San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-10-14
RAILROAD CONSOLIDATION
IN UNITED STATES is NOT
PRACTICABLE, SAYS SPLAWN
Texas Railroad Commissioner Takes Issue With
Senator Cummns-Says Chairman of Senate l.
c. c. Committee Has Not Made Out Case.
Great Britain Example Not Convincing.

! Tn the tight little island of England
we find all short roads as compared
with our long trunk lines. Let us no.
tice the total mileage Of these English
groups:
1. The Southern has 2114 miles
of main line. .. The Great West
ern has total of 1865 miles of main
| line. 3. The London, Midland x Scot
fish railway has total OF about
1900 miles. 4. The London & North
eastern railway has G3S5 miles. The
total mileage of railroads in England,
Scotland and Wales is only about 20
600 miles, less than one-twelfth the
mileage in the United States. In fact
Great Britain has only about 3OOO
miles more of railroad than we have
in Texas, and these 10000 miles are
confined to an area about one-thiri
the size of Texas; that is, about 2O0
miles wide and about 600 miles long
We have enough mileage in the United
States to make about 30 systems the
size of those in England. We have
several companies with more than TO-
600 miles, or much greater than Great
Britain's biggest consolidated system.
CONSOLIDATION seems to have gone
further in this country already. than
in England.
Surely no one would argue that the
situations are similar. In the United
States the average capitalization of a
railroad is about $4,000 per mile, in
Great Britain four times as much or
about S2S0.OO0 per mile. Freight rates
in England are twice as high per ton
mile as in this country. Their average
=. hal
tons compared with ~ tons. Our
transportation act provides that the
nominal capital of consolidated sys-
TEN shall not be greater than the
value of the property Of the corpora
tons entering into the combine. In
England there was no such limitation
and consolidation resulted in increas-
ing the amount of stocks and bonds
outsta nding per mile of road. Our law
provides for valuation of the rail-
road properties to guide the Interstate
Commerce Commission. In England
there was no such valuation.
Their Example Proves Nothing.
Moreover there are in our country
As state legislatures and a federal
congress. The acts of each Of these are
subject to review by courts. In Eng.
land, small country about the size
of an average American state. there
Is one Parliament. That Parliament
is supreme. No court can declare it,
acts unconstitutional. 1T can set up a
commission TO consolidate the rail-
roads. and the courts will enforce the
DEGREES of that commission. Here every
act of such commission is subject
| s,,I, AZ a1 Ia favxf Of
| great differences should one think
| that because little more than 10000
miles of railroads are grouped into
four. systems. in England. that it is
| therefore practicable to group over a
quarter of million miles belonging
to giant companies, some of them con.
trolling more milage than in all Eng
land, and spread over a continentf
Citing English experience proves moth
ing so far as the United States Is
concerned.
The other proof offered by Senator
Cummins that consolidation is prac-
ticablc consists of references TO the
fact that Professor Ripley and John
II. Oldham of Boston have both Of
fered plans for such consolidation.
4 Certainly one would not be expected
to take Mr.. Oldham's proposals as APP
proximating solution of the battling
problems of actual consolidation
Nearly a page is given by Senator
Cummins in describing the Oldham
plan. To state the plan is not TO
demonstrate its acceptability. In fact
that plan while interesting has been
taken seriously by very few.
Merely TO remind us that Professor
Ripley is great man and that he
drew up a plan of their consolidation,
: again. does not demonstrate the prac-
ticability Of consolidation. In fact
, those who have followed the Inter.
state Commerce Commissions hear
ings on this matter are aware of how
I badly the Ripley proposals have Jared.
The fact that so able a man as he
. could come no nearer TO making a
: satisfactory plan, instead of PROVING
! rather tends TO disprove the practic-
! ability of consolidation. These refer.
enccs of Senator Cummins TO the ex-
: perience of Great Britain and to the
, labors of Oldham and Ripley wholly
: fail to establish that consolidation in
= this country is practicable.
1 -e%4
: Eczema on Feet.
One man says he had It over twenty
/, | .L oil