JULY 2,"1903.
THE NEBRASKA INDEPENDENT
15
PUBLIC OWNERSHIP
Being th gecond of Mr. Saedlker'i Letter
to the Keaaei Clt World Trans
, porUUen t Cost
About a year ago Chairman Knapp
of the Interstate commerce commis
sion told us that discriminating
charges on our steam railways had
f been one or the m..in causes m ouna
ing up certairr trusts; had bank
rupted thousands of our citizens and
built up the fortunes of a few men.
That such power to discriminate was
the power to build up cities here and
destroy t-em there, all at the whim
and caprfce of some railway manager.
The only means of adjustment, said
Mr. Knapp, "is government owner
ship and operation."
Every business mau, every farmer
and stockman in fact, every man who
must need ride on rteam railways, and
those who wouk" like to ride if they
had a pass, are more or less inter
ested in the rate3 charged for use of
our steam highways.
It is not the purpose of this paper
to go into details, more than to show,
in round numbers, that it does not cost
much to carry 6ne person a mile or
a ton of freight a mile, when a train
of freight or passenger train i3 head
ed "tor port. Some railway systems
move a ton of freight for -three and
one-half mills per mile; other sys
tems charge three times as much, for
the same service. A select few ride
on passes, some pay i quarter of a
cent per mile, thj many pay six times
what the service is worth. So as a
matter of fact, nearly all of us are in
terested in cheaper, transportation of
person and property.
In trying to demonstrate tiat a 10
cent charge is all the service is worth,
to get on a passenger train and ride
to the next station or end of the di
vision, let that hi 100 or 200 or more
miles, no . more figures will be used
than is necessary to show the aver
age man the present immense profits
in the monopoly of sieam railways,
owned by a few of our private citizens.
From the last report of the inter
state commerce commission we find
for last year that the
Total earnings and in
come from all sources. $1,768,272,488
Less operating expenses. 1,030,397,270
" Total gross income. . .$ 738,875.216
In operating expenses, $220,410,298
were expended in maintenance of way
and structures, bett-rments; $184,
358,454 in the maintenance of equip
ment; $544,098,802 in conducting trans
portation and $81,520,716 in , meeting
general .expenses.
As the earnings and incomes were
from 195,561 miles of railway the av
erage income per eac mile of line
was $8,042 and operating expenses
t". 9ftQ ri. 5 nnr nont if all inenmo
While net income per mile of line was
$2,773, or 41.7 per cent.
Assuming that money can be ob
tained at 4 per cent and the net in
' ccme being $3,773 per mile of lipe,
each mile is or can be capitalized in
round numbers for $95,000 per mile.
Or the 195,561 miles of railway have
a 4 per cent earning powr on a capi
talization of $18,500,000,000.
Now every mile of these railways
can be duplicated for less than $19,
000 per mile of line. So that under
public ownership and operation, in
stead of a net income tf $3,773 per
mile, freight rat3 and passenger fare
could be reduced to one-third of the
present rate and pay 4 per cent on
actual cost of the physical plant, thus
saving to the people as a whole over
SFKft flflft firtrt armuanv as inrrome Oil
steam railway franchises. This item
alone will show that the few men
who control our stem railways have
a taxing power on trade and com
merce equal to if n-t greater than the
general government
In the year 1901 the number of pas-
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Hall's Family Pills are the best
sengers reported as carried was 607,
278,121. Some of' these passengers
rode from Boston or New. York. to
San Francisco or Los Angeles; more
did not go farther than Kansas City,
and a greater number stopped at Chi
cago. But the vast majority got off
at the next station. - For the long rides
and the short ones, .":.dfcd together
and divided by the number of persons,
we find the average ride to be about
2S.5 miles. So if thera should be a
charge of only 10 cents to ride to the
next station" or end of division, let
that be 100 or 200 or more miles, the
charge would really be on an average
ride . of ' twenty-eight and one-half
miles. But if our longest ride per
this estimate be 200 miles Instead of
from Portland, Me., to Portland, Orel,
as per the first estimate, the average
ride might not be over , twenty miles'.
Let that be as it may, a few miles
more or less on an average ride cuts
little figure, whe:i the train is going.
