Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 January 1917 — FAR IN THE LEAD [ARTICLE]

FAR IN THE LEAD

UNITED STATES RAILROADS SUPERIOR TO ALL. . ■ s’" ■ •' ' - Official Statistics Reveal Facts Which Should Be Matter of Gratification • to Americans—lnteresting to j Note Scales of Wages. The comparative rai l road statistics of the United States and foreign countries issued by the bureau of railroad economics cover some 38 countries or states, having a total tailroad mileage of 591.000 miles. The most cursory study of these statistics reveals certain striking economic facts which cannot fail to interest any American reader, remarks the Scientific American.

Perhaps the most interesting point revealed by these tables is that, despite high wages paid in the United States, we are carrying freight nt a Tower rate than any other country, except'lndia. The a> erage rate per mile in this country Is 0.729 cents, which is not much more than 60 per cent of the average rate for similar service in leading countries of Europe. In India the rate is 0.7 cents, but in that country the wage, which ordinarily is the highest item in the expense list, is so low as to be almost negligible. Brazil has the highest rate, 7.04 cents per mile. The rate for France is 1.18 per fhile, and in Germany If is 1.24 per mile.

"Tile average receipts per passenger per mile in the' United States, 2.008 cents, is higher than that of any other country except Brazil and Cuba. In Austria the average receipt is 1.079 cents, in France 1.068 and in Germany 0.908 cent. The density of traffic in the United States is 143,067 passenger miles per mile of line. In Germany the density is 693,317 passenger miles per mile of line, while Belgium has a density of 1,046,614. A line upon the important question of accommodations can be had by a study of the tables showing the average number of passengers per train. In the United States it is 55, in France 70, in Germany 84, In Japan 108. and In India 182. Having these figures in mind, it is not surprising to find that the passenger revenue per mile of line on our railroads, which is $2,871, is exceeded in 16 other countries, the passenger revenue in Germany being $6,292, in Holland $6,373, in Belgium $7,347 and Great Britain $9,684. The low rate at which our railroads are able to carry freight is due chiefly to the large capacity of the individual freight cars, the great power of the individual locomotive and the consequent length and carrying power of the trains. We haul more freight per car, per train and per mile than the railroads of any other countries. Thus, the average capacity of the freight car in the United States three years ago was 38 tons, as compared with 14.3 in Austria, 14.1 in France and 15.9 tons in Germany. As was to be expected, it is in the new world only that we find cars approaching in capacity those of the United States, the Mexican cars carrying 35.4 tons and those of Canada 32.1 tons. The load of freight carried per train In the United States is far greater than in any other country, the average In 1913 being 435.4 tons. In Canada it was 342 tons, in Germany it was 239 tons and in France 147 tons. Our railroads hauled the greatest amount of traffic per mile of line, the amount in 1913 being 1,245,158 ton miles per mile of line. In Germany it was 1,119,983 tons and' in Russia 1,033,254 tons. But the freight revenue per mile of lige in this country was only $9,048, which must be compared with $13,950 in Germany. We find, as was to be expected, a great difference in the average wage paid in this country and in Europe, the average wage of our railroad employees being nearly double that paid in the leading European countries. In the United States the average compensation is $756.83. in Germany it is $408.97, in Holland $341.52 and in Russia $211.40. The earnings per mile of line in the United States are low compared with those of other countries. In 1913 the average revenues per mile of line in the United States were $12,859. In Germany and Great Britain they were about twice as great, those for the latter country being $28,645per mile of linp. The aveTfige capital' p?r mile of line is for the United States $65.861, for Germany $120,049. for France $150,439 and for Great Britain $274.027.