New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-07-24
Financial Relief to Carriers
Would React Favorably on
Industrial Concerns Which
Furnish Supplies

maintenance of equipment has been
held down to minimum.
1t is obvious from the kilograms re-
ceived from railroad presidents that
they referred, when speaking of a re-
sumption of purchases both TO pur-
ctases of material for additions and
tctterme nts and materials for main
tenancc of way and of equipment. Rail
road purchases Of material range all
the way from pins to fifty ton locomo-
t.ves and structural steel for thousand
foot bridges. Everybody konws that rail
roads are the most important Gus
toners of the steel companies, but
paratvely few people outside OF
those directly engaged in selling to
the railroads realize that the railroad
purchases of paper, adding machines,
rubber bands, ink, loose leaf supplies
Office furniture, etc, are in such great
volume that the policy of railroad pur-
chashing Of these things has an impor-
tant effect on the many industries. l.
has been estimated that the railroads
in the United States purchased on an
average about $6,600,000 of paper
alone. Timetables do not, as one
might have supposed, make the great
est bulk Of this paper. II is paper
for forms, such as way bills. bills of
lading, inspectors reports of freight
cars, notices of undercharges freight
bills, etc, which form the largest bulk
Of paper purchased by railroads. 1t
is impossible, of course, to cut down
over any long period of time on pur-
chases such as these. but it is possible
for short period Of time, such as the
acute depression in which the rail
roads have been passing through, to
live on the supplies on hand and to
get along with the minimum of pur-
chases of new stock. In the case Of
typewritets. mechanical devices in the
accounting department, monographs,
fling cases, office furniture, and in
fact list of some hundreds of diff
feyent classes of articles, it is pos
sible almost entirely to suspend pur-
chases over a SIX months to two
years period.
Special emphasis is made on the class
of purchases that are not ordinarily
thought of as being railroad purchases
because it is difficult for the average
reader to realize the extent of this
group. There are approximately 21,-
800 railroad officers on the Glass l in
the United States-that is, the roads
that earn 100000 or more year
gross-and about 1000 additional Off
GERS on the smaller roads. With few
exceptions each one of these officers
has an Office and an Office force con-
Stunning Office supplies. A rough es-
innate places the number of Office as
sistants, stenographers, clerks, etc, at
400 OO0
The Interstate Commerce Commits
sion requires railroad accounts to be
submitted in great detail. For instance,
under the general account maintenance
of ways and structures there are some
the English railroad accounting sys-
ten the American system does not di-
vide each account into materials and
wages. Many of the accounts, however,
are entirely made of materials. In the
recent hearings of the governments
investigation of the railroad question,
the railroad accountants went back
through their old files and made an es-
innate of the amount that was spent
for materials, supplies, etc, exclusive
OF fuel. In 1920 the total was $1064,-
100000. In the normal years, 1914
1917--and by normal period is meant
both period of normal prices for ma
terials and normal upkeep of railroads
an average of about $4,000 600 was
spent annually. These figures are for
maintenance and operation only and do
not include expenditures for additions
and betterments.
Under maintenance of way and struc-
lures the most important classes Of
material bought by railroads are ties,
rails, crushed stone or other materials
for ballast, bridge material, material
for crossings and signs, building ma