Cost of transportation railroads

316

Civil I';,tgineering.

i~tq~o'~'lant eJfec~ ~t]~o~ the provisioning' o/' t/to.~e cities, whieh~ by" ~]~ei ; ra/&vaig"s , c-o~n~a~and tar interior coz~nlhv. Zkmer. 1railroad Journal,

7()R "Fill; JOL'/{N*~.[~ OF "['lii[< F]tAN'I{ LISY "{NS~[']~TL'g?]5,

Co.W o f Tra~s2)orlatio~z o~ t~aiS'ortd.s '.

By Ct~A J,,L:~:s]~,~,xT~Jr.~C.IE.

(Continued from Vol, IV, puge '3670 Tile iFFll)Ol'[allCO0[' asecrtahfing the expe~se of transi)ortation on

ru, ih'oads; I o a [arge ])ordo,~ of tl~e poprllath)il of' this country, has let.{ Io !nauy discussions, and m a n y itl(luiric.' G with at view to its det(.'rmi~mtiol]. No gel.mr',.d me(lied ha% however, yet l.)ec~l produ(:cd~ toy whic, h it <.m be aseertaiHe~[ w h h ~,taxy tolerable degree o[' acct;traey. Tile (tiiih!u!ty appears to have arisen, ill ct great measure, fl'om the f~cl, that these expct~ses cousist h] a variety of element b which ii~cr<'as(., slid dimi~lish its value by difIb4"ent laws, and at rates ~v'hich depe[td (,It the co[tddmttions of tl'(ese elements in each particular case, It has, also, to :,oslle extel~ G gro\vn out o[' the f~u2t, thu.t during the l,rogrcss oV thi:~ sys/cm , every year has prodtmed some new work of improvemem, whieli ttas SUpl)lic:d ttc:\v data to calculators--and, mlJ}.)rttlltalcl)r, tiara \vi~ich ttave ltrcce(le]{ tit(; e[lhet of the two greatest C,,'ILISCS0{" expemlit~ve---U~e des(rile(ton eonscquent ott. ~]se~ aJJ.d ]latura[ teeny. 'O,'ithout rofl;rring Io anothet'difiieulty--the extravaga~nt esti]hales of the f'ie ~(!s o[' pardcvdar projects, and, sometimes, the gross misrepresentations of the e~mmles of' others--xve see, that the srtbject is lilttclt tot)complicated to be unraveled without close study, and ma.ture refleetiot~. To m a k e a general solution, we []ave, obviously, ~o aUow lbr difl~rel~ces o[' grad% difl~rermes of tonnage, differences b~twecn the amounts o£ travel, and have due regard to the length:.. o.t~([ even the age of'the hnprovernent. N o w , to attempt to go through this whole subject, and prodaee and a~alyze the data on which are ibunded all rny conclusion% would reqmrc much more ]abor~ than l h~tve a disposition, at this tim% to appropriate to the question. W h a t [ now propose to do, is again to point out the s, aw which governs raih'oad expenditures, aud to fix, with greater accuracy, the values o[' the constant coefficients thalt Was praetmaMe when I first of I:~wed the fbrtnuJa which are here repeated] It is m y intention to submit, iu the first place, the law which gov~ erns the expeudlitttres on a nero road, and attempt to offier a reasonable explanation,and a just estimate, of the difference between the expenses it~cident to a next~ road, and an old one. If m y method be true, the r~vasons, and the values which I assign ['or this diffbrenee, must b e o b viously just. The general Jaw must first satisfy tl~e rnind, and the rate o17 increase, in passing from a new to an oldt. road, must likewise be rational and convincing. If, after this preparatory evidence, I bring forward a certain new road of great length, and show that the calculated cost corresponds well with the actual result, it will certainly be a strong eonfirmation of the general eorreemess of the method. Bat still, for a pradent man proposing to risk his fortune, this alone ought not to be suffieie~m '['his partieula~ example might be selected be-

