be concurrently made, on the corporate books, corresponding entries debiting and crediting the United States Government with assets collected and liabilities paid. 9. Transactions relating to operations, as defined in paragraph 6 hereof, if not previously accrued, shall be included in and shall form a part of the operating results of each carrier regardless of the date thereof. Items clearly applicable to the period prior to January 1, 1918, commonly called "lap-overs," shall be ascertained currently, set up on the Federal books, and included in the appropriate accounts as heretofore. At the end of each month, the total of "lap-over" credit items shall be charged to an unadjusted debit account styled “Revenue prior to January 1, 1918," and credited to a deferred liability account styled "(Name of corporation)-Revenue prior to January 1, 1918." The total of "lap-over" debit items shall be credited to an unadjusted credit account styled "Expense prior to January 1, 1918," and charged to a deferred asset account styled "(Name of corporation)-Expense prior to January 1, 1918." Operating revenues which have been accrued currently in accordance with the established practice of the carrier shall be considered as current revenues and not as "lap-over" items. 10. The accounts between the United States Government and the corporation, for which provision is made herein, shall be adjusted in such manner as may be hereafter agreed upon. 11. Inquiries as to the interpretation and application of the provisions of this order and the procedure to be observed under its requirements shall be addressed to the Director of Public Service and Accounting. W. G. McADOO, Director General of Railroads. GENERAL ORDER NO. 18. WASHINGTON, April 9, 1918. Whereas the act of Congress approved March 21, 1918, entitled "An act to provide for the operation of transportation systems while under Federal control," provides (section 10) "That carriers while under Federal control shall be subject to all laws and liabilities as common carriers, whether arising under State or Federal laws or at common law, except in so far as may be inconsistent with the provisions of this act or with any order of the President. But no process, mesne or final, shall be levied against any property under such Federal control"; and * * * Whereas it appears that suits against the carriers for personal injuries, freight and damage claims are being brought in States and jurisdictions far remote from the place where plaintiffs reside or where the cause of action arose, the effect thereof being that men operating the trains engaged in hauling war materials, troops, munitions, or supplies are required to leave their trains and attend court as witnesses, and travel sometimes for hundreds of miles from their work, necessitating absence from their trains for days and sometimes for a week or more, which practice is highly prejudicial to the just interests of the Government and seriously interferes with the physical operation of the railroads, and the practice of suing in remote jurisdictions is not necessary for the protection of the rights or the just interests of plaintiffs. It is therefore ordered, That all suits against carriers while under Federal control must be brought in the county or district where the plaintiff resides, or in the county or district where the cause of action arose. W. G. MCADOO, Director General of Railroads. GENERAL ORDER No. 18-A. WASHINGTON, April 18, 1918. General Order No. 18 issued April 9, 1918, is hereby amended to read as follows: It is therefore ordered that all suits against carriers while under Federal control must be brought in the county or district where the plaintiff resided at the time of the accrual of the cause of action or in the county or district where the cause of action arose. W. G. McADOO, Director General of Railroads. GENERAL ORDER No. 19. WASHINGTON, April 13, 1918. Pursuant to the proclamation of the President of the United States, the undersigned, as Director General of Railroads, has taken possession and assumed control of the Clyde Steamship Co., Mallory Steamship Co., Merchants & Miners Transportation Co., and Southern Steamship Co., at 12.01 a. m., Saturday, April 13, 1918. Until further order it is directed that: First. All officers, agents, and employees of said steamship lines may continue in the performance of their present regular duties, reporting to the same officers as heretofore and on the same terms of employment. Second. Any officer, agent, or employee desiring to retire from his employment shall give the usual and seasonable notice to the proper officer to the end that there may be no interruption or impairment of the transportation service required for the successful conduct of the war and the needs of general commerce. W. G. McADOO, Director General of Railroads. GENERAL ORDER NO. 20. WASHINGTON, D. C., April 22, 1918. Effective at once, technical and arithmetical examination and checking of all operating bills such as bills for freight and other claims, joint facilities, car repairs, and other similar bills and all statements of accounts such as distribution of freight and passenger revenues and other similar statements, rendered by one carrier subject to Federal control to or against another carrier subject to Federal control, which accrued or which may accrue on or subsequent to January 1, 1918, shall be discontinued. The carrier rendering such statements, bills, etc., shall take the necessary measures to insure the correctness thereof. W. G. McADOO, Director General of Railroads. GENERAL ORDER NO. 21. WASHINGTON, D. C., April 22, 1918. 