Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-19
RAIL LINES WARNED
TO WIDEN SERVICE
Must Enter Bus and Other
Competing Channels, Says
Alfred P. Thorn.

Railroads must enter the new avenues
of transportation which competing
agencies have set up If they are to
prosper, Alfred P. Thorn, general coun-
sci of the American Railway AS
ISOLATION and Association of Railway
Executives. last night told the Washing
ton Transportation Club at a dinner
marking its twenty-fifth anniversary, at
the Raleigh Hotel.
With this he coupled a warning that
powerful influences are at work to keep
the railroads from such a course, land
criticized the monopoly Of regulation"
to which, he said, the rail lines are sub
jected.
Mr.. Thom's speech, in which he out
lined the present difficulties of the car
riers and their causes, and outlined his
views as to the policies they must pur-
sue, climaxed the dinner, which brought
together members of the club, repre-
Senting various transportation inter-
ests and their guests from official and
civil life to the number of approx
mately 200.
Cites New Competition.
Buses, inland waterways and the
coaStto-coaSt movement of traffic
through the Panama Canal have cut
the business of the countrys railroads
to the POINT where a crisis has been
reached Mr.. Thorn declared, citing fig
IreS to prove his contention.
1t is certain, he added, that the new
forms of transportation have come to
stay, and consequently, it behooveS the
railroads to extend the scope OF their
operations.
Il believe" he said, that the future
of the railroads requires that they be-
come transportation companies in all
respects rather than purely railroads"
One of the causes of the trouble in
which the railroads find themselves. he
said, was IAN immense overproduction
of transportation facilities" built up
in anticipation of handling the bulk OF
the traffic of the country before these
new agencies appeared.
Cut-throat Methods Hit.
Another he laid to "cut-throat COM
petition" between the railroads them
selves.
Consolidation would do much to cor
rect the latter situation, the speaker
added, citing as an example of CEN
tralized management the American
Telegraph & Telephone Co.
Summing up, Mr.: Thorn asserted that
the railroads will be no party in
strangling competition by unfair regu-
lation but ask only that the terms of
competition be fair"
With a free competitive field then
and a policy of useful cooperation"
between the carriers themselves, Thorn
told his auditors that the interests Of
the public will be protected, adequate
transportation furnished and the rail-
roads themselves can prosper.
First Dinner Recalled.
Philip P. Campbell, former Represent
alive from Kansas and a charter
member of the club, who was the only
speaker beside Mr.. Thorn, dwelt in
humorous vein on incidents of the first
dinner of the club 25 years ago, and
lauded the stage of development which
the railroads have reached.
every dinner of the organization, as
has Odell Smith, who acted as master
of ceremonies last night, brought out,
by questioning his audience, that of
those who gathered at the Raleigh a
quarter of a century ago, those two,
with A. j. Poston, William G. johnson
and w. w. Bowie, were the only ones
present last night.
AS an interesting feature of the
dinner, H. B. Stevens, engineer OF the
WESTINGHOUSE Electric & Manufacturing
Co., demonstrated two vacuum tube de-
vices which performed mechanical func-
lions with what Appropriated human
intelligence.
A so-caIled photo tube" of extreme
sensibility to light operated counter
to tally the persons entering the dining
hall, sorted out unlabeled yeast cakes
from those carrying label and operated
a smoke detector which automatically
released carbon dioxide from cylin-
der and put out fire.
A grid glow tube" of so high SEN
sitivity that it acts instantly as any
one approaches it was used in several
experiments, including the operation OF
a siren. One of the uses to which this
may be put, it was explained, Is as
burglar alarm.
q. p. Official Present.
M j. Boylan, president of the club,
presided at the dinner and in a brief
Introductory talk urged the desirability
of expanding. The Keystone Quartet Of
the Pennsylvania Railroad gave several
numbers
The guests at the dinner included
Representative Addison T. Smith of
Idaho Commissioner E. I. Lewis of the
Interstate Commerce Commission, James
L. Baity, assistant to the controller gen.
eral; Dickerson N. Hoover, supervising
inspector general of the United States
Steamboat Inspection Service: Commits
sioner Herbert B. Crosby of the Dis
trict, and George S. Pitt, president Of
the Board of Trade.
Among the rail officials there was
D. S. Spencer of Salt Lake City, who is
general passenger agent of the Union
Pacific System, and in point of service
the Oldest employe of the u P, with
he l1o Z