Evening journal., 1922-05-08
MONDAY, MAY s, 1922
DIFFERING IDEAS OF RAILROAD VALUE

DIFFERING IDEAS OF RAILROAD VALUE.
rUyHE Railway Age in an editorial in current issue.
il discusses some Of the mpromptu valuations Of the
railroads made by such critics Of the transportation
companies Clifford Thorne and the labor leaders TO
that the public should not be unduy Influenced by
them because they differ among themselves and at diff
feren times as to the Of the roads by almost as
the by which they claim the tentative
valuation made by the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion exceeds the true valuation.
Many seem to think that the railways asked for the
valuation says the Railway Age. They did not Their
spokesmen always contended that valuation was not the
right making The agitation for egsla
tion to require the Interstate Commission
make a valuation carried on mainly by those who
alleged that the railways grossly overcaptalzed
They seemed confident that valuation would Justify
wholesale reductions OF rates.
The sequel show that they did not so much
find the value OF the railways
conhscaton OF large part OF It. When the transpor
OF 1920 passed, the commission had been
working the valuation over six years had
tored the physical properties of most OF the railways
and had the records its office. The transportation
directed in regulating rates to take into consdera
ton the information 1t had gathered The commission
purpose of the OF 1920 placed upon the
railways tentative valuation OF eighteen billion nine
hundred million dollars. Its members repeatedly have
told members OF Congressional committees that this
mainly upon the results OF their investigation
under the valuation law.
Nevertheless the very people who got the valuation
law passed have been among the loudest and most ac
tive disseminating propaganda TO discredt the com
missions tentative valuation grossly excessive. will
liam H. Johnston, president of the International Asso-
citation of Machinists, took few minutes from other
duties day and made valuation of 900
president Markham OF the Illinois Central showed that
Mr.. Johnstons valuation dehed the ordinary rules OF
and that II 1t had conformed to those rules
II would have been s4.640 600 bigger Glenn e.
Plumb then rushed the and offered for con-
sderation valuation OF ss,4O0OoO00O and another
Of s1O1OO, 600 600 Meantime anonymous eminent
contributed the Firemen's Magazine a
valuation OF $4,000 These labor leaders diff
fered among the extent of s44oO 100000
Most astonishing. has been the attitude of
such men Lafollette and Clifford Thorne.
who were among the most earnest advocates Of the
-aluaon legislation passed 1918. They both advo
ated having valuation made by the Interstate Com
nerce Commission and both Indignantly repudiate
he Commissions findings.
Mr. Thorne inconsistencies are glaring OF
IL They cannot ignored because he has been coun-
Ell of the American Farm Bureau Federation, and his
Jews are widely circulated among the farmers. Soon
fter the commissions tentative valuation was made he
OF the American Farm Federation to adopt a
esouton setting forth that It ve billion dollars
DO large This apparently based upon computa-
which he had ascertalned tnat the
railway securities measured by their market prices in
$40 was less than 100000. In the recent rate
earngs put the stand before the G
interstate Commerce Commission to present an est- 81
mate that based the valuations OF individual rail-
ways already made public the total valuation OF all the
railways should not exceed sixteen billion dollars.
Mr. Thorne seems to have forgotten or TO think other
people have forgotten, that began making valuations
Of railways years ago over eight wears AGO IN
public address he the OF computation re-
gardng the value Of the railways which he had based
the market prices OF securities as indicated
estimate OF the valuation railways then was ex
acy s13.s69.1733Ss The capital which has been l.
invested the railways since 1913 exceeds four and
one-haf billion dollars. Therefore II Mr.. Thornes es-
innate of the OF the railways right in 1913
their present must be eighteen billion
Eve hundred million dollars than one-thrd OF
billion than the valuation placed upon them
by the Interstate Commerce Commission. We shall
only passing that the fall OF 1913
ket prices railway securities the lowest that
they had been some years :
The most notable fact regarding these ready-to-wear
'aluations which have been made by various persons
previously recognized experts" upon the subject
that they differ from that the Interstate Com
lerce Commission but that they differ so much among
Z. 400 100000, Sc per bigger than that OF VIII
am H. Johnston, although both are based upon the .
lluations individual railways already made public
the commission. 1t hardly be expected that the
terstate Commerce Commission will be much inau- II
iced by them