The Burlington System is over 9,000 miles in length, and goes through parts of eleven different states. On the 1st of January, 1907, the legislatures in all of the eleven states, I think, were in session. The Federal Congress was also in session at Washington. Bills having special reference to railroads were being introduced daily in some of the legislative bodies above mentioned. I cannot say now that all of them were against the railroads, but I feel I am justified in saying that while perhaps some of them if passed might not have injured the railroads much, none, or at most very few, were intended to help the roads. In fact, the attitude of the Federal Congress as well as of most of the state legislatures was considered by nearly all railroad owners, and officers as well, as distinctly hostile. This belief may or may not have been justified by the facts--at any rate it existed. The owners of the Burlington Company believed it. Its executive officers believed it. I believed it. The number of bills affecting railroads introduced in the legislatures of the eleven states above referred to, and in the Federal Congress, during the session of Winter of 1906-1907 was over 800--at least, over 800 such bills were actually laid upon my desk. Among these were bills reducing the passenger fares in several states; others about reciprocal demurrage--if any one can explain how such a matter can be made reciprocal; still others fixing the speed of stock trains, and the size of caboose cars; fixing the hours of labor for men in certain branches of the service (and I wish to say here that that part of the Federal law fixing limit of hours for men in train and engine service has my hearty support); bills having reference to the liability of the railroads to their patrons and employes, etc., etc. I do not wish you to understand that I criticise all, or for that matter, any, of the bills by this enumeration. I am now simply reciting the facts. But whether the bills were good or bad, desirable or undesirable, it was clear if some of them became laws that the expenses of the railroads would in consequence be largely increased, and no way was provided whereby the revenue or earnings would be correspondingly raised--in fact, there seemed to be a demand from all directions that rates should be reduced, and they were reduced in many states. Another important movement was also under way at the same time, and that was in the direction of a general wage increase in practically all departments. This one item alone cost the Burlington Company $3,000,000.00 a year. Now, what effect do you suppose all these things had upon the Budget and similar questions? Just the same effect that the same kind of questions in a personal way would have had upon you and your personal affairs.