The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1943-05-06
6. N. 5 Net
Income Is
Largest Ever
Railroad Has Best Year
In HistOry-Handles
Huge Volume War Traffic.
ROADS PERFORM GREAT
SERVICE TO NATION

Railroads are anticipating further
increases in traffic before the peak
of wartime requirements for trans
portation is reached, f. J. Gavin,
president of the Great Northern,
advised stockholders in the COM
pany's annual report, which has
just been released.
The railroads immediate prob
lem, he said, is that of replacing
equipment that is wearing out and
of obtaining necessary materials,
supplies and manpoWer This prob
lem, he warned, is continually be-
coming more critical.
During the past year." Mr.. Ga
vim said, "the railroad industry has
COMPOUNDED its critics and demon
strated an ability to handle an abb
normally large volume Of war traf-
fic with the same dependability as
in times of peace.
ut is noteworthy that the rail
road industry, depending wholly up
ON its own resources, rigidly reg
ulated and heavily taxed, has dis
charged its obligation SO success
fully to a nation at war;
The railroads, he said, had been
able to handle the increased traf-
fic incident to the war while meet
ing civilian requirements for freight
and passenger transportation, and
in addition had taken over the traf-
fic which formerly moved by inter-
coastal steamships
The Great Northern's freight traf-
=
than in 1929, and was handled with
800 fewer locomotives and 5,O0O
fewer freight cars Mr.. Gavin at
tributed large measure OF the
credit for this achievement to the
cooperation of shippers, the armed
forces and the Office Of Defense
Transportation.
"The railroads capacity has been
increased by expediting repairs,
undermining equipment, adopting
numerous conservation measures, by
the fine cooperation of employees
generally, and the extraordinary eff
forts of many of them
Despite advancing costs of mate
rails and supplies, higher wages and
taxes, the railroads net income,
9,O54O2l, was the largest in its
history, and Mr.. Gavin pointed out
that this has helped the Great
Northern partially to recover from
the set-backs suffered during the
depression years.
The Great Northern, during 1912,
reduced its net funded indebted
ness nearly $20,000,000, and spent
$l4.275.O0O for additions and I'M
provements. Mr.. Gavin, however,
stressed the fact that it had not
been possible to secure all OF The
equipment and materials needed.
Power requirements, he SAID,
were especially needed to continue
to meet the unprecedented demand
for wartime transportation. The
railroad has had thirteen 5,4O0-
horsepower road freight Diesel To-
comotives on order, some for two
years.
Rate reductions granted the gov
eminent for transportation of
troops and freight, which were
made for the most part to equallze
land grant rates of competitive rail-
roads, amounted to approximately
s4.500OOO in 1912 The railroads
taxes totaled $3O,727 $40, which was
equivalent to about 1872 cents out
of each dollar of revenue earned.
The Great Northern's operating
revenues in 1912 totaled $l65, 206,
031, of which $143,264,055 was de-
rived from freight and S9,l82,732
from passenger traffic. The reve-
nue. per average ton mile in 1912
was B.57 mills which was the low
est for any year since 1917 with
the exception of 1856 mills in l94l.
Dividents totaling $500 per share
were paid Great Northern stock
holders in 1912.