Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936 | View Entire Issue (June 3, 1898)
MANAGING EAILROADS INTERESTING DISCUSSION OF \ A BIG SUBJECT. lion. M. E. Ingalls , President of the -Tile Four Itullroacl , Presents Some Important Fuels That Will Interest All. Hen. M. E. Ingalls , one of the great est authorities on railway , matters , read a highly valuable paper at the recent convention of railway commis sioners held in Washington , D. C. His wise words will be read with interest by all. The convention was called for the purpose of considering questions of great interest both to the railways and the people of the United States. Mem bers of the Association of American Jlallway Accounting Officers were also present and were invited to take part in the discussion. Chas. J. Lindley of Illinois , was chairman of the conven tion. Ohio was represented by Rail road Commissioner R. S. Kahler and Chief Clerk Ed H. Archer. P. A. Hew itt , auditor of the Big Four , was one of the railway accountants present. Mr. Ingalls' address is here given as being a semi-official expression of the views held by railway managers generally , and as being also of general interest to the public at large : "Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen : I am very much obliged for this opportunity of addressing you. I understand I have in my audience the members of the inter state commerce commission and the gen tlemen composing the various railway HON. M. D. JKGALLS. PRESIDENT OF THE "BIG FOUR. " commissions of the different states. It is a body that Is supposed to stand as an arbiter between railroads and the people , as a friend of both ; a body that ought to and does have great Influence , and espe cially in reference to legislation regardIng - Ing railroads. If this audience should agree upon any legislation in that respect that was needed , I presume there would bo no difficulty in Inducing yonder con gress to enact it into law , and believing as I do that it is essential to the public in terest to secure legislation , I am pleased to have this opportunity of presenting ray views and endeavoring to enlist you in the reforms which I think are so vital. We have reached a crisis in railway man agement when something must be done if we would avoid disaster , not alone to the railways , but to the material inter ests of our country. "For 30 years a contest has been waged In legislatures , in congress , and before the courts , by the people on one side who believed that railways were public cor porations and subject to control by the power that created them ; and , on the other hand , by officials of the railways , who did not believe that such control was legal or practicable. Slate after state asserted its right. These rights were con tested from one court to another , and decided from time to time always in favor of the people , uwder certain restrictions. It finally culminated in 1SS7 in the enact ment of the interstate commerce law , and since then there has been hardly a day when some provision of that law was not under consideration by the courts or by congress , until now we may state it Is as fairly settled by the highest courts in the land that the legislatures of the states have control over railways with reference - once to their local bi/siness , subject to certain conditions , and that the congress of the United States has the power to regulate Interstate business. The supreme court of the United States , which is the highest arbiter of these differences , has Just decided that such control of the states , or regulation , must be reasonable , and that rates cannot be reduced" below a profit where the railroads can earn their expenses and a fair return upon their cost. "Railway managers had accepted the situation , and were endeavoring to obey the interstate commerce law and adapt their management to it when , in March , 1S97 , a decision was rendered by the su preme court which produced chaos and destroyed all agreements. It was prac tically that the Sherman anti-trust law , so-called , which it had not been supposed "applied to railways , did apply to them , and under the construction of that law by the court it was practically impossible to make any agreements or arangements for the maintenance of tariffs. In the case brought against the Joint Traffic association In New York , this view has been combated by the railways and it may be modified by the courts. "It is well , perhaps , that we should look the-situation fairly In the face , and while I do not care to be an alarmist , I leel bound to describe plainly to you the condition today , so that you may under stand