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Show STATE OR NATIONAL CONTROL? In the last two years of astonishing astonish-ing prosperity capital haB been so abundant in the United States that, besides financing a huge expansion of our own. manufacturing and trading trad-ing plant, we havo loaned two billion bill-ion dollars abroad. But in these two years the railroads of the United States have Issued hardly any stock for new capital. They havo given mortgage bonds for whatever new capital they have absorbed. And in theso two years, with our industrial I plant growing like Jonah's gourd, the railroads have built hardly any new- mileage. The transportation plant, so vital to every form of business, busi-ness, has been pretty nearly at a standstill. f Every day brings fresh evidence H that, the transportation plant is de-V de-V cldedly inadequate. "Worst car WB shortnge In recent history 1" reads a headline of yesterday. Terminals nre some years behind the demands mado upon thorn almost tho whole country over. Inadequacy of the transportation plant mill capital's reluctance to inmost in-most Itself in railroad stock rnlse some serious questions in which the subject of statu and Federal regulation regula-tion Is involved. State railroad commissioners are pretty generally embattled to retain tho present system of dual regulation regula-tion of railroads, and even to extend the present authority of the states over national carriers. They want the decision of tho Supremo Court In the Shrevoport Case which virtually virtu-ally ndlrmcd the power of Congress to regulato Interstate business nmonded by legislation that would glvo the stato complete control of railroad buslnoss within Its borders, Irrespective of how that control might react upon Interstate railroad business. Instead of extending the authority author-ity of state over 'railroad business, Congress should exercise its admitted admit-ted power to limit stnte control within with-in narrow bounds. Tho railroads are n nntlonnl Interest Inter-est and should be regulated nationally. nation-ally. Saturday Evening Post. |