Traffic Of The Railways

The number of passengers carried was 619,688,199, an inorease over the provious year of aö, )27,!b7, and was ocoasloned by the world's fair travel. There was a large decrease in the freight traffio- 106,932,939 tons. The groas earnings oí the railways show a decrease as compared with the previous year of $147,390,077. The ainount of operatinjj; expeDses decreased $96,506,977. The largest per oent of decrease was in tho expenses assigned to maintenance of way and structures, and to maintenance of equipment. The net earnings were $341,947,475, which after deducting fixed charges, etc, left a net income of $55,755,970 available for dividends, and a decreuse compared with thd previous year of nearly 50 per cönt. The amount of dividends paid - $95,575,y76- was a decrease of only 15,;J53,9O9 from the ainounr paid the previous year, and entailed a deficit from the operations of the year of 45,91;J,044 The revenue derived lrom the carrying of passengers was 1285,349,558, and the revenuo derived from freight trafile was Í699.490.913. During the year 1 8U3 ruüway employés were killed and 2;i.422 were injured, as compared with ü, 727 killed and 31-, 729 injured in 1893 Thia marked decreaae in casualties is partlydue, the report says, to the decrease in the number of men employed and the decrease in the volume of business handled. The increased use of automatic appliances on railway equipment also may have rendered railway employment Ies9 dangorous. The number of passengers killed was 824, an inórense of tweniy-flve, and the number injured was 3,034, a decrease of 195. To show the ratio of casualty it may be stated that one employé was killed out of every 428 in the service and one injured out of evury thirty-three employed. iu UU11ÜIU31UU tuü rcpuri eiausiiiuiaii renewa the recominendations made in previous reporta in regard to the desirability of requiring annual reporta from express compunies; corporations, companies and persons owning rolling atock uaed In interatate commerce; corporations, oompanies and perrons owning depot property; stock yards and elevators used by interstate oarriera, and f rom carriers on water that compete with railwaya for trnfïic. Reference is also made to the queetion uf requiring tliu railways to report freight earnings by coinmodities.