the necessity for action. Never in the history of railways have tariffs been so little respected as today. Private ar rangements and understandings are more plentiful than regular rates. The larger shippers , the irresponsible shippers , are obtaining advantages which must sooner or later prove the ruin of the smaller and more conservative traders , and in the end will break up many of the commer cial houses In this country and ruin the railways. A madness seems to have seized upon some railway managers , and a large portion of the freights of the country Is being carried at prices far be low cost. Other than the maintenance of tariffs the condition of the railv/a'ys is good ; their "physlcal condition has been Improved ; their trains are well managed , and the public is well served. If a way- can be found by which tariffs can bo maintained and the practice of secret re bates and private contracts discontinued , the future will have great promise for railway investors , railway employes and the public generally. And here I wish to say that this is not a question which concerns railway investors alone. If It was , you might say , 'let them fight It out. ' It concerns over and above every one else , the great public. One-fifth of our people are interested directly in railways , cither as employes or employes of manufactories that are engaged In fur nishing supplies to the railways. Can uny body politic prosper if one-fifth of its number Is engaged in a business that i losing money ? The railways serve the nubile In so many ways that their pros perity is closely Interwoven with the prosperity and comfort of the ordinary people. Ono thousand millions of dollars wcro paid out last year by the rallwayH from their earnings to employes of man ufactories In this country ; 611.000,000 of passengers were carried ; 13.000 millions were carried one mile ; 765,000,000 of tons of freight were moved ; 95,000 millions of tons jvcro moved one mile. Do you think that any interest performing such Immense service as this . .can bo in dllllculty and the balance of 'the country not feel It ? Forty millions of dollars were paid out for publio taxes. Over three thousand millions of dollars that have bocu invest ed in railways have earned no dividend for years. This is not 'water" , as aomo populist orator will say , but good , honest money. These securities are held all through the laud , and their failure to pay any return has brought disgrace up on us abroad and sufVerizig and want in many a family and community at homo. "One of the chief ilimculties with tho' law as It stands today Is that the pun ishment for private contracts anil rebates is entirely out of proportion to the offense. The Imprisonment clause was put In as an amendment to the Interstate com merce law. and I bellevo the commission and everyone who has watched its workIngs - Ings will agree with mo that It has been a failure ; more than a failure , that It has caused perhaps more demorallration than anything else. The public has not believed in it ; It has been impossible to secure conviction ; It has prevented the vrallway ofllcial who desired to bo honest from complaining of his competitor whom ho thought was dishonest. In fact. It hao been what c\vry law Is that is not.cup- ported by puMic sentiment a failure. What , in fact , is the manner of conductIng - Ing business today ? The railway ofllcial who desires to bo honest and lav.-abiding sees tralilc leave his line and finds the freight that he was carrying hauled to the warehouse of his rival , the earnings of his line decreasing and complaints from the management of loss cf earnings , and In the distance he sees looming up the loss of his position. At the same time , the shipper who desires to obey the law sees some rival selling merchan dise to his customers at prices he cannot meet , and he knows very well that he is securing concessions from some railway to enable him to do this. The railway agent and the shipper who wish to obey the law sit down together and look It over. What relief is there for them ? They can complain of their rivals , possi bly convict them under the interstate commerce law and send them to the pen itentiary , but such action would bring down upon them the condemnation of tne public and would ruin their business ; for , as 1 stated before , the public does not be lieve in this severe feature of the law , and will not support anyone who enforces it. The result is. these men , in despair , are driven to do just what their opponents are doing they become lawbreakers themselves. I have drawn no fancy pic ture ; it is what Is occurring every day around