The Raymer enterprise., 1923-06-07

conference wound up Its Chicago ses.
sion with threats to invoke court
action to compel the interstate COM
merce commission to find the Original
cost" Of the railroads and the public
donations" to them.
Presidents Of six big rail systems
stirred by the doings Of the LaFol-
iette conference. issued statement
charging that the radicals do not aim
at fair regulation Of the railways but
seek to cripple private management
and thus to make government owner
ship inevitable.
"The railways cannot furnish the
public adequate and satisfactory serv-
Ice" says the statement, "unless they
can constantly raise large amounts Of
new capital with which to Increase
the capacity Of their equipment and
other facilities. They cannot raise
the new capital required for these
purposes unless they cnn earn a net
return sufficient to pay reasonable In
terest and dividends upon the existing
investment In railroad properties and
upon additional investment that must
be made.
THE net return the railroads are
now allowed to earn Is based upon the
tentative valuation made by the inter.
state commerce commission. The net
return they will be allowed to earn In
future will be based upon the. final
valuation made by the commission.
The proponents Of government owner
ship are seeking to get low valua-
tion and a consequent drastic reduc-
tion Of the net return allowed, for the
plain purpose of making It impossible
for the railways under private man
agement to raise new capital, enlarge
the capacity Of the properties. and
satisfactorily handle the country's
business"
NIHILE Governor Smith of New
w York was trying to make up his
mind whether or not to sign the act
repeating the states prohibition en-
forcement law, Prohibition Commits.
sioner Haynes and his aids were busy
preparing a lot Of recommendation
for state legislation to be submitted
to the conference Of governors in
Washington called by President Hard
Ing. Here are some Of those recon-
mendatlons:
Making the buyer Of bootleg liquor
equally guilty with the seller.
A paddock provision shutting tight
all cabarets and other places where
liquor is sold or consumed.
Drastic penalties for forging liquor
permits or labels.
Summary removal Of state or local
prohibition officials found derelict.
Making 1t a felony to possess or
traffic In apparatus for making home
brew.
Forbidding sale or advertisement Of
materials for dlstilllng liquors or
brewing beer.
Substituting penitentlary sentences
for fines In convictions Of fragrant law
violators.
II President Harding had his way
It's mighty big "lr'-the District Of
Columbia would be drier than the
Sahara this week during the Shrine
convention. He wrote personally ask
ing the district commissioners to en-.
force the prohibition law strictly and
they promised to do 90. There was
no noticeable panic In the ranks Of the
Mobiles.
G OMETHING like half a million
y miners and metal workers In the
Ruhr, who were engaged in hunger
strike that was fomented by the Com
munists for the forwarding Of their
own plans. returned to their work
toward the end Of last week because
the government rnIsed their pay SO
per cent. The Reds were disappointed
and admitted their main weapon had
been taken out Of their hands. The
rioting which the Communists had
kept going pretty steadily came to an
end when detachmenrs Of police from
the Rhlneland appeared. The various
municipalities, disregardlng the orders
Of the Berlin government, strengthened
their police forces In accordance with
the regulations drafted by the French
military authorities there two months
ago.
!. Chancellor Cuno and his advisers
are preparing a new repaations offer
and already have found guarantees to
the extent Of s275,00OOO0 annually.
Through the semi-ofiiclal newspaper,
the Temps, the French government has
let them know what to offer II they
expect acceptance by France. The
tips given Berlin are: The German
government 10 advised not to mention