RAILWAY ECONOMICS.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume III, Issue 326, 12 January 1914, Page 3

RAILWAY ECONOMICS.

MR. DOUGLAS KNOOP’S BOOK

Railway economics are simply a branch of the subject of economics in general. The same principles hold good; the same methods of inquiry must he followed. But transport and communication by rail has assumed such an importance in modern society that it deserves especial treatment, and this Mr. Douglas Knoop has given it in “The Outlines of Railway Economics.”

This is an interesting volume in which, without being unduly technical, Mr. Knoop sets out for us the various problems of railway organisation, and shows how they are subject to exactly the same laws in their kind .or degree as the land, or manufactures, or any other form of commercial activity, he shows us how the principles of “increasing” and “decreasing” returns apply to railways; how rates are fixed; how Railway combinations affect the public both for ill and for good; how Government interference influences the operation of the ordinary laws. Mostly his illustrations are taken from British railways, which are in the hands of private companies. Sometimes he goes further afield, and draws on the experience of Continental and American systems. Australian readers will be interested in his discussion upon the question of State-ownership and management of railways. He examines the pros and cons, and points out one disadvantage. “Where the railways are nationalised,” he writes, “there is considerable danger of political competition. The Government secures a targe amount of patronage, with which its followers may be rewarded. In fixing rates, particular trades may be favoured with reduced rates, and certain sections of the community may be granted specially cheap fares, with a view to securing votes for the party in power. Additional services may be put on in districts where the Government is anxious to curry favour. The wages of railway servants may be raised quite regardless of economic considerations, in order to gain the support of a very numerous body of voters and their friends.”