History of the World War

by Jr. Francis A. March; Richard J. Beamish

The effect of government control of the railroads was felt from the very first. Coal was given the right of way, giving great relief to such sections as were suffering from fuel shortage. Many passenger trains were taken off, more than two hundred and fifty of such trains being dropped from the schedules of the eastern roads. This permitted a great increase in the freight traffic. Orders were also given that all empty box cars were to be sent to wheat-producing centers, so that wheat could be moved to the Atlantic sea coasts for shipment to England and France. These orders preceded the adoption of the railroad control bill, which was not passed by Congress until March 14th. A feature of the bill is the proviso that government control of the railroads shall not continue more than twenty-one months after the war. After the passing of the bill plans were made to make contracts with each railroad company for government compensation on the basis provided in the bill.

The action of the government in thus assuming control of the railroads very naturally led to wide differences of opinion, some of which were sharply expressed in the Congress of the United States. On the whole, however, public opinion decided that the government acted wisely. Certain inconveniences to the traveling public were easily excused when it was realized that the movement of troops throughout the country to the camps, or from the camps to the ports which were to take them across the sea, from "Texas to Toul," was being accomplished with great success; that the movement of war material was now possible, and that the gigantic railroad system was working without a hitch.

Many details, in connection with the railroad management, were not at once worked out, and many months passed without complete agreements regarding the railway operating contracts. But this was a matter of greater interest to the owners than it was to patriotic citizens, anxious for the winning of the war. Governmental control of the railroads, was only a beginning. On July 16th President Wilson took control, for the period of the war, of all telegraph, telephone, cable and radio lines, signing a bill on that day passed by Congress authorizing such action.

The transportation of the American army across the ocean was the greatest military feat of its kind ever accomplished in history. The transportation of English troops during the Boer War meant a longer journey, but the number of troops sent on that journey was but a small fraction of America's army.

The railroads in existence were not sufficient. The ships that were necessary could not be found in America's navy. It was necessary to build new roads, new docks, new terminals, new bases of supplies in America, and to send abroad thousands of trained workmen and experienced railroad engineers to build similar necessities in France. To convey the millions of men across the water England had to come to the rescue, and though hundreds of American ships were built with a speed that was almost miraculous, they were in constant need of the assistance of the Allies. But wonderful men were put in charge of the work, wonderful organizers with wonderful assistants, and the great task was accomplished.

As soon as the army was trained it was sent across—first by thousands, then by tens of thousands, then by hundreds of thousands, until before the war was over more than two million men had made the great trip "over there." And throughout that whole trip they were watched over as carefully as if they were at home. Every want was supplied; food, clothing, munitions were all where they were needed. Even their leisure hours were looked after, their health attended to. Books, games, theaters, classes for those who cared to study, all were there.

It was a wonderful performance, and the whole movement was conducted with clock-like precision. On such a day at such an hour the trained soldier would start. At such an hour he would report in some Atlantic port. At such an hour and such a minute he would board ship, and with equal precision that ship would sail upon the appointed moment. Perhaps on the journey over some submarine might delay the ship, but the destroyers were there on the alert, and the submarine was but an amusing episode. On the other side the process was carried on with equal efficiency. Before the American doughboy could realize that he was in France he was in his quarters, just like home, in the base camps behind the fighting line and it was this miracle of transportation that won the war.

A study of transportation construction in other countries showed that actual construction of railroads had been suspended in some cases, and in others retarded, but in not a few instances hastened by the war. Brazil experienced a more nearly complete suspension of railroad building than any of the other countries, but preparation was made for prompt resumption of construction, with the return of more normal conditions.

The Chinese building program also had been affected unfavorably by the war. Nevertheless, there were important additions made, aggregating approximately 800 miles during the war. Of the lines completed in 1917, two are of especial significance. One of these, a 140-mile section of the Canton-Hankow line, a link in the route between South China and Peking. The other is a 60-mile feeder of the Trans-Siberian Railway in Manchuria. A line was extended from South Manchuria into Mongolia, the first railroad to penetrate this territory. Financial arrangements were made for the early construction of a line across Southern Manchuria and for another connecting the Peking-Hankow and Tientsin-Pukow lines.

Construction in Siberia proceeded rapidly. The completion, in 1915, of the Amur River division of the Trans-Siberian in the east, together with the extension in 1913 of the Ekaterinburg-Tiumen line to Omsk in the west, gave virtually a double track from European Russia to Vladivostok.