The Republican journal., 1921-06-09
FREIGHT RATES


A few days ago we noticed some nice
loo king cabbage in one of our stores, the
price being six cents pound. This SEEM
ed to US to be very high price. 1t hap
pened that on the same day we read
statement, from a reliable source, that
the freight on carload of cabbage from
Texas to Nebraska was S425. This led
us to investigate further. We found,
according to report of the New York
Market Commission, that Texas and
Florida truck farmers had shipped very
large amount of produce to New York,
which had not sold for enough to pay the
freight and commission charges. We
found proof that enormous quantities of
perishable agricultural products were un-
harvested because high freight rates
made it Improbable to ship them. The
Texas Director of Markets says that
5000 cars of early vegetables are rotting
in Texas fields. He says, too, that Texas
rice can be shipped by water to Europe
and back to New York cheaper than d.
rect by rail across country. He says
Texas cotton can be shipped to England
for IS cents a hundred pound, and that
it costs 95 cents hundred to transport
cotton by rail from the interior of Texas
to the seaboard, distance of 300 miles.
Not all the testimony comes from Texas
and Florida. Governors of States, Boards
of Agriculture, and trade and manufac-
curing associations. are deluging the In
Ierstate Commissions with testimony
sho owing that the greatest obstacle in the
way of return to normal conditions and
the restoration of business, is the high
cost of railroad transportation.
Some seven months ago there was in
this country a shortage of half a million
freight cars. About this time the Inter-
state Commerce Commission yielded to
che plea of the railroad executives and
authorized an increase of twtnty per cent
in freight rates. 1t was expected that
this increase in rates would largely in
crease the receipts of the roads. AS we
have shown above, the Increased rates
proved in many instances Ito be prohibi-
tive. The shipments fell off so that to-
day there are half million idle freight
cars in the United States. Only few
of our railroads are earning enough to
pay expenses.
On the twentieth day of last July, IN
der pressure which was little short of
Ghreat, a wage increase was granted to
railroad men which added 5000, 600, 600 to
The annual operating expenses of our rail-
roads The Federal Railroad Board to
which the matter of a wage reduction
was recently referred has handed down a
decision which would reduce the wage
scale to about a total of $400, 900. 1t
is proposed that this scale shall be in eff
feet on the first day of next month. We
assume that the labor leaders will rave
and wiring their hands but we believe
that at least 90 per cent of our railroad
workers are sensible men and will not
kill the goose which has laid for them SO
many fairly good-sized eggs we believe
they will accept the cut and will consent
to an elimination of that code of McAdoo
rules under which, in thousands of in
stances, nigh wages have been collected
for work not done.
After the above concessions have been
made by the railroad employees, the rail-
r,tl radIra
freight rates. If they do not do this they
win ride to fall. The business of the
United States cannot stand the present
rates of freight transportation. There is
one other thing which the railroad execu-
lives should do. They 81 ould cut their
own salaries at least fifty per cent, and
do real work, instead of spending their
tine in devising schemes for skinning
the public.