cost of ~'a~spo~'tc~t~rm o~, Ra~,rocds. cause it w a s accidentally fbund to suit the object ; right, therefbre, to call on me to produce a s/~ort t( the results still eorrespo~d with m y calculation. I not yet be fully satisfied ; it a~outd be fair fbr him example, in which the trade amt travel were bo!h t~t'ltlsually greaf) it-i order to be assuced that the method is applicable to w o r k s o f t}iat character also ; arid, e v e n after findi~g this result to be confirmatory of the melhod, extrecae prrtde~lee wou[d die,ate atl additional appii, cation to another road With v e r y small trade. All this appearh~g satislhetery, he couid ~?ot well retaia a dimb~; but, when men stake their [brtunes, and the eom%rt and itadu!genee of their fhmilics on the issue, they have a r i g h b - t h e y are b o u ~ d ~ t e exercise great circumspection. Such a pal:br might, tberefbre, well call for a~. applicatioll of the method to a~t old ~'oad.---or to (me that has arrived at maturity, at least,--iu order ~o see whether his inveSb meut is likely to be permanet~tly good. If dfis doubt be also satisfied- if' he finds tlmt the. application m a y be safhly made t e a r o a d e f this {]eseriptio!l; if', ia additi0nt :it is made to one of' tI~is sort with a great trade---tiext, to oI~e with at small t r k d e ~ then to one with great trave[ a~ld no toimao-e; afterward to a 101i!4 one, and, finally, to a, short otto; to some roi;ds with light, and tO othc, rs with heavy grades.--arld, if' l~e find that it gives consiste~:~t re.suits in all these varied applieati(ms--as a reasolmbte, am1 as an illo ( tell[gent man, he will b e compelled to admit, that the m~t ~)d is i~s accordance with 'r,~m z,,~w, and dmt its ~esuifs are the "r~wTm It is such testimony that [ propose to o Icl tt~e reader, and I solidi. his a[te~tion in order that he m a y judge fi:d~'ly of my consisten~?y--fbr consiste~my is a test of truth. q.n. fbltowil~,'~ proposition,s are w h a t I d:.~mtte'~-'"'~," ~ as L a w s : ~ I. t tie cost of rriotive powc% with enghies of the sarne class, is.)~ro portional to the distance which t~e eugit~es rm"._, T h e cost per trill( is nearly the same on roads of aI[ g r a d e s - - t h e difference in expens~ on roads with diffi~;rent grades, consists not essentially in variati0ns o the cost p e r mi& r~z, but in variations of the number of miles Whiel m u s t be performed to do the same duty. IL T h e repairs of the road, with equal trade, are proportional t~ its length ; that is to sa}r, cgeleH,s, pa,.ibz~s', it costs twice as much t{: keep up a road ~00 miles long', as it does to maimaiti one in the sam~ condition, of which the length is I00 rni[es ; just as it costs twice a~ much to run engines 2o0,000 miles, as it would to r u a the same clas of' engines 100,000 miles. I I 1. ~f~l~erepairs o f ears a r e proportional to the n u m b e r of tons con veyed, and to t h e distance to which they are eoriveved.. It costs twie as n-itlcli to repair cat's vrhieh run t w o initliot~s, as it does.those whiel run one million of miles per annum. Ag'aitb it costs twice as m u d to repah' ears which c o n v e y 20,000 trms a giveu distance, a:s it doe lhose whicl:~ convey 10,000 tons the same distance, T h e same prit: cipic applies equally to the c o n v e y a n c e of' passengers ; it app/i(;s ale to accidents, incidentals, and cont~nae~eies--fbr tl:~ese things inemas with, and arc proportional to, the hmrease of business. rr'~

22"

318

Civil .Engineering.

These may appear like self:evid'ent truths, and they are, in fact, so glaring that th@ scarcely appear to have been-looked on at all. The custom now is to regard the expense of cars as proportional to the distance the engine runs. It is here made proportional to the distance the cars run. It i~ customary also to consider the repairs of tile road as proportional to the distance traveled by the engine--whereas it is only proportional to the length of the road. These are simple principles, arid such as cam:lot we}l be doubted~ or denied. It remains to state the valnes of tile constants.

