REPORT. STATE OF MICHIGAN, OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER OF RAILROADS, To the HON. JOHN J. BAGLEY, Governor of Michigan: SIR-I have the honor of submitting to you the second annual report from this department, covering the operations of Railroad Companies in this State during the year 1873, and so far as seems necessary, reviewing the relations of the public with these railroad corporations from the date of my last report to the present. As the returns sent in this year are more complete and explicit than they were last, and as, when incomplete, they have in most cases been supplemented by information and figures called for and obtained by correspondence, in some cases with considerable difficulty, I am confident that the results shown in the text of the report, and in the accompanying tables, are more nearly accurate than were those of the last report. Wherever material discrepancies may appear between the two, the latter is to be regarded as reliable rather than the former, the accuracy of which was affected, as I stated at the time, by the failure of corporations from one cause and another to give full information. Notwithstanding the improvement that has been made, however, there is still room for greater accuracy and fulness. The sworn returns are by no means infallible, and the simplest computations contained in them are found to be incorrect to such an extent that it is unsafe to accept them without thorough verification. The difficulty is the same as that which has repeatedly annoyed departments similar to this in the governments of other States, and is referred to in the latest report of the Ohio Commissioner, and with great severity and at considerable length by the Railway Commission of Massachusetts in its Report for 1873, the latter body using this language: "Not only were very many of the returns received long after they should have been, but, when they came in, they were found to be neither full nor correct, and many of them, after being repeatedly sent back for correction, had practically to be made up by the Commissioner in charge in the office of the Board. The errors and omissions were in some cases of the most flagrant description, giving rise to grave doubts whether the officers preparing the returns really had any distinct idea of the condition of their corporations." The substance of this complaint applies, with scarcely a modification, to some of the returns which have been submitted to this Department. Several of the roads reporting to the office were not operated throughout the full year, and others, for other reasons, report for only a part of that period. The Chicago & Canada Southern, and the Toledo, Canada Southern & Detroit, which are under the same management, were not considered as turned over by the contractors to the companies for which they were built until Nov. 1, 1873, although the former was in operation throughout the year; the Chicago & Lake Huron was not in existence until July 31, and can, accordingly, account for only the last five months of the year; the Peninsular Railway, and the Port Huron & Lake Michigan, which were consolidated to compose the Chicago & Lake Huron, of course, ceased operations in their individual character at the time of consolidation, and their reports relate only to the first seven months of 1873. The expenses of the Detroit, Lansing & Lake Michigan are reported from April 1, 1873, last year's report having brought them down to that date. (Returns, p. 59.) The comparison between its earnings and expenses are made for the remaining period of nine months. The Michigan Lake Shore was operated until November, and passed into the hands of a receiver early in December.-(Returns, p. 171.) The Michigan Midland & Canada was in operation for the last 24 days of the year only, and during that time the Superintendent filled also the positions of station agent and conductor, and operated the road on his own account. The operations of the Mineral Range road did not begin till the close of September. It appears, therefore, that at least eight of the 35 roads named in the accompanying tables should be excluded from any estimate of their relative prosperity based upon their figures as given, even if the fact were not taken into account that a road newly established can hardly be regarded as upon the same footing with those which have been for some time in running order, and doing a regular business. LENGTH OF TRACK. The Returns accompanying this Report have been received from 35 Railroad Companies in active operation, and from 12 others whose roads are either only projected or only partly built. The conclusions contained in the report are based wholly upon the condition of the thirty-five completed roads, nine of which are branches operated by other companies which are either their owners or lessees. The aggregated length of the thirty-five operated roads, including track which lies without as well as that which lies within this State, is 5,584.41 miles, but the whole number of miles of main track in use by them in Michigan alone, is 3,253.01. The difference between these figures of 2,331.40 miles, -more than two-fifths of the whole,-is to be considered in so far only as it is needed in estimating amounts of stock, debt, earnings, expenses, etc., per mile. Of this large quantity of track without the State, 2,100.23 miles belong to the Chicago & Northwestern and the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway Companies, each of which is operated as a whole and with such unity of system as to make it impossible for them, except in certain details, to report their doings in one State apart from their operations in another. Wherever it has been possible, however, to regard the Peninsula Division of the road of the former company as a road by itself, it has seemed better so to do, that being also the evident design of the company in making up its returns to this office, so far as it was able to account for the operations of that division apart from those of the general organization. If this is done, so much of the Chicago & Northwestern as lies outside of the State is excluded, and the aggregate length above stated is reduced to 4,257.93 miles to which must be added 303.75 |