MONOPOLY OF TRANSPORTATION. 593 



between Omaha and Sacramento, began life with a pre- 

 tended cost of $115,000 per mile. 



While it is difficult to ascertain the exact amount of 

 watered stock of all the railroads of the United States, 

 it is variously estimated at from fifty to sixty-six per cent. 

 of their nominal capital. And when we take into consid- 

 eration the vast amount of land subsidies granted by 

 Congress and the State Legislatures, together with the 

 bonds, etc., granted by counties, cities and towns, to aid 

 in their construction, it is safe to say that of the real cap- 

 ital furnished to construct the railroads, by those who 

 control them, is less than half of the aggregated capital 

 said to be invested in the roads of the United States, and 

 upon which the traffic of the people is taxed to pay inter- 

 est and dividends. In other words, one-half of the capital 

 is fictitious. 



The American Almanac, for 1888, page 28, compiles 

 from Poor's Manual of the railroads of the United States, 

 a table of comparative statistics of American railways. 

 The table exhibits an aggregate capital stock and funded 

 debt of $7,882,000,000 for the year 1886. Assuming that 

 one-half of this capital represents water, or is fictitious, we 

 have a real capital of $3,941,000,000. The same table 

 gives the net earnings at $297,000,000, one-half of which 

 is charged upon watered stock, and is therefore an uncalled 

 for and unjust burden upon the public; or an amount equal 

 to nearly $150,000,000 per annum wrongfully taken from 

 the people. The table above referred to also indicates the 

 gross earnings of the various railroads, for the same year, 

 to be $822,000,000. 



Assuming $150,000,000 of these earnings to be unjust, 

 it would indicate that freight and passenger rates could be 

 reduced 18 per cent, and the roads then be able to pay the 

 present dividends on the capital actually invested. In 

 accordance with the above figures, if we take the aggre- 



