Evening star., 1923-12-29
ROADS SEE SHARP /.
1924 TRAFFIC DROP
Ashton Tells Statistical Con-
vention to Expect '''''
Changes.

Although the volume of freight trap
nc during the eleven elapsed months
or 1928 exceeded that of any other
period, in the history of American
railroads by 4,2S1, 900 cars, the Ma
tion's carriers expects a sharp de-
cline in business conditions through
out the country in 1924, r.. H. Ashton
president of the American Railway
Association, told the American
Statistical Association today
and stability during the present
year, Mr.. Ashton told his audience,
which was assembled in the annual
convention at the Willard Hotel, that
the outlook for the coming year,
is very different from that of 1923
Comparatively few labor troubles. the
lack of political upheavals and SINH
lar causes contributed to the pros
perity of the past eleven months, fac
tors which are not to be seen on the
horizon for 1924, the speaker assert
ed.
Unable to Predict Volume.
IT am not In a position to predict
the volume Of freight traffic the rail
roads expect to haul next year." Mr..
Ashton continued. Last year, how
ever, our experts did make predic
tion, based on the percentage of busi-
ness loaded in the first quarter. and
they came within 5000 cars of being
right. When the new year has ad-
vonced sufficiently to give us basis
for calculations, we shall try again.
But even at the present time we are
without the promising indications for
business conditions we found early in
the present year"
BY way of illustrating the tremen-
dous excess traffic over American rail-
way lines during the eleven months
of this year. Mr.. Ashton said that 1t
had been figured, allowing forty feet
to each car, that IL the cars were put
in a single string they would reach
world back to New York again. and
still have enough left to reach again
to the suburbs of Bombay, India.
Paper on Traffic Variations.
DR.. David Friday. director of the
research council of the National
Transportation Institute. read a
paper on Variations in Railway
attention to the fact that traffic had
been trebled in many places in the
last few years although the popu-
lations of those localities had in
creased only 40 per cent.
DR.. Friday said history showed
SO high that only a comparatively
few very high grade commodities
could be shipped over the carriers.
With the gradual reduction of rates,
however. less costly commodities be-
gan to find their way into the traf-
fc until at present person can
forecast with a certainty that in the
very near future the freight of
American railroads will consist solely
of lower grades of supplies.
"The high-grade commodities" the
speaker asserted, will be using air
planes, motor trucks or some other
means OF conveyance which will con-
siderably lessen the time they are in
transport, 1 believe, too. there will
undoubtedly be considerable reloca-
tion of industries in the next fifteen
years, and the next administration of
deal with the beginning of tb-S move
ment"
Stabilixing EmploymenI.
The American Association for Labor
Legislation, meeting at the same time
in the Willard, devoted its morning
session to a discussion. ef Stabiiizing
employment. The speakers included
Drury of the Institute of Economics,
Fred c. Butler, manager of the Cleve-
land Garment Manufacturers Associa-
ton, and Earl Dean Howard Of Hart
Schaffner & Marx Company.
The American Farm Economic AS
sociation continued its meeting in the
New Ebbitt Hotel. The speakers In
cluded Prof. ]. 1. Falconer of Ohio
State University, De Witt c.. Wing.
managing editor of the Breeders
Gazette, Prof. B. H. Hfbbard of the
University of Wisconsin, Prof. H. G.
NJ. Case of the University of Illinois
and W. j. Spillman of the bureau OF
agricultural economics of the De-
partment of Agriculture.