li)epairs o[ Roads. The repairs of' a railroad, I have stated, must be divided into t\ve d a s s e s ~ t h o s e which at:e dependent on, and those which are independent of, the amount of the tonnage. 0[' ~he first divisi.on, the wear of iron depends entirely on the us% and the wear of the wood, but par-. tinily on the use. The rotting of timber, the cleaning oat of' ditches, the repairs of culverts, embankments, &c., are i~dependent of' the !fade. But theseitems are not independentof lime: the expenses of repairs increase .brig little tmtil the wood ir~ the sitls.ties a~d rails, begins to decay, and reqnire removal, whe1~ they usuai[y soon attaitx their maximum~ and a..ffcrward dimhlisl b utJti] they :ceaeh a second mini... l~lum. The following table exhibits the cos{: of repairs ot~ six of the most successful roads in this country, which I have purposely selected from. different sections. The table embraces three roads of each of" the two great classes---three wooden su perstru.ctures with plate rails, and three ~ron roads with T or H patterns. By casting the eye down the columns, the progressive increase of expenses will be easily -recognized. It must be borne in mind, hoxrever, that these numbers do not include tile renewal of the i r o n - - a n item always charged to " extraordinary repairs," or "permanent i m p r o v e m e n t s " - - a s though iron rails were ever permanent, or their destructiort extraordinary. Eventualty~ the cost of'the new iron passes into capital stock, or funded debt.

TGIBI,~ shelving, the Increase of lhe Cost o['.Repair.s, of l?.tzil,roa&.. 7-. . . . . . j-)~erSi:i;i2em-t~oadd2~qv-I{aiL"........ "'" I L°welk IPr°vkl'ee'W°reesmr 183{; I 1837 546 1838 511 1839 73l 1840 ~ 816 1841 i 1200 184~ 1550 1843

2#5 4,tl 209 334 397 514

~06 281 4,05 830 784 903

t-~oads--:Plat :liars. " Road.

llinaRoad.I

251 664 54.2 539 794 857

870 ~ 880 1040 982 592 547 503 375

,

1" m a y add tile following notes of" the cost of motive power per mile traveled by the engines, which are extracted t)om documents that were not in my possession when I first stated the cost per mile :for passm~ger engines at e5 cents, and of freight engip,es at 3o cents~ * I"ini~hed in 1833i w h e n the expenses were very low.

Cost of Tran@ortation on. Rai~.o~:~&..

'3 ~ 9

T , / t B L E showing the Cost o/" I~comoHve Pou:e~~fi~r 1~4~. Name of Road.

,xpense.

[3oston and Providence. Boston and t rovidenee.

rail

¥~ar

Remafl,~,

11,399 i 92:{, {1842 { Freight ~gine:~, 23:35'2 [ 90 {1842 t'~;i*~(~r ~'~vi*~,s,

W, stern Road. U,'iea and Scheuectsdy, Utica and 8eheoectadyo Readirlg Road. }lq,,,,ading Road,

115 000 I S0 184~ '~V~es indwded, 3:3 4.5,:1,1 2t{ i 18:11 i Exeiusi,.'e ~_,~~ew e~.,gi*~e~, l 52 2(;8 3;~-~.;.-!1,";:~1I lee udi~,~ ~lew (maitre., 17,449 !20_~so {18~1 With nets' ~gi/~*:i< 49,800 / '25} o {1849 { New, bt}~ l>a~,ier, e~@~ea,

This table entirely c o n f i r m s the previous es*imate (voL iv, p. :~o'7.) Another table in my possession (derived from reporc~ of 1$1~) gives ibr the aw;rage value of" repairs of loeomotiv~..s, 7 cca~..~ I.,:r m,le ru~ ; m y impression is, h o w e v e r , that this item is worth not les~,; thaa S cenls, and that furore observatiol~ \viii maiutah~ it~ tbr engim>s fi~t are not fresh from the factory, at about that average. We m a y now pass {o the m e t h o d cmd the rule whid~ I propose ibr computing the aggregate aroma[ expenses of a ~oad. E1 the: first mirabetel' this investigatiotb I p r o p o s e d a fbrmula which was pubiisi~ed ia this jnurnal~ fbr determi~ah~g the value of these ex]w~>;.,>--.~t;tt~ilg, however,

t h a t t h e r e w a s n o l i r m in th,e cotlt~ti'y w h i c h }rod yc~ t xhit)o

ited results as f'avorable as those expressed by that li~,,'m~fi:a~ T h e present paper is intended to show these expe~ses a.,.//~// ure: ; the same ibrmula is used t h o u g h the constants are modiiic:d to ~:~.~i~the actual condition of' the system.

