Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1923-06-23
Scores Managers Refusal
To Obey Rail Board Orders
Does Not Hope for Compliance on Part
of Employees as Long as Officials
Ignore Its Decision.

The full text of President Harding's
speech in Kansas City, Mo, on the
transportation problem follows:
My Countrymen: stopping as l am, |
en- route across the continent, to !
make an official visit of inquiry to |
the vast territory of Alaska, / stand |
before you 10 offer greetings, and |
bring, if possible the federal gov
eminent little closer to you and the !
people of the United States closer to
their government l confess 1t has !
been something of a problem to select
subjects for localities, and take't
cognizance of the territorial interest
in the spoken word and at the same
time keep in mind that the printed ]
speech, in the days of modern pub
licity, is available to all America. I
do not mean that there are any Cit,
cumstances under which the I'resf-.|
dent would say thing in Kansas
City that he could not say in New
York, New Orleans or San Francisco
because our varied national interests
are wholly mutual in their last 1
analysis Il
Profit Through Understanding.
Ours is a common country, with.
common purpose and common prIdetti
and common confidence. | am think
ing rather of the enlarged audiences,
with the marvels OF the radio. l WAS
speaking to you last night in ST.
Louis, precisely as l am speaking to
Denver, Chicago and elsewhere to-
night. We have come into very close
communication in the United Sta tes,'
and we shall infinitely profit II 1t
brings us into closer and fuller I'M
Outstanding. l know of nothing
which will so promote our tranquil
ct AT
throughout the world as simple and
revealing and appealing. understands
Ing. -
Production is the very: 1ifeblood of
material existence, and commerce is
it's vitalizing force. Put AN end to
commerce and there Will be no cities,
and farm life will revert to. the mere
struggle for subsistence. Aud there
can be no commerce without trans
portation. In all the. exchanges
which make for commercial life,
transportation is as essential as pro-
0uctlOn.
Tide of Transportation.
Not long ago, while discussing the
distressing slump in agricultural
prices which threatened the very ex-
istence of farm industry, a caller
drew from his pocket an old ONO
publication, a weekly newspaper OF
the early forties. of the last century,
and turned to the quotations on live
stock, dairy and farm products. Wheat
was 40 cents a bushel, pork cents
the pound butter cents the pound,
potatoes s cents the, bushel. Not
many automobiles in returns like
those. But that was before the age
of motor cars, that was In the nat
boat era, when a cargo of farm PROD
ucts had to be f1oated: down the
Scioto and Ohio rivers ESQ miles TO
market. The prices were reheX OF
the crudity of transportation. ana
manufactured products were CORE
spondingly high to the consumer, De.
cause there was the. same crudlty or
transportation in distribution. Inc
stage coach, the wagon train ana the
f1atboat were speed wonders of that
day and the canal boat was the last
word in luxury on many waters. The
great Missouri valley vas then IN
revealed and only awakening trans
portation was the revealing agency. |
In the infinite bounty of the creator
the measureless riches OF the ,"eslA
were bestowed, but they avalleo NJ !
tie until the whistle of the steam
locomotive proclaimed it's westward !
march with the star of empire.
Aided, Then Turned to Hamper.
1t is a curious trait of human ma
ture that we acclaimed railroads IN i
the building and then turned ~: /
souri, and Kansas were doubtless IKE
ohio We gave from our purses 70
contribute to needed building Iunus'
we donated vast areas for rignt,o OIL
way, we witnessed financial explo1.
tation with little protest, because or
our eagerness to acquire, ana ac-
claimed the acquisition. Marvellous
development attended, but we omit,
ted the precautions which would
have avoided many present-day dif-At
ficulties.
Everybody knows how necessary
TRANSPORTATION is in this modern
world of specialized industries and
extensive exchanges s soo,i sve cry
as now organized, is dependent on
the maintenance of adequate trans
portation media. A good many
people, indeed, have latterly come to +
wonder. If it might not be possible
even that we have committed our
welfare and prosperity too largely
to the assumption that it would all
transportation that the community
Nigh desire, at costs which would
not be prohibitive. That. we. have
even staked our very r existence on
ton. There Is new. and 1 think
tncrea sing. school of thought on this
subject. It's adherents are begin
run. it would not be better to at 7
tempt making local communities
more nearly, self-dependent by d.
tion and thus reducing the amount
of transportation and exchange of
products over long distances But
such a course would be reversion
&.
community willingly would accept
back to the farm Self-contained,
back to the restricted I community,
with it's candle burning beneath the
half-bushel measure. I
Heavy Costs. After War -:
OF one thing we"may .be :reason-I
ably assured, and that is that since
railroads first began to be built in
the world there never was q time
when many people. in so many
communities, were frankly and intel
ligently questioning the future as
regards its instrumentalities of
transport. They are asking very
frankly and pointedly how they can
along with other agencies. with. the
transportation they will require. I
doubt If there is a country in the
world in. which railroads have
come to be a considerable trans
some sort of railroad crisis on
it's hands right now. There are some J.
countries which merely need more t
railroads and are willing to pay L
as we would have done a genera
ton or two generations ago. There
are others which have more rail- T
roads than current traffic and in
ststent demand for lower rates
makes profitable. so that they have
burden on either industry or the
public treasury. There are still 9TH
ers which have excellent railroad I
systems but have found, in the in
creased cost of capital and operation
which, came with the world war up +
tation is threatening to become tool
heavy for the producing industries,j