you. "Is It wise , Is it broad statesmanship , to leave a business as largo as that of the railways ono in which one-fifth , at least , of our population is engaged , one which affects the comfort and happiness of nine-tenths of tha people is it wise to leave It outside of the law ? It is said that the most expensive occupation to the community is that of the burglar , he has to spend so much time and destroy so much to get so little. Is it worth while to force the great railway Interests of the country into the same position ? "Who opposes this legislation ? First , certain people who desire the government to own and operate the railways. Second end , others who wish that the interstate railway commission sliould make all rates. Third and lastly , certain railway managers who are opposed to any and all legislation and who object to any con trol , and believe that they should be left entirely alone. * * * * * "All of us who have any Interest in our country , who deslro its prosperity , are in terested in tne solution of this great question. It is not a time for the dema gogue to howl about corporations. It ia not a time to talk about the wrongdoing * of railway managers. There are arways some , in any business , who will not do right , and there always will be , but tha great mass of railway managers to-day , I assure you , are as honestly seeking a so lution of this question as arc you or any member of the legislative body. I be lieve I voice the belief df a very large majority of them that the two provis ions I have mentioned are necessary and will lead to the settlement of this ques tion. If this body will join and heartily indorse this course and work for it , its accomplishment can be attained. We have unwittingly In this country applied to railway laws that it was never in tended should bo applied to transporta tion companies of this nature. We have gone back and taken decisions that were wise a. hundred years ago , when civiliza tion was In its Infancy and when the masses needed certain protection , and have endeavored to apply these same principles to the great transportation In terests of modern times. The courts , un fortunately , have followed In that line. Every business man , every statesman , knows that It Is a mistake , that we have here an Immense Interest such as the world has never seen , and the principles which should govern It must be worked out In harmony with the age and the needs of this country. There should bo no friction between the interstate commerce commission and the railways ; there should be none between the state com missions and the railways. There has been too much of a feeling with these bodies that the railways were against - \\\\\\\fi \ P. A. HEWETT. them. Tn the contest with railways. In the courts , the commissioners have drift ed away somewhat from the ground they ought to stand on ; that Is , they should be the friends of the railways In stead of their enemies , and should aid in securinK the proper legislation , and the railways , in turn , should give their sup port to make such legislation effective. I believe It can be done in no better , way than by the true method I have pointed out. First , the change of the criminal section : second , authority to contract and divide business. .Either one of them would bo of great advantage , butvo ought to have both. There also should be such legislation as will give moro force to the recommendations and orders of the Interstate * commerce commission ers. Instead of trying to break down the commission the railway officials should try to build It up , should make the com mission its aid and use It as a bulwark of strength in congress and in the states to beat back the tide of populism that Is rising continually against them. SICNALI6 BYMEAIS OF KITES pliotograplis Can lie Taken of an Enemy's Works While the Kite is Suspended , Communication from war ship to warship will soon bo as easy as carryIng - Ing on a conversation between two military posts on land , and by the same electrical means , the tolophono. The English naval authorities have Just tested with great success a sug gested novelty In the way of cummuul- cation at sea which promises to ren der obsolete the present methods of signaling. Commander R. G. 0. Tapper of the Royal Navy experimented with a "kilo telephone. " The kite used was of the regulation sort , except that it was mi nus a tail. It was six foot long ami three feet wide at the broadest point. In place of the tail the kite carried two lines , one of which was retained on board the Daring , the instructional torpedo boat destroyer , from which the experiments wore conducted. With the wind between the two lines re ferred to it was found that the kite was so easily managed that it was no trick at all to drop letters or even a hawser into another ship , and in this way establish communication. 