A large majority of our people had
to pay 3-eent fare per mile; many
only a quarter to half a cent per mile,
others 1 and 2 cents per mile to use
a public highway that should be
equally free to use at same cost to ev
ery citizen without any discrimina
tion of any kind. But the average
fare paid was 2.013 cents per mile, or
57.5 cents per journey of 28.5 miles.
The number of passengers per train
was 42, though, there was room for
200 or 240, so the average ' passenger
fare per train for 28.5 miles equaled
$24.16. This amount as shown above
is at least one-third more than is
necessary to pay cost of actual ser
vice. So if we can cover $16 per the
28.5 miles at 10 oents per journey or
trip we will have made a start in the
right direction.
Now that . depends on how many
more people would ride if fares were
within their- reach. On an average
there was room on the trains to haje
carried 200 or 240 instead of the 42
passengers. So if it were possible to
lead every train to it3 full capacity
there would be no trouble for that
would make grcss receipts $35 to $40
per car for every 200 miles. If four
times as many people took passenger
service there would be plenty of
funds to pay all cost and more, too.
Eut if only three times as many
ride on railways, there might be a
little shortage, which could be made
up by a general tax on the increased
monopoly values that would naturally
arise if the government owned and
operated the' steam railways.
For, what the present owners of
steam -railways would cease to take
as monopolies of franchise values,
these values would ultimately accruw
to other monopolies of natural oppor
tunities. So a tax on these values
would not be a burden on labor or
capital. But 10-cent fares would not
produce a shortage. Let the ride be
to next station, t 200, or end of di
vision. If three times as many peo
ple as now ride rode on same train,
there would be $3 per car per 28
mile journey. As the passengers
would change on an average seven
times in that mileage, there would be
a gross income of $21 per passenger
car. Four passenger cars .per train
would equal $84. If the mail service
continued to pay the same mileage ..s
now it would add $25 more for the 200
miles. Reduce express charges one
half and the erpress car would add
another $25 for the 200 miles. One
baggage car would add $21 more. So
here we have $155 gross income for
arawing seven- cars 200 miles. Is
there a competent civil engineer who
will say the $t55 will not cover all
cost of whatsoever kind, except divi
dends on $76,000 per mile of monopoly
values?
Let us look at this cost of service
on steam railways from another point
of view. Forty years ago it cost 43
cents to carry a bushel of wheat from
Chicago to New York all rail. From
invention and a higher utilization of
natural forces the cost. has been re
duced to less than 10 cmts per bushel,
or a reduction of 80 per cent, arid yet
Uere is big more;- in the freighting of
wheat from Chicago to New York.
Sixty years ago the railway compa
nies charged the government 91-2
cents per mile for mail cars. If like
reduction were followed in mail car
ser icr as in the freighting of wheat,
two or three cents per mile would be
thi charge today. Instead of lowering
the rates, as warranted by invention,
the railway companies have raised
the charges one-third (to 12.75 cents
per mile), as warranted by monopoly.
Here we see that the cost of furnish
ing, operating and maintaining cf
good passenger cars at 10 cent? per
mile nould lose no money and is all
the service is worth. With cars well
loaded it will not cost 2 mills per
mile to carry a passenger.
Suppose a passenger train leaver
Knn?as City tonight for Chicago with
the average of 42 passengers per
train. That will be the average num
ber all the way through. Of course
they will charge about fifteen times,
getting on and off at every station.
Suppose, by accident, one more than
the 42 passengers rode on the same
train to Chicago and no one connected
with the train service knew of it,
how much extra- would it really cost
the company to "carry this unknown
passenger i Ean ing accident, not 5
cents. ;:
There is room now for five or six
times as many people to ride on steam
railways as do ride. Whytnot let t hem
rue? Suppose I had a monopoly of
the ttrtets of your cities, and by pav
ing them, could d.arge the public tot
their use. Fi.ppose the charge was all
the traffic would bear, and only one
fifth of the citizens could afford to
use them. Every citizen would like to
use the streets more or less, but the
monopoly charges prohibits them.
True, there is room for five or six
time3 as many people on the streets.
Reducing charges to actual cost so ev
ery ouc c ould use the streets 'would
not necoscitate more streets. It would
simply make it possible for all men to
ust them on equal terms.
