Show WHOSE HOSE T COMPANY OK OR MEN Boston News Letter Few p people ople have an any definite idea how fast railway railway railway rail rail- way freight eight actually moves The layman's layman's lay lay- mans man's idea about the tho matter would woul probably be something something- like 20 O miles mUes I Ian an hour nut hut the truth is that there I I I are arc not a few lines on which 20 miles j jIs Is a a good days day's Journey for Ole railway 1 I freight to make male That Is what James J J. Hill reported as the aver average go rate on his roads In hearings hearing'S on the subject subject sub sub- of car shortage a a. year car or more ago Meanwhile there thero have been numerous numerous numer numer- ous complaints of lack of promptness In lii furnishing transportation facilities for livestock shipments In the southwest south south- wesL west In connection with this Inquiry the interstate commerce commission slon collected definite information on the I subject Tho The result of or the tue Inquiry is I that the average distance reported for forn freight n cars care for 14 roads wes vest of or tho the Mississippi was vas 20 O miles a day in 1906 The average in 1900 was 31 miles or a reduction of or GI I per pcr cent In six years cars The Thc figures below represent represent sent several of the leading transportation I tion systems and may be taken as fairly representative of conditions In their territory I Roads 1900 1906 Inc Great Grent Northern 28 S 28 8 0 Northern Pacific 28 8 31 3 Chicago o Burlington Quincy 34 3 34 02 22 2 2 Missouri l Kansas Texas 37 24 21 I 13 Ch Chicago Rock nock Island Pacific 30 30 27 7 3 3 Southern Pacific 1 34 0 Missouri Pacific 20 1 17 0 3 Texas Pacific 38 27 7 Ml 11 Decrease 11 Is la It probable that these averages represent decreased efficiency of the freight service such as Pr President Mellen Mellen Mellen Mel- Mel len had reference to when he lie accounted accounted ac ac- counted for the backward trend of railway business by saying that labor if had probably lost a quarter of Its i efficiency within the last half a dozen ozen years Tho explanation livestock shippers have given is that the railroads railroads rail rail- m roa roads s let their cars stand Idle idie while waiting for cars In order to tomake tomake make two engines in so many trains do the work of or three under earlier conditions 11 The rosult result o of this effort at economy has been to overload engines in increase increase in- in e crease breakdowns and accidents and ancl In-I In r greatly reduce o the promptitude of t service Numerous complaints have 1 been presented of ot lock livestock lock shipments I ri over long Ions distances in the southwest rJ and west which did not average more than from four tour and a half halt to ten miles milesa p a day thus increasing increasing- tho the expense ot of f caring carIng- lot for the stock per cent and I causing much loss of or weight in tho the condition of or livestock Such figures as these certainly look as if It somebody ha had lost the tho grip on railway trans trans- I j |