The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-06-23
MY Countrymen: Stopping as I
N am, en- route across the con-

i" am, en- route across the con-
tinent to make an official
visit of inquiry to the vast terri
tory of Alaska, / stand before you
to offer greetings, and bring, If
possible, the Federal Government
a little closer to you and the peo-
pie of the United States closer
to their Government.
l confess it has been something
of problem to select subjects
for localities, and take cognizance
of the territorial interest in the
spoken word, and at the same
time keep in mind that the
printed speech, in the days IF
modern publicity, is available to
all America. 1 do not mean that
there are any circumstances
under which the President would
say a thing in Kansas City that
he could notsAsay in New York,
New Orleans, "or San Francisco,
because our varied national in
terests are mutual in their analy-
sis.
It is a curious trait of human
nature that we acclaimed rail-
roads in the building and then
turned to hamper them in the
operation. We gave from our
purses to contribute to needed
building funds, we donated vast
areas for right of way, we wit
messed financial exploitation with
little protest, but we omitted the
precautions which would have
avoided many present-day diff
culties.
Our own country, although It
possesses something like 40 per
cent of the worlds railroad mile
age, is confronted with all Of
these difficulties. In much of
our territory we need more rail-
road facilities, and somehow will
have to supply them in the near
future. 1t is stated on high
authority that the indirect losses
in industry and commerce due
to insufficient transportation run
into figures equal to the burdens
of Federal taxation.
On the other hand there are
some railroads in this country the
building of which would better
born out of misguided enthusiasm,
or unjustifiable speculation, on
the mere purpose of levying a
sort of transportation blackmail
upon systems already in the field.
Events of the last few years
have made us all realize that
the railroads must be admins
tered under some policy that will
make it possible to find the
capital wherewith to expand the
existing systems asCbusiness shall
require, without imposing an inn
possible burden upon industry
and consumption.
Urges Consolidation.
When the Government under
took operation during the war,
and standardized wages. and was
caught in the sweeping current
of mounting cost, it created a
situation to ignore which would
quickly develop a national men,
ace. At an awful cost we
learned the extravaganza and
mounting burden of Govern
ment operation. Yet there are
today very insistent advocates of
Government ownership. Frank
ly, 1 do not share their views.
Our political system has not
reached a state of development
when we can insure proper ad-
ministration.
It is easy to understand how
many people contemplate the
abolition of competitive carrying
charges, and the elaborate ma
chinery of Government regula-
ton, and argue that the logical
step is to put them all in one
common pool under Government
ownership. That would effect
an adjustment between the fat
and the lean, If 1t didn't make
them all lean. 1t would equalize
profits and losses between favored
lines and the less fortunate ones,
it would abolish profits and
saddle all the losses on the
Public Treasury. More, it would
completely disarrange the economic
relationship between our different
communities, upon which our
present-day commerce is builded.
The transportation act of 1920,
known as the Cummins-E sch law,
contemplated this kind of
consolidation, but made it permits
stve rather than mandatory. In
effect, it left to the railroad
arrangements, subject to the
master plan set up by the In
terstate Commerce Commission, to
arrange the system groupings of
the roads.
Plan Constitutional.
There now appears to be no
difficulty about any constitutional
inhibition to the voluntary con-
solidation as authorized by Con-
gress. But the problem of re-
conciling the interests of the
hundreds oG different ownerships
and arrangements of lines to be
merged into systems has proven
a task for which no solution
has been found.
Though no other nation in the
world offers a parallel in railway
development, those of us who he.
lieve that this program of
regional consolidation would pro-
duce highly beneficial effects find
our belief sustained by recent
experience in Great Britain. The
railroads of that country have in
the last few years passed through
an experience which, consider
ing the vast differences between
the two countries as to area.
geographic CONFORMATION, indus
trial and social organization, has
more or less paralleled that of
American railroads. The United