problems of freight shipment. The new car is equipped with portable containers, which can be loaded by the shipper in his own factory, locked, brought on trucks to the freight yard, and placed on the cars by a crane. At the other end of their journey they can be trucked from the car to the consignee, who unlocks them.

The containers are of steel, and are fireproof and burglar proof. Shipments may be placed in them without first being packed in boxes or in crates, which is a great saving in time and expense.

5. THE MOTOR TRUCK SUPPLEMENTS THE FREIGHT Car

A means of transportation that has made great strides during the past dozen years is the motor truck. We have already noted that the motor bus and the jitney are causing the electric traction lines serious concern. The motor truck is rather supplementing the freight service of the railroads than competing with it.

The motor truck service has been made possible by the good roads movement throughout the states. Trucks have an advantage over railroads in that they can operate independently of fixed lines, or of terminals, and therefore can avoid congestion. They can deliver their goods directly at the consignee's door, instead of in terminals where the shipment has to be unloaded and reloaded again. By the aid of the motor truck the farmer can load his products and bring them direct to the city market, thus ensuring the city consumer fresh food that has not been handled a number of times in shipment.

In some communities a Rural Motor Express has been organized, with motor trucks in daily regular service, and with a definite schedule of stops and charges. These trucks gather farm products, milk and eggs, in the country, and carry them direct to the city dealer or market. On the return trip they carry supplies and manufactured goods to the farmers or to country merchants.

6. REGULATION OF COMMERCE

When the Railroad Enters the City. Railroads as well as transit lines have been brought to some extent under community control. When railroads were first built there was

Courtesy of the New York Central Lines

GRAND CENTRAL TERMINAL, NEW YORK CITY

This great railroad penetrates the very heart of the city by means of a tunnel under Park Avenue, the thoroughfare seen in the upper central part of the picture.

little thought given to the dangers that might result from grade crossings. The railroads grew from single-track lines to three or four, and at the same time the towns grew into cities with greatly increased population and traffic. The natural result was a great many accidents at grade crossings, and then growth of public opinion in favor of abolishing such crossings within city limits. Both the railroads and the city officials undertook the work of eliminating grade crossings, and the

result has been a decided advantage to both sides. By elevating their lines, or by running them through tunnels, railroads are relieved from constant damage suits resulting from accidents, and they are able, too, to run their trains at a higher rate of speed through cities. The cities for their part have eliminated an obstruction to street traffic, and a menace to the safety of their inhabitants.

Twenty-four states now have laws requiring the elimination of grade crossings. In some states the cost of making the necessary alterations is divided proportionally between the railroad companies and the cities; in others the company bears the entire expense. The electrification of the lines in place of the use of steam engines in city districts has added greatly to comfort and reduced smoke and noise nuisances. It is possible that all railroad lines running through thickly populated sections will eventually be electrified.

Intra-State Commerce. In the United States the states have the right to control commerce carried on within their boundaries. Congress is empowered to control inter-state commerce. In the early history of our railroads the states were far more interested in railroad development than in railroad regulation. They realized that trade, industry and increased population followed railroad construction. By charging unjustly high rates and by discriminating between shippers, charging one more than another, the railroads brought regulation upon themselves.

In 1870 such conditions caused Illinois to establish a commission to regulate the railroads within the state. This commission was given the power to prohibit discrimination between shippers, and to prescribe maximum rates. Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota and California followed suit with regulatory legislation. Now forty-seven states and the District of Columbia have state commissions with varying powers of supervision.

Inter-State Commerce. Since most of our railway systems extend over state lines, their regulation falls to the federal government. In 1887 Congress passed the Inter-State Commerce Act, creating an Inter-State Commerce Commission

of five members, which was given the power to regulate freight and passenger charges. Later legislation gave the Commission power to fix a maximum rate. The Hepburn Act of 1906 forbade the issuance of free passes, prohibited railroads from carrying their own products to market, strengthened the law against rebates, and placed private car lines under the control of the Commission. The Transportation Act of 1920 increased

the Inter-State Commerce Commission to eleven members, and instructed the Commission to prepare and adopt as soon as practicable, a plan for the consolidation of the railroads in the United States into a limited number of systems.

The Transportation Act also created a Railroad Labor Board, to settle controversies between railroads and their employees. This Board consists of nine members, three chosen by the railroads, three chosen by the employees, and three, to represent the public, chosen by the President of the United States. The Board has no power of legally enforcing its decisions, but through publicity it can so influence public opinion

that it is likely the railroad managements will abide by its decisions.

The Inter-State Commerce Commission controls telephone and telegraph, express, sleeping-car and pipe-line rates of all companies doing an inter-state business. The result has been wholly beneficial to the public. Charges are fair and just, and the railroads can no longer discriminate between cities and towns, or between shippers, by granting more favorable rates to one than to another.

7. TRANSPORTATION BY WATER

It is characteristic of great cities to establish themselves upon waterways, where they can engage in commerce by sea, river or lake as well as by land. All of our large coast cities, those on the Great Lakes, and those in the Mississippi Valley have developed facilities for water commerce. Because of the enormous development of our merchant fleets during the war, communities are showing a lively interest in port development and expansion.

The Port. To be efficient a port should have modern, wellbuilt piers. On the best type of pier there is a large shed in which the cargo taken off a ship can be spread out and assorted for delivery. At the same time there must be room in the shed to take care of the outgoing cargo to be loaded on the ship. Old piers are being remodeled and a second story added, so that while the first floor of the shed is filled with the unloaded cargo there is plenty of room on the upper story for the cargo that is waiting to be shipped.

Another necessity is up-to-date equipment for hoisting and loading. One reason why the Great Lakes ports are handling the largest volume of bulk freight in the world is the installation there of wonderful machinery for loading and unloading, which has greatly reduced the cost in time, labor, and money of handling freight.

A third essential is adequate warehouse facilities, where freight can be stored for weeks and months if need be. Ware