1839] 



F A R M E R S ' R E (J I S T li R , 



453 



32,000 francs per mile of road annually. Thai hy 

 the increase <it" population and commerce, also this 

 income of 32, 000 franc--^ will be increased, is evi- 

 dent; the rail-roails in Beliriiini serve therefore as 

 a proof, that lon<r lines of rail-roads maj' (some 

 exiraordinary circmnstances exceptedj be execu- 

 lT?d wiih e(jual sncceris as short ones. 



It would be quite erroneous in calcnlatins: the 

 revenue of a system oi' rail-roads-, canals, or turn- 

 pike roads, to reifard the income on the principal 

 line separately, and so the revenue of each of the 

 branch lines, in order to judge of the value of each 

 ol them. Uy the openiuif ol' a branch line, the 

 income of tlie main line must become greater ; 

 because the paseenijers and freiirht from the 

 branch lines will pass over the same and increase j 

 the revenue. The accurate way of culculalinj; a I 

 whole S3slem of rad-roads, canals or turnpike! 

 roads, nuist therelbre be to compare the total in- j 

 C07ne oftlip main line as irellas of the branch lines, 

 with the total length of all the lines, iu order to 

 find the average income per mile ; and in deductincf 

 therefrom the ex[)enses, the balance will show, 

 when compared with the cost of construction per 

 mile, what interest enures lor the capital invested. 



XI. Budget for the operations of the Belgian 

 rail-roads in the year 1839. 



We havese<m that the annual gross income will 

 amount to 32.000 francs per mile, therefore (l.)r the 

 159 miles, which are in operation, to 5,088,000 

 francs. After delraying all the expenses li-om 100 

 Irancs gioss receipts there remain 34 francs 41 cen- 

 times, the net income will, therelore, be 1,650, 780 

 francs, instead of which the minister in his budget 

 anticipates the amomit at 1,700,000, to which he 

 is led by a dilierent calculation. This surplus is 

 exactly 5 percent, oi" the capital expended of34,- 

 000,000 francs. 'J'hese 5 per cent, suffice for in- 

 terest and siid<ing land, and therelbre the Belgian 

 rail-roads Julfil their object, to maintain themselves 

 without being a charge to the stale treasury. 



XH. Increase of income from the mail and turn- 

 pikes. 



As an objection against rail-roads it was further 

 maintained, that (heir introduction in a country will 

 lessen considerably the leceipls of tolls on turnpike 

 roads and of the mail, because there will be less 

 travel on turnpike roads, and lelters will be carried 

 by persons who travel on rail-roads ; the same 

 opinion appears to have existed in Belgium. On 

 the 27th of January 1838, the minister, Mr. No- 

 thomb, declared in the senate, that the revenue of 

 the mail in 1837, exceeded that of 1836 by 2U2,373 

 francs, and the tolls on turnpike roids by 110,000 

 francs, for the reason that although the tolls on 

 those roads which go in a parallel direction with 

 lail-roads are lessened, yet they are increased in a 

 greater proportion on those turnpike roads which 

 lead to the rail-roads, as they are passed over b3'all 

 who come to travel on the latter. The revenue 

 from the mail increased in consequence of the 

 greater intercourse occasioned by the introduction 

 of rail-roads. 



Xlll. Camparison of the Belgian Rail- Roads 

 with those in the United States. 



According to table under No. 3, the number of 

 passengers during 3^ years, reduced for the length 

 of one mils, amounted, on the Belgian rail-roads 



to 88,981,763, or al an average per year of 25,- 

 423,361. As the average length of road in opera- 

 tion during the whole time was 53.1 miles, we 

 have 478,783 throuiih passengers annually. The 

 Belgian rail-roads are therefore travelled over 

 on their whole length by nearly 500.000 passengers 

 per year. We have now the lullowing comparison: 



(a) Cost cf constrvction. — A nnle of rail-road 

 with a single track, and the necessary building and 

 outfit, costs in America 20,000 dollars ; in Belgium 

 41,300 dollars, or more than tv.'ice the amount. 



lb.) Tariff. — On the American raii-roads, a 

 passenirer [)a\s at an average 5 cents per mile; on 

 the Beiaian rail-roads, only 1 cent, or five times 

 less; for freight, the charge is, in America, at an 

 averaize 7^ cents per ton per mile. 



(c.) Speed. — On the American rail-roads, pas- 

 sengers are conveyed with a speed of Irom 12 to 

 15 miles per hour, stoppages included ; on the 

 Belgian roads at the rate of 17 miles; or stop- 

 pages not included, at the rate ot' from 20 to 25 

 miles. 



((/.) There are at an average, 35,000 through 

 passengers, and 15.000 tons of gontis carried an- 

 nually over the American roads ; on the Belgian 

 there have been carried |)er year 478,783 through 

 passengers, and the trasf)orlation of goods only 

 commenced a short time since. 



(e.) Gross income. — The same amounts on the 

 American rail-roads, at an average |)er mile and 

 per year. 



From 35,000 passengers at 5 cents, - ^1750 

 From 15^000 tons ol' goods at 7k cents, 1125 



From mail and contingencies, - - 200 



Total, ,^3075 

 On the Belgian rail roads the gross income per 

 mile from 478,783 passengers, and the trasporta- 

 tion o!" freight amounts to 32,000 I'rancs or 6003^ 

 dollars 75 cents per year. 



(f.) Expenses per mite of travel. — These amoinit 

 on the American rad-roads to 1 dollar, on the Bel- 

 gian roads to 1 dollar 5 cents, or they are the same 

 in both countries. 



(^g.) Number of passengers per trip. — In Bel- 

 gium there were ;n each train, at an everage of 3^ 

 years, 143 through passengers; on the American 

 roads, a passenger train contains only 40 through 

 passengers, at an average. 



(h.) jVujnber of trips per year. — In dividing 

 85,000 by 40 we obtain 875, as the average num- 

 ber ol passenger trips per year on the American 

 rail-roads ; aiul in dividing 478,783 by 143 we get 

 3348, which represents ti>e average number of 

 passenger trains passing annually i)ver the Bel- 

 gian roluls. As at the same time the speed on the 

 latter is greater than on the American rail-roads, 

 it was necessry to employ rails of 15 lbs. per yard 

 while their weight is generally less on the Ameri- 

 can rail-roads, 



(i.') Expenses per passenger per mile. — Tiiese 

 are in Belgium only 0,73 cents, and m America 

 2{> cents, or 3| times more. The reason of it is, 

 that the AmeTican trains contain 3^ limes less 

 passengers, while the expenses per train per mile 

 are eijual in both countries. It is very nearly the 

 same fur a locomotive to carry 40 or 143 passen- 

 gers in a train. 



(A-.) Jnnual current expenses.— \n America the 

 annual current expenses for working a rail-road, 

 are per mile, 



