The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-08-06
NO BASIS FOR ANTAGoNIsM


 a specific and beneficial function to perform, and railroads partake of that benefit in a degree greater than any other single institution. Instead of obstructing the development of the barge lines the railroads should lend them cordial cooperation in every reasonable manner. Where there is an unfriendly railroad policy there is almost prima facie evidence of lack of administrative vision. The rail roads occupy an impregnable position in the field of transportation. They cannot be busted from that position. On the contrary, they are yearly be- coming more securely intrenched by reason of the indispensable nature of their service.
 The time is at hand, however, for the development of subsidiary and complementary transportation media, such as motor truck and barge lines, to care respectively for short hauls and bulky merchandise. The demands upon the capacity of railroads are daily growing greater, and some day they will perceive that they can, with profit to themselves, surrender certain classes of their business to the oNler media in order to confine themselves more and more to the more profitable classes of freight. Of course, this does not mean that the railroads will ever be permitted arbitrarily to choose some classes and reject others, but that by a more or less automatic pro cess the divisions will be made to the mutual satisfaction of all types of carriers. Therefore, the railroads will show wisdom in cooperating fully and sincerely in the development of barge lines, doing Sheir part to facili tate interchanges of tonnage and de- manding no more than fair share of the receipts from joint hauls.
 No less an authority than Sir Henry Worth Thornton, K. B. E., president of the Canadian National Railways, declares: "No railroad should worry about waterway unless the road does not care for future prosperity, as the waterway will be the greatest means of progress for railways, more than any other single development of any kind" This is strong language from a high source. Sir Henry is one of the staunchest advocates of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence waterway project, which will parallel his lines with barge service for hundreds of miles. Per haps American railway heads will some day approach his degree of advance ment and progressiveness.
 This idea is more fully developed in an editorial in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Tidewater Associations bull letin of July 28, as follows: "Sur- prise Is sometimes expressed when railway managers are quoted in favor of the Lakes-to-Ocean project. There was once type of railway executive among when the belief prevailed that there was only so much traffic in the world and they must not let any get away. That type is becoming extinct. There is more traffic than any one agency can handle and as fast as ap- propriate facilities are provided the volume of traffic increases. The rail way will make money when it has the largest possible volume of business that belongs to it, and when the busi- ness that can better be handled by other agencies is transferred to them. The modern railway manager knows that"
 In similar vein the Chicago Journal Barge and tug traffic is the most economical way to handle certain classes of freight; coal, for example. These water highways will not displace the railroads. They can not. Ours is continental land in which rail traffic will always lead. The waterways will handle bulky low-class freight, and will save the cost and delay of trans shipment. The railroads themselves will be the gathers"
 All this is of local application in Alabama with respect to the railroads and the Warrior. At present certain railroads, notably the Southern, are pursuing a shortsighted policy of throttling which is reacting most un- favorably upon the rail carrier. This throttling is particularly manifest in the reluctance to agree to fair divis- ion of rates for joint hauls, such as will grant to the barge lines a return greater than the cost of transporta- ton. The railroads will eventually be compelled to yield. It is a pity that they do not capitalize this eventual necessity and win public favor by an exhibition of broadmindednes which has heretofore not been too painfully conspicuous.