Introduction
he has taken the railway problem in its entirety
and has critically analysed the underlying basis
of freight rates especially in the south of
Madras in order to appraise their justifiability.
In doing so, he has taken a few commodities for
detailed investigation. He has followed this up
with an incisive study of railway administrative
policy and has subjected the various heads of
expenditure to close scrutiny. The end he has
kept in view has been to see how far railway
rates could be further lowered by economic
expenditure and sound policy. In order to make
the study comprehensive and to point out how
railway practice differs from theory, the author
has taken great pains to clarify the theory and
practice of railway rates. In his study of
freight rates and administrative policy, he has
also demonstrated, wherever necessary, the
points of contact between theory and practice.
In short, he has rightly sought to make this
theoretical discussion serve as a background to
what follows. Suggestions for the increase of
receipts and revenue have been offered in the
chapter on ' The problem of Increased Barn-
ings', and the ' Conclusion' focuses attention
on the correct policy to be adopted.
In his detailed investigation of road tran-
sport, the author has confined his study to motor
transport, as the other modes of transport are
, not of equal importance. Nevertheless, he has,
wherever necessary, dealt with the other means
of road 'transport. The author has ably striven
to study the operational basis of road transport
alone, so that the question of road finance and the
theoretical basis of taxation have not been gone
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