New-York tribune., 1921-05-23


1890 WAS one of the best pieces oa
work that Congress has ever done ane
! should be extremely reluctant to ses
the act modified, amended or rhangee
! before it is given a fair chance to
| prove what II can do. / was and am
| stlls q firm believer in the act. There
may be sore points where the ma
| chlnery Is still operating with friction
on some hot journals but | think that
wear VIII smooth them down and it
ought to be operating we'll. ! should
alsiNke extremely now to see Ii tink.
cred with or changed
! IN his statement, MIR. Willard said /;
Il don't believe 1t will be necessary
20 raise rates beyond what the traffic
| VIII bear to make private ownership a
success. 1t was not necessary before
the war and | do not think 1t will be
! necessary after the war. once we get
| adjusted so that our income and our
| expense bear some proper relationship
| to each other, which they do not at
! this time.
The transportation act of 1920 does,
| IN fact, make future successful opera
t1on of railroads possible as privately
| owned and operated properties. That |
thoroughly believe. it is necessary, of
course, if they are to succeed, that the
railroads should cooperate effectively
IN order to carry out the spirit of the
act The railroads are attempting to do
that through several agencies, and par
tcularly through a new agency-the
advisory committee of the Association
OF Railway Executives.
Fuel Reductions Expected
at is expected that substantial re-
| duction will be secured in the price of
tuel for 1921; in fact, number of con-
tracts have already been made, effec-
tive rs of April /, much under last
years prices. Other material prices are
showing a gradual decline, and as ma
terals and supplies now in stock are
consumed and gradually replaced with
materials purchased at lower figures
there will be reduced charges to ex-
penses on this account, all of which
viii be reflected in lower operating
costs. Meanwhile railroad representa-
tlves in conference with the Interstate
commerce Commission are making
such rate adjustments from time to
time as are found necessary in order
to remove inequalities and reestablish
proper relationships"
Time and patient effort will cure
the ills of the railroads, President
Smith says in his statement.
The railroads management" he
said, "hampered by the necessity
of undertaking operation of property
| burdened with large advances in eX-
penses, with under maintenance of
way and equipment, and further bur
dened with the additional increase of
expenses by reason of orders of the
! labor board. moved all the tonnage
that was offered during 1920 and en-
deavored to make substantial progress
/ toward restoring the property to the
! standard which the best judgment con-
sldered necessary to enable it to do
properly and safely the business of
the public
War Increased Expenses
"The enormous increases in operat-
| ing expenses have been in the main
due to the great war. War necessities
broke through and largely destroyed
normal conditions in the industrial
world. The materials of war had to
/ be supplied at any cost of labor and
material This situation had to be met
IN the railroad world and it was met
he war ended, but norma! condi-
tions could not at once be restored
| That restoration will come through
time and patient effort but pre-war or
normal conditions and a normal cost
Of living can only be restored by gen
eral regulation in the cost of both
! labor and material"
For the Association of Railway Ex-
ecutives Mr.. Cuylcr said;
THE transportation act has not
broken down. The present difficulties
Of the railroads are not due to the
transportation act, and the transporta-
ton act provides effective machinery
for remedying, in SO far as it may be
done by national legislation, the diff
fculties in which the railroads now
find themselves. Feeling, as we do,
that the world has definitely turned
the corner of its most acute depression,
so we feel that the railroad situation
has likewise passed through its dark
est hour and has now definitely turned
for the better"