]'be" ,~zew I?oez&'. The aggregate annual charges on .~zezo ~'~)r~o/.~'~ are made ttp of the following items, v i z . : ~ For every mile traveled by the engh~es, c'I cents ; %r every {~v,~
9

~,

_._-~--,P ,+ 300/¢.

~o--o N + fi5o-61 + ~ooo N o w , new engines c o n s u m e as m u c h , or nearly as much, flv:?i arid oil as those which have been used ; and tiSey require) the s'aim~ !lmnb,:w of m~girmmen and firemen. T h e orfly reduction in ~he cost their maintenance, consists in the item of repah's. The bil ibi r<:pai~s *br the first year or two, is only aboctt oleo-half its rneau value ; al~d a~ the average cost of't:epai.rs is about 7 eet~ts per mF ..' ru~;, t e aggregate eost per mile ruu on a ~'oad which ha:~; passed its fbm'th year, should be ~o7~ tents, instead o.f ~4 teats. T h e lirnbe~ in t h e superstructure is worth, ot~ the average, f:~om 10o0 to 1500 dollars per mile, and lasts from .5 to 7 years. T}~e d
Civil Engineering.

3~0

it is scarcely appreciable. The difference between the perceptiMe injury to the road and cars, on a dew and old road, is about 5 mills per ton per mile. T h e ruie then is,--t'5r old .Roads. F o r every mile traveled by the engines, (passenger engines °5 and freight engines 30 c(.mts,) an average of 27,~ cents ; for every ton cot> veyed one milk, 14 mills ? tbr every passenger conveyed ot~e mihb 7 mills ; and for every mih:; o( road, $ 500. I f the principles and the wdt,es here offered be correct, they will stalld t}lc test o{ trial, aml it[ order to umke the test the strot~gest possible, [ will add, in a srfl)sequet~t paper, an estimate of the probable results (m a road i[1 ac,tivc o l ) e y a t i o l l ~ a [ l d [lie subject of much speculation at the preseat tim% the correemess of which estimate eau. bc verified a~. the cud el' the year. This ruk:, J[' el)plied to tltc business of a !ine in activity, will give only those expe~s.cs wl~ieh are usually denominated " o r d i n a r y expenses," h~ ordec to arrive ~t t}le /r'~e co,s'l of mah~tenanee we [lave to add, of eom'sc,, the cxtr~ordim~ry expct~ses, which we can likewise estimate with some, [}IO~l[~}t l i e [ V(lry gli'Ci),t)Li, c o i i r a e y } 1)v dgkta l l o \ v suPt)iied by the improvcmcl~ts of tim coum.ry.

~,?lJflicalio~>. cff'Me fi)rm~el(~ Io .gcliz~e fI'~Hcs. I shall apply this rm~thod ol/ c.om[mtath.m, it; ttu.~ filst pkke% to ~. raih'oad iu (~corgia, 1,V" ~:,~ miles hma, . .with . . easy . arades atK[ little !)usi12ess} lie\t,

to ()tic iil

?d~.ssa(:u.lsctts,

] 5d

miles [o~kg, with grg,.des of

more tl~atl S0 [i?Ct to the mite, ou which the e~gines travel nearly [bur hundred thousand miles per annum, aug where the trade and travel are both great; I wiK then apply it to a short road ira the State of N e w York, which carries no tommge at all, but which derives its revenue entirely fi'om passeuger b and which has moderate grades, and a moderate }msim:ss ; next, I wilt make the applieatioa to ~.~,road in 5:[arylcmd 70 miles lotlg, with grades of 84 %et, aTld which derives two-thirds of its revemae l?om to[male. Finally, I will apply it to a road it~ Pcm~sylvania 5(; miles long, with favorable grades aud moderate busitwss--and again to the same road the next year, whet'~ extended 38 miles ['twtlm'.r and haviug an increase of business. The fbiloxving table gives the length, grades and business el" these roads; and, in the two last columns, are p[aced~ side by side, the aetna[ and calculated expenses.