2 COL CUT Following this experiment came one with a wire. The end of the wire which the kite bore away from the ship was dropped upon the deck of II. M. S. Dauntless , where it was secured by the electrician of the ship and at tached to a telephone apparatus in waiting. The other end , which hati remained aboard the Daring , was also attached to a telephone , acd as soon as the task was completed the two ships were in perfect Communication. The kite remained suspended , secured by two lines , for more than four hours , during which the communication be tween the Daring and the Dauntless was uninterrupted. sldcrablo height than ono which may float at the top of the mainmast , or be wared from the summit of a hill. Add to these fuctH thla latent development , the kite a.s a telephone wire carrier , and the indications of a limitless fu ture uro plain. Experiments with kltca at Governor's island in New York harbor have con clusively proven that it la possible to Bond up a camera from inside the lines of ouu army the camera being at tached to a kite and take an accurate photograph of the intronchmcuts or po sition of the enemy thereby , and to 'learn In fairly accurate fashion of their number. On several occasions thiH year in Now York photographs have been taken of parades in this fashion , and" with the very best possible re sults. To suggest that this could be done fifteen months ago would have provoked derision. There Is lust as much reason for not regarding the telephonic kite flying experiment with credulity as there would have been for decrying the other. The results of the ' English experiment , even though they have just become known , have already created no little talk in United States naval circles. SmoIccleoH Fires. The Berlin correspondent of the London Times has given some partic ulars of a new Invention by one Carl Wegener , which has for its object the elimination of smoke from a furnace , accompanied by a notable saving in the consumption of coal. The success o the system depends upon feeding the furnace with powdered coal. In stead of the "well-screened" lumps which hitherto have been regarded as the most advantageous form of such TELEPHONING BY MEANS OP KITES BETWEEN SHIPS. The achievement is only evidence of what electricians of the navy , of both England and the United States , have long held to be possible. They have declared that there was no reason wny communication of this sort should not be established between ships a few hundred feet apart , if the -weather were at all pleasant. Of course , in a gale it would be impracticable. The experiment that was made by the officers of the Daring and the Dauntless had another valuable result. It showed that it is possible to ar range for a new system of signals from one ship to another that would be greatly superior to any flag system which could be conceived. If the tele phone wire can be arranged in this manner , there is no reason why tele graphic communication can not be made in a similar fashion. In this case an operator aboard the flagship could carry on a conversation with his fellow-operator aboard one of the fleet without difficulty. The admiral's or ders could be easily transmitted from time to time , and often avoid what is now considered necessary boat service. It might be thought that the flying of a kite under these circumstances would be a matter of extreme difficulty , but kite flying under the latest methods has become a science. What used to be a schoolboy's sport has now become a subject of study by professional meu , and it seems quite likely that before long even greater results will be ob- taine dthan has ever been the case at Portsmouth. As a means of signaling , the kite is firmly believed , not only by naval offi cers , but those of the army , to be fraught with great importance when the future is considered. It is. of course , very much easier for a signal to be seen that is elevated to a con- fuel. The coal dust is fed into the fire from a container in front by means of a tube which terminates in a revolv ing sieve. This sieve is kept in mo tion by the draught , and has the ef fect of scattering the fuel over the fur nace in such a way that it is at once inflamed without smoke and with very little ash. Coal of comparatively low quality can be economically used in this powdered form , and the only drawback to the process seems to be the necessity for using a