NATIONALIZATION OF RAILWAYS.
[TO THE EDITOR OP THE "SPECTATOR."]
Sin,—Part of the speech of Mr. J. Pointer, M.P. for Attercliffe, Sheffield, at Haggar's Theatre, Llanelly, on Sunday, 17th inst., is reported as below in the Llanelly Guardian of September 21st, and is, I think, worth the attention of your readers :—
"The time was ripe, almost rotten ripe, for dealing with the House of Commons. Personally he would rather delay the pur- chasing of the railways for a few years. Under the Act of 1844 the country was supposed to pay as purchase price for railways twenty-five times the average profits for the last three years. Taking the last three years the profits amounted to 45 millions. Twenty-five times that sum made 1,250 millions. If the com- panies were paying their men what they should they would only get 35 millions, which multiplied by twenty-five was 250 millions less than twenty-five times 45 millions, and the sum the country would have to pay. If the companies were compelled to pay proper wages, when the country bought up the railways there would be 250 millions less to pay, so he advised them to wait. (Applause.) Whether they waited or not the agitation should be set going now—(applause)—and public opinion engineered to the theme that railways must belong to the State."
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