T , / t B L E exhibi/i~,d; /h,e (zctue~l cent! computed cost of' 7~,ai,,~tai~zi~~,~; ~ t o ]~.oads', calculu/cd J)'om lhe fi)rmula~ 24 IN+ (') 7 ii;d ~(:iOo 'r + ik~ig~ p + ~ooh, ;............................................, .., , ±~alnc or.tvoa~,,

72Le,~..d,.GT~"d,'.!-T]ilTI[:t~",, '~---'7-'--~7~lhro t h r o ~... . . . . . . . . . "-~(~................ ~ ~ t~ ~t'di[ .................. .~ ." • [',l u t~y f :l~x[else<, lear llt}le~:. I1~1 lLieh ille~ tonrl C, travel, i expenses,. ~ '

iI Octrgr,.

~ ,147,~ ~,,j . .31" . . . . . t5'2,87~, 7--; -H),()0g - T 3 - - - . 712,0005109,819 ,~T., £ .~10G,(;05 ....... { i5(; j 83 t39'i~,9,95 40,000153.0001 256,619,: 256,t8T

Road, i Western t-~oad, ~a~ttm e ,~ museiucn a. Reading goad,

treading R°ad,

7u 56

[ 9,I,

I

,bd,. IgS,'~¢U 20 000 16 500 i 19 83,717 24,000 :11,4531

7.5 224 62;6,35

7 1, aT'a 61 a l 8

l*9,%osr:6s,oo0la:~,'~o{~ssvooJ ~se,!m,

2-1S12 18,12

184£ 18,i,1

~s~i~v

Cost of Transportation

on

Railroa&.

a el

The roads named in this table are aI1 those which have beert c o ~ . pieced less than fbur years, of which I have been able to procure the trade acid travel, aggregate expenses, and distance run by the iocomotive enghles ibr the year 18t9. Ill some of these I have Been compeiled {o deduce the through, tonnage from the receipts and prices - - t h e reports giving only the aggregate tonnage ? ~ i a general the through travel is given with precision. The agreement between the actual and calculated results in this table, is most remarkable, and exhibits a degree of uniformity in the administration of the lincs, which could uo~: have been anticipated. Indeed it is most probably because theroads are so new that the agreemerit is so perfect. When they bcgit, to ['eel the effbets of time ar~.l use, they will give way unequally, ~nd exhibit m, teh wider deviatior~s from the rule. This fact is exemplified in the fbllowing table, which e x h i b h s the results of' experience on ten important railroads, selected from difiErent seetious of'the emmtry. The roads in this table vary i n l e u g t h fl'om 14 miles to tS6 miles; in grades f'rom 10 g. per mile, to st~ g. per mile ; in fl'eight from nothing to ~)4,000 tons; in travel fromY,000 to 180,000 passengers ; and in expenses from 3%000 to ~g5~000 dol.]ar~ per atmum. TWI.IJL ]d c.m/UDiID~' U~.cczcl'uaZ cz~zdcoml~rled cost of m~zintafn.bz~ roads whicA have. bec~ co~'2t)[eicdmore ihanJbur years, ca[cul(~ed

@ lheJb~'mula, 27.D ~ t4., 7 . . . . N -t- ........... ',t -F- - F + 5 0 0 / ~ . 100" 1000 1000 .......

-,, l,.gth ..,.dee Miles IThr'gh} Thr'gh I Actual iOalculat dI xear. In m I ~un onna'e travel, expcnses.lI expenses. i hilts fee <, i ' ' I ' ! Boston ar d Providence, 1842 49, 38 1'20,000~fil,200 l l 7 129;~i01,596~100,897 Batim'eandWasfi~g'n 1841-2 i 30} 9L,428:'27,369 L~4,SO0 va,~s~I 7o, t~i91 Pe~ersbur~ Road, !1842 I 61 ,30 i131,160.22,0001 16,0001 96,3981 92,4891 ~-asi~ua a~'~dLc wall, 1841 ~4 ~0 44 040128.66D 85,737 30,798 3a 131 Baltimore ant 0 rio, t842 / 82; 827}1299,61744,4771 34,380 220,135 / t92,925t IPortsmouh& Roanoke, lie42 7 9 I 95,0001 5,9751 7,662 73,345] 76,70;;~ i~amz