separate ma chine for the grinding of the coal to powder. On the other hand , the slacker or dust which forms a necessary by product of the coal Industry will find here a field for employment which will be much appreciated by owners of mines and merchants generally. More Days to Come. In Spain the people take no note of time , not even from its loss. Every thing is to be done manana , tomorrow. A wealthy Englishman , who had long lived in Spain , had a lawsuit. He pleaded his cause in person , and know ing the customs of the country , won his case. The victory cost him three days of trouble and expense , so that when the judge congratulated him on his success , he replied : "Yes , that's all right ; but it has cost me three days , and time is money. I am a busy man , and these three days are lost forever. " "Oh , you English ! " answered the judge ; "you are always saying that time is money. How are you to get your three days back ? I will tell you. Take them out of next week ; surely there are plenty more days to come ! " The University of Calcutta is said to be the largest educational corpora tion in the world. It examines more than 10,000 student ? annually. PRIVATEERING. If Spain , In her puny wrath , permits that unbusinesslike and unjust form ol warfare known as prlratcerlns. the consensus of opinion amonR the pow ers ia that she will get altogether the worat of tbe bargain. A flrat-clasa privateering equipment Is rather an expensive affair In the first place , nad there are o many risks to bo run and such danger of capture and demolition that the chances are as about fifty to ono that the offender would be brought up with a round turn , utrlppcd of the munitions and ensigns of warfare and popped Into prison , there to rumiuute on the vicissitudes of human affulm and the changes that have taken place alnce the days when Captain KId.l made his record and when thousands of bold and adventur ous spirits irm lined ships , cracked BkullB. cut off hoadH , meanwhile lustily shouting the old song , "Full many a year , a plrato bold , I've sailed the Span ish main. " A Spanish privateer mu t tie cs- tremcly well posted In theQ dys to successfully carry out his nefarious en terprise. He will need not oaly a small arsenal at his belt , but a. certified bill of lading to give him Information as to the articles he seka , and wheth er they are American or belonging to some ether tribe or nation. Of the enormous amount of foreign goods brought to this country but a mere trifle comes In American bottoms. For example : "In January , out of c. total value of imports of $50.525.721 , American bottoms carried only ? S.711.- 593 , and out of exports valued at $106- 753,521 , only S3.lo5.j-H in value vrere taken out under the American flag. The figures for February tell the same story , for out of a total importation of ? 53.13.73C , American ehips brought only § 0.270.058. and of exportatioas of $93,217,202 , only $4,442.327 as under our flag. Of the exports in February carried in American bottoms only 51.- 029.06G were to Europe and Asia , and the imports so carried from those con tinents were valued at $1.339.154. The European and Asiatic countries -with whom the largest trade was carried on under the American flag are France , the United Kingdom. China acd Brit ish East Indies and Japan. " Our waters are full of foreign craft that find it to their advantage to bring in all sorts of wares to cur shores and take back such articles as their trade demands. The trade with Cuba has been something enormous. Of course , this is largely cut off. In 1S92. Cuban imports and exports were valued at nearly SIOO.000,000. In 1S26 , the trade had dropped off about one-half ; the present year's business shows a still further reduction. This Cuban trade was largely dons with American vessels. Of course everything Amer ican being now barred , recourse must be had to foreign handling for what ever we may receive from Cuba during the continuance of the war. The best authorities are of the opin ion that if Spain undertakes to sift out goods intended for the American trade , from the great bulk of commer cial products , she will find that she has a greater job than she bargained for. Domestic trade , that is , the coast trade , she cannot possibly Interfere with. In the event of any attempt to do so , all articles can be jnit upon the railways. In January. 1S9S. merchan dise actually handled by railroad cars and land vehicles amounted to nearly $6,000,000. The transportation by wa ter was something over $5.000.