esent territory of the United States a
little over three hundred thousand miles in 1900, 550,000 miles in 1910
and close to one million miles in 1920, or about one mile of road for
every three miles of territory. It is not likely that the rate of
increase of the past will continue in the future; but even if this
should be reduced from 80 to 40 per cent. it would be less than
fifty-five years when the railroad mileage of the United States would
reach the million point.

Even this might seem an extravagant estimate, but it must be remembered
that there are already a number of States in the Union with a railroad
mileage closely approaching this proportion. The District of Columbia
has one mile of road for every 3.39 square miles of territory, New
Jersey for every 3.79, Massachusetts for every 3.96, and Connecticut for
every 4.96 square miles. Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Illinois
follow with one mile of railroad for every 5.14, 5.20, 5.57 and 5.59
square miles of territory, respectively, and Indiana, New York, Delaware
and Iowa are not far behind them.

It should also be borne in mind that many of the through lines have
double, some triple, and some even quadruple tracks, which, if taken
into the account, would increase the mileage much more; and still
railroad construction in most of these States is far from being at a
standstill. The United States will eventually be able to sustain a
closer net of railways than any country in Europe, and we may rest
assured that the time will come when the fertile prairie States of the
Northwest will have a mile of railroad for every square mile of
territory.

In view of the future magnitude of the transportation interest the
importance of placing its control and management early upon sound
principles should not be under-estimated. Abuses crept into railroad
management in the past, not because the men who controlled it were
necessarily worse than men engaged in other pursuits, but because the
States failed to provide adequate legislation for the control of this
new social and commercial force, and the license enjoyed by railroad men
gradually turned into serious evils what seemed at first only harmless
practices. It cannot be denied, however, that the absence of restraint
in time attracted to the business unscrupulous men whose sharp practices
frequently forced their colleagues of better conscience to do what their
sense of honor and justice condemned. These evils and abuses h