erty of the railway companies and to the public, as well as ensures the safety of the passengers and railway employes.

When it is considered that the traffic must bear not only all the expense of construction and operation, as well as all damage and injury occasioned by accidents, it will be readily conceded that under ordinary conditions money expended to lessen the cost of transportation as well as the risk and hazard of operation, is properly expended, and should be encouraged, if not required, of all railway companies. The topography of this state will in all or nearly all instances admit of the construction of a roadbed at a reasonable cost, without heavy grades or sharp curves.

The roadbed, to a great extent, must finally and ultimately determine and fix the cost of transportation; the better the roadbed the lower the cost of transportation.

It will appear from the reports of the railway companies to this board that this has been a prosperous year for them, and it will also appear that the railway managements have been liberal in the expenditure of their earnings, in the substantial and permanent improvement of the railways within the state, as well as the construction of many miles of new lines therein. And it may be added here that in the construction of the new lines all or nearly all unneces sary grades and curves have been eliminated therefrom, and that in nearly all of the new construction good railway judgment and management have been exhibited and exercised. These new lines are being equipped with the most approved rolling stock, and when in operation will be a great advantage and convenience to the public, and to the traffic of the entire state.

From such information as the commissioners are at present able to obtain there are between 700 and 800 miles of railroad now in process of construction within this state, which will cost, when completed, approximately, $13,000,000.

STATISTICAL TABLES.

In another part of this report will be found a series of statistical tables, compiled with care and at considerable labor, which, it is believed, cover as completely as data furnished by the railway companies will permit, the operation of Iowa railways, both as respects the entire line and apportionment for Iowa.

These tables include the capital stock, funded and unfunded indebtedness, the earnings and operating expenses, taxes, employes and salaries, tonnage, road mileage, train mileage, cost of improvements, description of equipment, with number of cars supplied with

automatic couplers and train brakes, accidents to persons in Iowa, etc., etc.

The board experiences considerable difficulty in obtaining reliable information covering the operation of railroads in Iowa as distinguished from operation of entire lines.

The officials of the through or trunk lines declare, for the most part, their inability to divide their statistics upon state lines. This refers more particularly to earnings, expenses and tonnage. In supplying the information asked for by the board concerning state earnings, expenses, etc. different bases are used by the different railway companies, none of which, of course, can be accurate, and at best can only represent a more or less liberal approximation.

Some of the companies apportion Iowa earnings and expenses on a revenue train mileage basis. That is, taking the number of miles run by trains earning revenue in Iowa as compared with the number of miles run by revenue-earning trains over the entire system, and placing Iowa earnings and expenses in the same relative proportion to entire system earnings and expenses as Iowa train mileage bears to entire train mileage. This method, perhaps, produces the nearest to what the actual amounts would be, yet it must be conceded that conditions are so entirely different in different localities on the same system, that figures produced by this method cannot be taken in any way as actual. For instance, while over one division of a railway it may be comparatively an easy matter for one engine to haul a train of forty or fifty cars with the usual proportion of loaded and empty cars, on another division twenty cars or even less may be the maximum. These conditions obtaining almost universally on the great trunk lines passing through Iowa, it will readily be seen how unreliable such statistics must be.

The other method of apportionment most in vogue is the road mileage basis, which, it is thought, in general is much inferior to the one heretofore named.

There are some companies which seem to report Iowa statistics arbitrarily, calling them apportionments for Iowa, with no evidence of any particular method having been used to arrive at the figures furnished.

However, considering the difficulty of presenting any accurate method or basis for computing Iowa statistics, and conceding the truth of the statements made by the officials of the trunk lines that it is impossible to accurately divide the earnings and expenses of great railway systems on state lines, the commissioners feel that, in the main, the railway companies have made an honest endeavor to

YEAR.

supply the board with state statistics of reasonable accuracy and completeness.

COMPARATIVE TABLE OF EARNINGS AND OPERATING EXPENSES, IOWA, INCLUDING MILEAGE AND EARNINGS PER MILE.

The questions and matters of controversy arising between the railways and the people at the present time, in nearly all cases, are adjusted upon an amicable and reasonable basis. The public is not demanding and insisting upon any unreasonable requirements of the railways, and the railway companies, upon the other hand, seem, at least, in most cases to exhibit a disposition to make all reasonable and proper compliance with such demands as are made. there is a difference which the board is unable to amicably adjust, it seems to be one where both parties are honest in maintaining their positions, and is not the result of passion, prejudice, or a disposition on the part of the railway companies to oppose state regulation.