Why, then, should steam railways be
monopolized any more than paved
streets in our cities? Either one in
terferes with trade and commerce, and
is against the advancement of civili
zation. Freight reductions should
follow in like manner under govern
ment ownership and operation. There
should be a uniform charge of $5 to
move a car to next station or $10 to
end of division 100 or 200 miles. The
average car of freight is hauled 135
miles. Such reduction would lessen
the distance between the farmer and
the eastern markets one-half; and
bring the manufacturer of the east and
consumers of the west closer together.
More than that, it would put all men
on the same equal footing as regards
the equal use c! our public highways.
The above is not given out as an
acurate estimate, by any means but
it is not far out of line. It should
arouse thought and discussion "at any
rate. The object aimed at is a great
one it means more for humanity than
many of us have dreamed of. '
Some ten years 'ago, I think it was
Mr. Huntington of the Southern Pa
cific, who wrote in the North Ameri
can Review that railway service would
never be complete until- under one
management: ' The question is :
Should our great transportation sys
tem be controlled by the governmenc
like : the postal department, or by
seme Morgan or Rockefeller? A dan
gerous power would thus be plaoed in
the hands of one man. The power to
make or break individuals, cities and
towns. Mr. Huntington showed that
great economy would " come of ona
management. Many high salaried offi
cers and pets dropped from the pay
roll. No shortage of cars. ' Today,
when the north needs large numbers
of cars to move crops, thousands of
cars are idle on southern switches.
When the south must move her crop3
and cars cannot be had, northern side
tracks are full of empties. Under one
management, a person or car of freight
would go the shortest route, not the
longest as at present. Thus we see
there is nothing to be lost and much
to be gained under government owner
ship and operation of steam railways.
. Naturally there will be two classes
who will oppose government owner
ship. The strongest of these are the
tc neficiaries of the present system as
owners and large users of passes and
discriminating freight fates. The oth
er class are more numerous and on
account of their environments, their
continuous struggle for an existence,
they have not been out of the city
for years unless they walked, or have
not been outside the country for two
decades unless they rode out in a farm
wagon. The argument of this class
will be; "Oh, It's too cheap." The oth
ersmore interested will say, "It
can't be done."
If private parties had always oper
ated the United States mail service and
today were charging 10 cents to car
ry a letter from Fort Fairfield, Mo., to
Portland, Ore., and someone would
suggest that under public operation
the same service could be furnished fo
1 cent who would oppose such public
operation?
The strongest opposition would nat
uially come from the ones controlling
the monopoly of the mail service and
the few persons who had their letters
carried free; yet a great protest would
come from the many who never wrots
any letters or received a newspaper;
for to their minds the service would
be too cheap. Ignorant opposition 13
the hardest to overcome, let the line
of advancement be what it may.
Many cities in Europe own and op
erate their gas, electric light and wa
ter plantsand street car service. Un
der public ownership the people gat
better service at greatly reduced rates.
As cheap transportation Is beneficial
to people living in cities, so would
cheap steam railway transportation
be to people in both country and cit
ies; Make the world a better place t
live in.
If the object aimed at In this paper
worth attainment, . let the readers
of. The World discuss the question
from all points of view.
"Never yet was will but found somo
way or means to work it out. Nor
fc'er did fortune frown on , him who
dared." - , -R. T. fEDIKER.
Kansas City, Kas.
WHO FOR VICE PRESIDENT?
The Republican Managers Considering
Roosevelt Sure of Renomination
Are Engaged In
SPECULATING ON RUNNING HATE
Who Will Please the President and
the People and Strengthen
the Party.
Although it is a year p,t least before
the conventions can determine the
matter, politicians of bcth -parties are
actively laying their wires for tho
presidential campaign of 19,04. , Tho
democratic situation is chaotic at pres
ent and no ' one can safely attempt a
forecast of the coming contest from
the democratic point of view. Theo
dore Roosevelt will be the republican
nominee for president if he lives till
the date of the convention. His part
ner on the republican ticket is an un
settled problem. Names of good men
all over the union are canvassed. Ne
braska is honored in the discussion
for friends are suggesting a
WESTERNER FOR VICE PRESI
DENT. The managers think a western as
sociate essential to 'the success of the
ticket With perhaps ' a whole year
to think about the matter it is prob
ably a waste of time to guess at the
result of thea convention on vice pres
ident In the meanwhile healthy vot
ers, loyal to their party and loyal to
the imperial west cannot afford to
overlook " anything which tends to
make the west strop;:' r commercially
as well as politically. Therefore it is
entirely natural and proper that tho
wonderful career of .
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