The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1923-03-09
Heaps of Sickness All Over The Country We Coul
VOLUME XII.


As<oADAl4NA A4NAA AexS4 44htJ
HUNDREDS of cards bearing the mes
sage DAY by Day in Every Way Mel
lette County Needs a Railroad" to-
gether with statement of crop stat
istics and other information regarding
incoming and outgoing freight, have
been sent to the officials of the Chi
cago & Northwestern Railroad at Chi
cago during the past month, and now
the scnders of these cards are getting
replies from the president of the
Northwestern, of which the following
is copy:
Chicago, III.
February 26, 1923.
Dear Sir
Receipt is acknowledged of your
card stating the quantity of commodi-
ties you produce and receive, and urg-
ing the construction of an extension
of the Chicago and Northwestern Rail-
way into your territory. The follow
ing arc few of the reasons why such
line has not been built:
1t costs us six per cent or more for
our money. In 1920 this company
made nothing. In 1927 it made about
four per cent. The Interstate Com
mcrce Commission has fixed five and
three-quarters per cent as a maximum
railroads would be entitled to make,
but they have not, in fact, been per-
mitted to earn that amount at any
time within the past fifteen years.
Do YOU borrow money when you know
you cannot make your interest pay
ments?
The Northwestern has over twelve
hundred miles in the state of South
Dakota. Your Tax Commission
assesses this property at $4,000, 600.
Your Railroad Commission has insist
ed that it is not worth more than
$25, 100000 for rate making purposes.
The returns this company has received
from it's operations in South Dakota
would not sustain valuation of $2O,-
100000 on anything like reasonable
rate Of return.
Your governor, in his message to
the legislature on January Z, 1923,
makes most outrageous statements
about the excessive capitalization of
the railroads, and the large amount of
stock issued without consideration.
Not one word of his statement is
true Of the c. G. n. W., which, aside
from the c. M. & st. p, is the only
railroad in South Dakota having ex
tensive mileage. He accuses us of
criminal negligence. He insists that
there must be an immediate downward
revision of freight rates. notwith-
standing the fact that today freight
transportation is the cheapest thing
to be had in comparison with pre-war
conditions.
/ enclose for your information an
article showing what is threatened in
congress. If that is kept up there
will never be any more railroads
built and the ones we have will not
last long.
To have additional mileage built in
South Dakota, or elsewhere people
must first regain their senses and
realize that railroads, like anything
else, must have fair proportion OF
the profits and that no one will be
induced to invest additional money
in railroads with the present condi-
tons surrounding them and the atti-
tude of the public towards them. con-
tinue.
IF YOU want railroad l would ad-
wise that you use your influence In
restoring common sense in the minds
of public officials and representatives
SO that Il will again be safe for in
vestors to put their money into rail
roads.
Yours very truly,
w. II. Finley, President