furnished 81 per cent of the