Page:The Working and Management of an English Railway.djvu/275

 of the railways by the Government are not reaped by the public, but are applied to the furtherance of political objects.

In Belgium, where, as before stated, the railways are worked as a department of the State, and the appointment of Minister of Railways is a political one, the patronage which lies in his gift is well known to be largely exercised for party purposes. Promotion in the service is entirely governed by consideration of the political tendencies of the individuals concerned, and when the Minister is a "Liberal" he will systematically refuse to appoint or promote officials who are known to belong to the "Clerical" party; while, on the other hand, if a "Clerical" Minister is in office, there is no hope of advancement for "Liberals " until their friends, in turn, succeed to power.

In Germany, where there has been considerable experience of the plan of working the railways as a Government Department, the financial result does not appear to be too encouraging. The Railway Department, it is true, figures in the Budget with a large annual profit, but this is only apparent, for the Landtag is every year called upon to vote supplies to be expended on the railways far in excess of the so-called profit, notwithstanding which loud complaints are heard of the want of sufficient plant for carrying on the working in an efficient manner.

The inference drawn from what is taking place in the older countries of Europe is in nowise contradicted by the experience gained from the result of the experiments tried in the new world at the Antipodes. The Victorian State Railways, which, until recently, were managed as a branch of the Government, somewhat on the plan