Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-01-09

WASHINGTON, Jan. e;-Leglsia-
! ton that will bring about the con-
| solidation of the great railroad sys-
| TENS of the United States into still
more compact units than even the
| greatest which now exist was one OF
the principal suggestions made by
| the President in his annual message
| TO congress. The Presidents sugges-
ton is regarded by railroad experts
| as a wise one and nearly everyone
| in the country, apparently, wants 10
see the thing done but the dih1culty
is to determine just how the eonsol-
idations shall be brought ABOUT.
Students of McGuffey's F1tth
Reader and similar textbooks or that
| period will recall q sentimental poem
| which was much in request at n
! time when the rustic of bead por-
| there's was heard in the land and n
suburban architecture. 1t was cali
ed (Which Shall 1t Be"
The poem told the story of a poor
couple with a large family and OF
how difficult it was to feed so many
A rich relative expressed willingness
TO take one of the youngsters and
rear him. At first the poor parents
we're delighted. Then came the time
to decide, Which Shall 1t Beg The
touching id-Victorians sentiment
of the poem brought out very clearly
hat the parents could not bring
themselves to part with a single
child and turned down the offer,
struggling along with their poverty
as best they could.
Very much the same thing has
happened in respect to American
railroad systems.
HFnn f1.a oCnnrfqtinn acf or 19ZU
provided that the railroad systems
of the United States could consoll-
late into some twenty great merg-
ers. The Interstate Commerce Com
| mission was given authority to su-
| pervise the consultations in a gem
eral way. Professor William u. Rip
ley, an eminent doctor of Harvard
| University, was retained by the com
mission to draw up a plan for the
consolidation. He produced an in
genious plan, grouping the lines into
a score of well balanced systems.
| Everything looked favorable to these
consultations which it was predict
ed would reduce operating expenses
and give the public better service.
With the plan ready and with the
| permission given by congress in the
transportation act, the plan has not
yet been consummated because the
| rdilTOdCS CdnlQL dSISS dLllOIS tilSlli-
selves on how they shall be merged.
The railroads of the country have,
in one sense, composed M great
transportation family. They have
been hard up and pressed for ar ex-
! Fedient to better their condition.
Row comes this proposal which, in
effect, would break up the big fam
lily and send different parts into sep
arate groups. The big railroad
family is in the same position as the
family in the story; it cannot decide
what to do and, 81 far, has failed to
do anything
More Practical than Sentimental
The sort of separations from
which the parents in the ballad re-
coiled would be met in the carrying
out of the Ripley plan. The parallel
is not quite so tenderly sentimental
as the poem because there seems
more of a tendency to fight than to
weep over the proposed separations.
An excellent example Is furnished
by the proposed grouping of the rail-
roads running north and west out of
Chicago. The Ripley plan would
take the Great Northern railroad
and the Northern Pacific railroad
and put them in n big system. 1t
also would take the Chicago. Burl-
| ln&tOn d quincy ana the chicago
Milwaukee 81 st. Paul and put them
In one big system. Out of four OF
the biggest systems in the country
two big systems would be made by
consultations. Some short line sub
salaries would be thrown in with
each merge
The Great Northern and the
Northern Pacific have come before
the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion and protested bitterly against
this arrangement. They declare thai
they are eager to consolidate blu
they want to consolidate into a sys'
tenn which also includes the Chicago
Burlington & Quincy. Through
lengthy statements by witnesses an(
lawyers and printed briefs they have
shown that the Great Northern ant
the Northern Pacific jointly own the
Burlington. For many years they
have been building up joint rateI
and through routes designed to give
shippers the best possible service
by practically joining the facilities o
the three systems. For the commits
sion to work along the line OF tn
Ripley consolidation which would
take away the Burlington and join
TO the Chicago. Milwaukee e st
Paul. would destroy the work o
years. it is asserted. In conclusion