oil~oaas,

Boston a,d Lowell,

1842

20

10 i[4~,60793,927 179,819 131,01'~I 1194~9 t

tPhiladep'a&Columba, 184~ I 82: 4.5 1261,8441 I 116,000 1!~'i~'~t S. Carolina Road, 11842 i136 35 [260,324i27,(00 2:4,0001 22o~43 i zt;'%~<~o] tBoaton and Worcester, [S42 44} 42 1241 319.61,911 165,720 168 5091 176 815 Utica and Schenectady 1184l-2 78 1152.7641 1114,5271 154.,43~1 t4a~4,~l

[NoTs. The miles l'tll~i 011 , h e d)cle~'sburg lioadare assumed to be the same as in 1841 ; the tommge is esthnated il'om the tonnage of" 1841, with an allowariee fbr the increased receipts. The results ori the Ballimore and Ohio Road fbr 184t are preferred, because t h o s e of 1842 arc complicated by the extension of the line to Cumberland. The report of the I)hiladelphia and Columbia Road contains onIy the expenses of motive power and repairs; the freight and passengers are conveyed by other parties ; we have, therefbre, in the t b r m u l a to make P = o and T = 0 , for this ease. The tonnage and travel on the ~otetf~ Carolina Road are deduced fi'om the prin~ed reports. T h e actual charges on s o m e of the lines will be seer~ to differ from o t h e r published s t a t e r o o m s ; this will be, found to arise f r o m the fact t h a t

3 2 2

C ~v~Z .E,zga,zeezz.ng. "

"

'

"

"

these statements contain charges fbr interest, ferries, ears, and motive power ot~ branch ,'clads, which are rejected il~ this comparison.] Here is presented a list of eleven roads, situated in differe~lt sections of the country, :.t)ld offerii)g e v e r y variety of iengtlb grade and business that could be desired, i:: order to put the formula to the severest test. The greatest difference which is extubited it: the whole list between the actual a m m a l cost of rnaintenatme~ and the estimated cost, is 12 2)e~" re,z/.; eertait:ly lie c l o s e r a g r e e m e n t could l)e expected, since the a,,~tual expemlitt:u'.es fluctuate io tiler exteni>--and, perhaps, throu{dh wider limit.s--/irom year to year ; tlm removals of d e c a y e d tillll~cr~ s l i d v a r i o i i s cold.iujel~ci~% beirtg [bund nltle}l, l l : o r e ex:etisive some y e a r s d m : ] { ~ : l : c r s . Iuiookh]gow:~rthelistIamabietoaccoum, in almost <;very i!tstat]ce, Ibr lhese departures from the {'ormula, by m y pcrsouat ktmwlmlgc of' the situatio!: of the line. It will p r o b a b l y be seen ot~ sore,.; future occashm, that those roads which now exhibit expe:~ses a b o v e the' fi>rulula, ,,rill rid{ below it fbr other v e a r s - - a rem a r k whicit is apl)ii.cable lo the Boston and Lowel/~ Baltimore and Ohio, am[ Sottth Caroliila I,%ads. It is uo part of m y el,jeer t:(, /latter the expects.lions of" railroad ecrupatties, but to exi~ibit to t!:,:m and tl:,; /mblie die trlal~; to those eOl21pall[es - w h o s e \verl,Js al'e l l o w ii(,,w, :till{ w h o

6'tx:~?z

to /)e tll:.l,I~2illo'

