The Washington times., 1924-02-14
RAIL EQUIPMENT
INDUSTRY. 4"
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Have Sufficient Orders to
Keep Industry Moving for
Several Months.
By w. S. COUSINS,
(Copyright. 1924, by Cosrnopollti
Navua Sarvira

News Service.)
NEW YORK, Feb. 14.-Railroad
equipment builders who had ban,
ner year in 1923, have carried over
into 1924 sufficient orders to keep
that industry. for the greater part
Of the first quarter Of the year.
Last year was one of the best
we ever had" Leigh Best. senior
vice president of the American Lo-
conIotive Company said today.
sour forthcoming annual report for
the fiscal year ending with Decem-
ber will disclose the, result of a
profitable year. On February we
had orders. on. our books In the
aggregate. of $15,O00.000, some Of
the business being carried over from
last year, but all indicative of q
healthy situation in the equipment
industry for the present, at least" /"
Afr. Best continued.
Buy New Equipment.
The equipment business, Mr.. Best
pointed out, follows rather than
precedes, important developments in
other linee of industry. "The raiE
road companies can and will buy
new cars and engines only when
they need them for the movement
Of large volumes of freight, and
when their engines are sufficient
to enable them to pay for. them,"
he said. Therefore, equipment
companies must wait until the pros
perityh Of the railroads is definitely
established, and that Is one Of the
greatest problems OF the present
tiWe: ,..., a,>...n 4..ay q> ..ss
Much depends -epn, the action of
Congress and the attitude of the i'm.
portant members of't the National
Legislature towards : the railroad
systems. If Congress demands re-
duced freight rates=afd radica1 ac-
ton with respect 20 the tFAnspofta-
ton laws now on thesstatute books,
unsettled business conditions will
doubtlessly be the result, and some
Of the important. na&l0nal industries
will suffer a setbacIn:st fs believed
that under the transportation act
the railroad compahies will grad
ually work out their problems, pro-
vided business conditions remain
| stable, and 1t Is therefore to be
hoped that no changes will be made
in that law in the present session
Of Congress" -
Foreign Trade Dull.
Foreign shipments Of locomotives
and other railroad equipment have
been insignificant in the last two
years, Mr.. Best said, and therefore
continuance Of unsettled conditions
in Europe for the greater part Of
this year need cause no depression
in the equipment industry. On the
other hand a sudden revival Of buy
ing power over there, translated into
real orders, would be a welcome ad-
dition to the forward business of the
equipment companies in 1924.
In the first month Of 1924, orders
were placed with the principal
equipment companies for 131 en-
gines, 10000 freight cars and 102
passenger cars, against 20 engines,
15,004 freight cars and 102 pasSen-
ger cars in December. Freight car
business pending is placed, at more
than 10000 cars. Car companies
appear to be maintaining a some
what higher rate Of operation than
the builders Of locomotives, due to
the fact that many Of them ex-
perienced difficulty last year in
making deliveries and consequently
had a bigger carry.over, and, to
the comparatively larger buying Of
cars in the last two months.
One equipment manufacturer said
today that he was neither. optilris.
tic or pessimistic with respect to
the outlook for 1924. He Is willing
TO- await developments, in the con.
fidence that this year, while not
as profitable as 1928, VIII compare
favorably with the average of the
whole postwar period. r. ~. -"