- OCO. The shipments were made by land to Mexico and by way of the Canadian Pacific railroad. It would bo the work of a very short time in case privateering became annoying to transfer to foreign ship ping whatever goods Americans de sired to handle. It is , therefore , easy to see that Spain is reckoning with out her host , and in the event of her be coming particularly Insistent or saucy and Interfering with foreign vessels , she would be quite likely to receive a. rebuke that would , to say the least , : onvey a lasting impression. \Vlreless In the attempt to turn "wireless tcl- 2graphy"to practical account and make it a commercial successor. "W..T. Clarke af New York has produced an ap paratus for sending and receiving tel egraphic signals without wires , which is to be placed upon the market. Where "or any reason it is desired not to use Morse slfnals. a special receiver is provided , which is0 furnished either with a violating bell , or with an in- ? andescent lamp , the latter enabling he person who receives the message : o read it visually. Inasmuch ns Mar- j : oni's experiments have shown that i .elegraphle signals can already be sent | : on miles , or more , without wires , it s hoped that the new system will have 1 rapid development. Facti About Vncelnntlon. A pamphlet entiled "Facts About Smallpox and Vaccination" has been ssued by the council of the British VIedlcal association , giving statistics is to the efficacy of vaccination and showing what the diminution of mor ality has been since the time of .Ton er. Facts are quoted from the statls- ics also of other countries , as. for In- ; tance , of Prussia , where rigidly en- orced and systematic vaccination has tactically stamped out smallpox , the nortallty being seven per 1,000.000 , whereas in the adjoir.ing country of Austria , where vaccination is not com- ' inlsory , it is over 450. j about aa it . , _ - - ' oarit to * You'd city. Jlsniay ay brother. Taehr Do year Mo ther bare a dirty f&c * ofteser tiata do ? Jimmy Well , mother y * don't bollore fee's Trashed M * since b got SL Troth. A V ta t * DicUoBArx. Daily Inter Ocoan. CbScap : promise rsade i y U pe bii > .been fully r4 * sed. It ! , Ia4 * * < . * ! cntad book. . . . Tkst ti c is & 1 drift conservative yet r I XWB < tfc ; simpler forms of sp 81as ! * 'reeognizfcd inrougboiit tk * * & . . obtain tae * dard DeUo try iy makiag a nmall pa yawn y maindsr is JaKOdl e ti. "Tbero Is aothla * and nourishing.Hr. . to hU wife , t * b6 looks * 0wr ki nwraiag pPr borrow * * mm * tin ? price of irhi. ta eaod tort tread. S < * tb t hereafter. * rU ! you ? " one. Ao oa th * sabjecu of ic 3it catSooc for patents pr par 4 by an eeetyifae ea * * arator tiut be BdiUl and o * < t a n hamd lamp - - large to supply a moltlpHrttr * bar * era and located whr < rrer dMtrd T . usual gaa bolder leStMcopicaDy eo neeted trltb a wi r taai : aad and rsire geariag v * and the Cote of wster & d m&rically regulated by pressure and ga pre * tr * . Harge of Prairie City is UM An apparatus for phenomena of tbccder aad mounted on a portable pbuIonB f crates and store * stalk electricity an artificial clor d snpes.4 d the platform ia sseb jt when a nslaainr * betldiec on tbe platform risible rears Trill leap frcra tb # make splinters fly from the as sharp reports ia thunder shoe * u e ears of er. W. Bodd and A. D. Scrathcra Des Molnes. inveators. Val be ! ialoraatioa abcvt oMai" in ? , valalas and sellias ; jnmtt 9K.1 free to any address. THOMAS G. A J. RALPH O3W1G Solicitor * of Paten > lo-ara Patent Office. Des Mofaiaa. lo Mar 11 1 S. Globetrole : "Did yea a personc.liT rnnd'icted Meeke : "Often. " Globetrotl * : did TOG hae for " Mr. ' " \ = M * V - * * r Tertc Weekly. Tor rxr totwcro h&bit mre. sake * a strong. * 9 > . L If silence is TO ! . ? J all dwT ar 1 dumb persons ought to b * million aires. What You Get When You Buy Medicine is a Matter - tor of Great Importance. Do you cet that whcli bs tbe jx w - r > eradicate from your blcxnl all pofcooo taints and thus remove tb * Ra $ o * d- - ease ? Do you buy HOOD'S S&rs pni : * and only Hoe < Ts ? I ! you doxm awr take it with the utmost eoadctoac * tbt will do you rood. X a > raiN r Hood's Sarsaparilla Is AnuTica's Greatest M sctnc. ! < i. vx fcv ? % . Hood's Pills our * iaviest.oB. . 2 : "Aftrr I xvn Induced tn IrjO.SCV IF.TS , 1 rrlU neverN > wltttoni tl\om In thv K > t > . 'I U.Tcr ? ? 2 l.n n r < > rT * h * - w r * < > > cheit ami I htul nomnoh tivmNo. Now nvv - lilt Cascarols. I fcisl flin . My wlfv hs nK * WnNj horn with Nmcdetftl reswlU fr tour Momach " Jos. KUKULIXU. ivai Ooiisrw Su , jju U ul , XU\ CANDY CATHARTIC 1 v Pleasant. TalaUiblo. rount. loou. Never Sicken. VVcakcmcr rtjViKVCJ ? ; . . . CURE CONSTIPATION. iO-TO-BAO