The railroad system of the United States has had a phenomenal growth, especially since 1870, since which time nearly 120,000 miles of road, or more than two-thirds of the total mileage, have been constructed. The table below shows the number of miles of railroad constructed and in operation, by quinquennial periods from 1830 to the close of 1890, inclusive: YEAR. MILES IN OPERATION. INCREASE. 1830 23 1835 1,098 1,075 1840 2,818 1,720 1845 4,633 1,815 1850 9,021 4,388 1855 18,374 9,353 1860 30,626 12,252 1865 35,085 4,459 1870 52,922 17,837 1875 74,096 21,174 1880 93,296 19,200 1885 128,361 35,065 1890 166,817 38,456 It will be noticed that in the sixty years covered by the above table there are but two quinquennial periods which show a falling-off in the rate of growth, viz.: 1860-65 and 1875-80. During the former period railroad construction was partially checked by the War of the Rebellion, during the latter by the general financial depression following the panic of 1873. The length of railroads in the world has grown from 206 miles in 1830 to about 400,000 miles in 1892. The following table shows the growth of railroad mileage by quinquennial periods: YEAR. MILES. 1830 206 1835 1,502 1840 5,335 1845 10,825 1850 23,625 1855 42,340 1860 66,413 1865 90,280 1870 131,638 1875 182,927 1880 231,190 1885 303,172 1890 385,000 From this table it is seen that the railroad mileage of the world has doubled during the past fifteen years, and that its average annual increase is at present not far from 17,000 miles. There is no doubt that the extent of railroad construction has everywhere exceeded all anticipations. So fast has the railroad system expanded in the most highly civilized countries that it soon outgrew in nearly all of them the laws originally adopted for railroad control. In time an almost universal demand arose for reform, and the most progressive governments were not slow in heeding it. For the past fifteen years there has been a decided drift on the European continent toward state ownership of railroads, or to such strict control of the transportation business as virtually deprives the operating companies of the power to do injustice to the public.