Imperial Valley press., 1941-06-12


which would empower the Presi-
dent to seize property is one piece
Of legislation the American rail-
roads don't intend TO be caught
under this time. thank you.
Old timers in the railroad buSi-
ess still shudder when they re-
member the last war and the days
OF government operation. They
want no part of any such federal
control for this emergency and
they have taken steps to see that
they don't get it. Consequently, you
can take with a grain OF salt those
rumors that the railroads had been
caught unprepared and were hav-
ing TO rush through orders for more
freight cars to take care of in-l
creased defense transportation
loads.
A lot of things have happened
to the railroad picture since the
roads were caught with their
tracks down in 1917. when freight
piled up at the Atlantic ports,
when 5000 carloads of materials
tor Hog Island shipyards could
lot be unloaded, when cars were
used for storage. when trains were
tied up in traffic snarls because of
wild ordering, unscheduled de-
livery, complete lack of organi-
cation or coordination. That was
the mess that Railroad Admins
traitor William G. McAdoo tried to
unScramble.
FOLLOW THE RULE
Today under j. j. Pelley as
president, the Association of Amer
ioan Railroads has as its Rule No.
/ for all shippers and receivers,
Don't load cars until you know
they can be unloaded" Strict ad-
herence to that simple rule has
done more to keep the railroad
situation untangled than all the
government regulation that could
be devised, and it has left the
railroads in a sound position to
handle any peak loads that can be
showed on them now.
To show how the rule has work.
ed, take q typical case of the con-
struction of the big powder plant
at Ravenna, Q. The area is served
by four railroads. Before construc-
ton began, traffic men went to the
contractor, got his schedule of ma
terialS and time wanted for de-
livery. Then, by enforcing the rule
OF don't-load- -till-you-can- unload,
1t was possible to make sure that
roofing didn't arrive before the
structural steel and have to stand
around on sidings in boxcars.
That same principle has been
used in handling all the materials
being shipped to Britain under the
lease-lend bill. Goods are simply
not shipped to the seaboard until
there is boat in port ready to
receive its cargo.
One of the first acts in the pre-
sent emergency was for the rail-
roads TO put manager OF military
transportation in the office of the
QuartermaSter general in Washing
ton. 1t was his job to keep informed
on all Army and Navy contracts,
supply problems and troop move
ments. Working through the car
service division of the Association
Of American Railroads. it was the
function of this office to anticipate
railroad problems and see that the
equipment was available to do the
hauling job at the time required.
The next problem was to antici-
pate what the probable rail loads
might be, right through 1912. The
railroads asked the government for
its estimates, and the slide rule
boys in the statistical section of
what is now Office of Production
Management got busy. BY neat
calculation based on what they ex-
pected the national income to be,
this year and next, and the re-
lation of that income to the ma
tional income and the freight haul
ed in 1926 and 1929, the years that
the railroads broke all records,
they came up with the calculation
that freight car loadings for this
year would be 76 per cent of the
1868 peak average, and 1912
loadings about 81 per cent.
The peak job for the railroads
will therefore come in october,
1912, when they estimate some $780,
600 cars will be loaded, with the
total for next year at AZ, 2,493, 900 cars.
The record for 1929 was 100000
cars.
STRIKE THREAT AHEAD
Equipment now being better,
with freight train efficiency and
performance twice as good as it
was in 1920 as to speed of trains
freight per car and per train, the
railroads think they can do the
job ahead
Railroads won't, of course, be
without their headaches. Staring at
them are threats of priorities con-
trol, restriction OF shipping facili-
ties TO manufacturers not complying
.--.. .nxTDTUC ENTENT