430 



THE GHOUKDSWELL. 



Lake Shore & 

 Mich. South- 

 era Hallway. 



Mich. Central 

 Railway. 



Chicago, Bur 



lington & 



Quincy Rail 



way. 



Chicago &amp;lt;fe 



North-west 



Railway. 



1868 

 1869 - 

 1870 

 1871 - 

 1872 



cts. 



CtS. 



cts. 



&quot; 



3 T^TY CtS. 



3 



2 



In flat contradiction of popular statements is the fact that 

 the cost of transportation has steadily decreased, notwithr 

 standing the &quot; watering &quot; of stock. Thus, in 1863, the New 

 York Central Eailroad carried 312,000,000 tons at a cost of 

 2 .J^L. C ents per ton per mile, and the Erie 404,000,000 tons 

 at 2 T f Tr . In 1872 the earnings for transporting 1,020,000,- 

 000 tons over the Central, were I -f^ per ton per mile, and on 

 the Erie 1 ^V for 950,000,000 tons. Meantime, the stock 

 and certificates of the former road had, in the same period, 

 increased from $23,631,000 to $89,428,000, while the &quot;stock, 

 bonds, and debt &quot; of the latter had increased from $40,000, 

 000 to $118,000,000. These figures, which are absolutely 

 correct and can not lie, conclusively annihilate one of the 

 most pretentious and favorite accusations of the anti-railroad 

 agitator. It follows, therefore, that the adjustment of rates 

 is seriously affected by two conditions : 1. Economy in orig 

 inal outlay. 2. Economy in current expenditures. 



The people are responsible for the magnitude of these 

 items. It is a notorious fact that exorbitant prices are ex 

 torted for right of way. As soon as it becomes known that 

 a railway is to be run through a certain district, several 

 times the antecedent value of the selected land is demanded, 

 and generally awarded by commissioners ; and if any addi 

 tional legislation is required, the companies have to pay for 

 it. Our Legislatures are not exceptions. Some years ago 

 it was estimated that Parliamentary contests and concessions 