STOPPING THROUGH TRAINS AT SMALL STATIONS.

Where

Complaints have been filed with the board during the year by the citizens of various small towns asking that so-called "fast" or through trains be stopped for taking on and discharging passengers at such towns. In some cases where the train service has seemed inadequate the commission has so notified the railway company, and in all such cases provision has been made for properly taking care of the business. In other instances where train service seemed amply

sufficient for the business offered by the community, the board has declined to make an order requiring the through trains to stop when no discrimination was shown.

Fast through trains are demanded by the public, and the board has not felt warranted in interfering with their management, except in cases where the train service rendered was utterly inadequate to meet the legitimate demands of the patrons at any particular point.

HIGHWAY AND FARM CROSSINGS.

There has been within the last year a number of complaints against the railways, occasioned in some cases by the change of grades thereon, where the same crosses the public highway. In some instances before the change of grade, the public crossing would have been considered reasonably safe as a grade crossing. After the change such crossings were hazardous and dangerous. There has been more or less contention on the part of the public authorities having charge of the supervision of public highways, with regard to the meaning and construction to be given the decisions of the supreme court, wherein it is held that a railway company, where it crosses a public highway, should leave such crossing in the same or as good condition as it was before the construction of the railway. It has been claimed in most of the cases, on the part of the public authorities, that the rule laid down by the court requires of and makes it the duty of the railway company to remove any and all obstructions which in anywise prevent the view of approaching trains, whether the same is caused by the natural conditions and topography of the country, or otherwise, and whether the same may be caused by deep cuts and excavations.

The question is an important one and is becoming more so each year, as increased speed and the number of trains render such crossings more hazardous and dangerous. This question should receive the careful, prompt and effective action of the lawmakers, if additional legislation may be found necessary to fully protect the public and railways against this increased hazard and risk. It involves the lives of the traveling public, upon both the railways and the highways, as well as the employes and property of the railway companies.

What has been said about the highway crossings is in many ways applicable to farm crossings at grade. It would seem that a matter of so much importance ought to be settled by means of definite and reasonable legislation, if such legislation does not already

The live stock interests of this state provide and furnish a large and important item of the wealth of the state, as well as the traffic of the railways. It has been estimated that Iowa furnishes about onefourth of the live stock received at the Union stockyards at Chicago. In any event, it is a large and valuable interest, and we may infer therefrom that farm crossings, to a great extent, are for the use of live stock in passing from one side of the railway to the other throughout the agricultural districts of the state, and that these crossings should be constructed in such a manner that all extra danger and hazard would be eliminated therefrom, so far as possible. This should, however, be upon and along reasonable lines, and it is the opinion of the board that undergrade and overhead crossings should be encouraged and required where the cost thereof would not be unreasonable or the crossings needless, and the strength and safety of the roadbed would not be substantially impaired thereby.

JOINT RATES.

Section 2155 of the code is as follows:

In the event that said railway companies fail to establish through joint rates, or fail to establish and charge reasonable rates for such through shipments, it shall be the duty of the board of railway commissioners, upon the application of any person interested, to establish such rates for the shipment of freight and cars over two or more connecting lines of railways in the state; and in the making thereof, and in changing and revising the same, they shall be governed, as nearly as may be, by the provision of the preceding section of this chapter, and shall take into consideration the average of rates charged by such railway companies for shipments within this state for like distances over their respective lines, and rates charged by the railway companies operating such connecting lines for joint interstate shipments for like distances. The rates established by the board shall go into effect within ten days after the same are promulgated, and from and after that time a schedule thereof shall be prime facie evidence in all the courts of this state that the rates therein fixed are just and reasonable for the joint transportation of freight and cars upon the railroads for which such schedules have been fixed.

Under this section, Mr. E. E. Carpenter filed with the board a complaint against the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul, Sioux City & Northern, and the Omaha & St. Louis Railway companies, claiming that he was interested and that a demand had been made upon the companies to establish joint rates between Hull and intermediate points on the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railway, and Blanchard, on the Omaha & St. Louis railway, also from Lester and intermediate points on the Sioux City & Northern railway to said town of Blanchard, the same being points within the state of Iowa. The board fixed the 20th day of December, 1898, at Des Moines, for such hearing, and caused notice to be given the railways named in such