m o n e y , I would suggest the thneiy formation of a eontil:gel~t :['und~ to prepare t h e m tbr a cm:til~geuey width will as surely reach them. as the next n e w year. It its bad policy to divide the ~ u ~ a / eccpe?>'es as if they were real profits ; tile m o n e y that is earned at the expense of the .rails~ cars, and nlaellinery, should be hoarded to replace those things, and not distributed, as if they were to last :forever. It can be s h o w n that every c o m p a n y should annually store a.way, in times of prosperity, while their work is new, at least 6 cents for every mile travelled by their eugi[les~ 1 cent for ew;ry ton conveyed one mile, and oo0 do[tars fbr every mile of" road, to replace decayed materiais, and injured iron and machi:lery. I['their profits will not permit that reservation, then the prudent m a n will avoid their stock ; and the company should cut dowl: their expenses to the ]imit assigned by the trade. W h e r e these exl,e::ses do not eot:sist of" interest o~: debt, this retrenchment is almost a l w a y s possible, In tile :firstof tI:ese t:d:fles tile tleadi~lg Railroad a p p e a r s t o escape the application of the ru.le ; the calculated expenses exceeding the aetna[ charges, as stated t)y the comp'.tuy, some ¢:}14,000, or about 10 per cent. There has probably been a division made betweeu the current and contingent expenses on this line ; indeed, on inspecting the published exhibit, I find that the whole sum set d o w n fbr lir~zber used in repairing 94 miles of" road, irteluding rails, sills, &e., is just ~2,4.31. N o w , I k n o w personally, that twice that sum would not p a y for the timber required for repairing the bridges alone : the bridge account last year must have a m o u n t e d to more than ~12,000~ and seems not to be included in thepublished statement. This sum being addedto the published total, brings the year's expenses up to ~lS1,000,or within 1¼ per et. of the fbrmula. Perhaps the company regard the loss of a bridge as so extraordinary an occurrene% that it can never take place again; but

Cosl o f Tran.sT)o~ta/,~?on on Rai[rood~<

8~2~,~

their report already poims to auother whid~ is i m n d to be "le,~ permauent than tl:~.' rest ;" amt time will show that no par~, of r a i l w a y superstructures will i(mg rcmaita permane~t ur:d<,r the action of h e a v y e:~gines m:d their trah~s, lh sid<;s di~:~re wi!l b~: fYesht:~s, a m t t o r mtdocs, a~d fire>~; a~d ,:~ a road which has a gr<,at ma: W brid::es con., structcd of p~'rislm.ble m~d~rhals, aml which :is trave]k~d by 25 or S0 b-~ comotivcs

ever}

d:~? x o ; :~t;oHt I 0 / ) 0 0

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{ngines

pi/te woml tbr i:,~cl--..m my a~:ci& m-.: m:~s{, be exp
nsh~g

()i~e bridge

tq'it]qes ]}tH~t)l ~l {o I~,, j'oNH/!;~h~, t}lcl'(~ Will t}o rotb,:~ si]{s~, o~' <;}'{]si:ed tl'Oll~ RI,~()ll}.~}} tO (:{}Ili]}{:]b
'~VC t V , ' . F C C i V * ;

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will ~.~w h::.rl: a 1:::,:. ex:iil,i:h~u [:s :tI@k:ad )n !o :::: die ro:.]sof

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3~4

Civil l~n,¢inee,'i~.

'One word more in reference to this table. [ offer here a list of 17 railroads, presenting almost every conceivable variety of lengtt b grade, and character. It is not a selected table, but contains the resuits of one year's operations on eve~'7/road, without exception, concoming which I have been able to obtain the necessary data--mate~ rials which have only been procured by dint of great exertion. It will be seen that the management upon these various lines is very nearly unifbrm, and that they arc a//obedient to the law. The greatest departure/Yore the formula is i~ per cent. Now, this list embraces road:~ which are situated in every one of" the sea-board St:)tc.s fl'orn ,5'[aine to Georgia; the aggregate length of'line exhibited, is 1281 lll]les ; the engines traverse annually a space of 2,886~300 rnile:~, and t}~ey carry no less than g3r~60,560 tons, a~d 57,726,906 passengers ore:: mi!e. The aggregate ordi~ary expense of mah~taining this Iet~gth of' line, and accommodating this amount of 1..mungo, i.'~ae~lmIly .%-).t09,168 ammal/y, and tlte ealcmated expense N~e,o(;s,l(sa~. The difii~reuee between the calculation and the fkct is ..'if;41~023, or less tlmn two l)cr cent. I co*meive, therefbre, ~Imt t have artthority sufIicient fbr remounting this tbrmula as cxprcssit+g the law of raih:oad cxpeuses--a law to w h i e b a l l t l m roadsi~ihee:ouuh'y~treobcdient. If'strot~gerevidence of its con'eetncss couhl be o~Ii:red, I l