Subordinate to this group of 40
would be four group railway boards,
one for each of the four rate territo-
riesEastern, Southern, Western and
Mountain Pacific. Each of these group
boards would be made up of seven
men, five appointed by the railroads in
the territory and two by shipping in
terests.
"Unless intensive economical meth
ods in railway operation are adopted,,"
says Warfield, "there is no alternative
but government operation, followed by
government ownership."
PRESENT SYSTEM OUTWORN
Again he says that American trans
portation has outgrown the system
under which it now operates, and thus
adds his testimony to the other evi
dence of the vicious fofly of the Esch
Cummins law which returned the
roads to the outworn system.
The banking syndicates which con
trol most of the railroad officials have
been robbing not only the public and
the government but those who own
stock in the roads. After the specula
tive spurt occasioned by the passing
of the Esch-Cummins act rail stocks
began to go down hill. The owners of
most of the stock may not like gov
ernment ownership, but they hate
worse to see their property being con
fiscated for the profit of others.
Favoritism to big shippers in which
the Morgan banking syndicate is in
terested, congestion of export trade in
New York City, outrageous prices for
railroad, supplies, and a blind effoil
toward profit by raising rates beyond
what the traffic of the country could
bear explain the situation in which the
roads are now.
"Voluntary action of the association
of executives of the railroads," says
Warfield in touching on this point,
"necessarily represents the views of a
small controlling group.