1. SIMPLIFIED BASES FOR APPORTIONING INTERROAD FREIGHT REVENUES TO CARRIERS PERFORMING THE SERVICE. 1. Pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (13) of General Order No. 11, dated March 16, 1918, with respect to the adoption of universal interline waybilling, the following regulations will be observed beginning with the May, 1918, accounts in apportioning freight revenues to individual carriers subject to Federal control which perform interroad freight service. 2. In cases where interline billing has been in effect covering all or a major portion of freight traffic interchanged between two or more carriers via the same route, although the interline waybill may not cover the movement from origin to final destination of the traffic: (a) The waybill destination carrier shall determine, from interline division statements for the period of 12 months ended December 31, 1917, the aggregate freight revenue on interline freight traffic from each initial waybilling carrier separately via each route. There shall likewise be determined the amount apportioned to each individual carrier separately via each route. There shall be included in such aggregate freight revenue, and in the amounts due to each carrier, as their interests may appear, terminal allowances, bridge tolls, lighterage, insurance, and other arbitraries. If the interline method of accounting became effective via any route subsequent to January 1, 1917, the division statements for the longest period obtainable (not exceeding 12 months) prior to May 1, 1918, shall be used. (b) From the aggregate freight revenue, and the revenue due to each carrier via each route, ascertained in the manner prescribed in the preceding paragraph, the ratio of the revenue allotted to each carrier via each route to the total revenue shall be determined and stated in two figure per cents; such per cents shall be designated as “road to road" per cents. The per cents thus determined for each route shall be used for apportioning the revenue from the traffic moving over it on interline waybills to be accounted for beginning with May, 1918, accounts, until and unless otherwise ordered. (c) When the accounts for commodities moving in large volumes, such as coal, have, as a matter of general practice, been kept separately, separate road to road per cents, based on revenues from that class of traffic, may be determined as above prescribed and used in apportioning the revenues therefrom. 3. In cases where interline waybilling has not been in effect or where it has been applied to only a small part of the traffic moved between two or more carriers via the same route: (d) Destination carriers of the freight shall apportion and settle the revenues on interline waybills to be accounted for in May, 1918, accounts on bases of established divisions. From the totals of proportions thus settled, destination carriers shall compute two figure per cents for traffic for each initial carrier via each route. Such per cents are herein designated as "road to road" per cents and shall be used thereafter to apportion revenues via such roads and routes, respectively, on that class of traffic unless and until otherwise ordered. When traffic moves only in small volume, destination carriers may compute two figure station to station per cents based on revenues produced by the application of established division bases, and use such station to station per cents instead of the road to road per cents. (e) In the event freight traffic moves during the month of June, 1918, or thereafter via routes over which there were no freight movements covered by interline waybills prior thereto, destination carriers shall apply the established divisions in apportioning the revenue on such shipments during the month in which the traffic first moves. Thereafter, the revenue on such traffic shall be divided on either road to road or station to station per cents as may be applicable. (f) When the accounts for commodities moving in large volumes, such as coal, have as a matter of general practice, been kept scparately, separate road to road per cents based on revenue from that class of traffic may be determined as herein prescribed and used in apportioning the revenues therefrom. 4. In cases where freight traffic moves via unusual or diverted routes over which no divisions apply and via which no experience can be obtained, destination carriers shall apportion the revenues therefrom on a 20-mile block-mileage basis, each carrier to be allowed at least 20 miles and originating and terminal carriers an additional 20 miles each as constructive mileage. 5. The formulæ prescribed herein for apportioning interline freight revenues to carriers performing the service are intended to preserve, as equitably as practicable, the integrity of the revenues of individual carriers, and their use shall be generally observed. If by reason of new traffic developments, or the abnormal shifting of traffic, the continued application of the road to road per cents herein provided for might seriously distort the revenues of interested carriers, the destination carrier may, upon its own initiative or by request, test apportionment of revenues for a specific month or period by applying the established division bases thereto. If results thus obtained vary substantially from the results obtained by the application of road to road per cents as herein provided for, and the change appears to be permanent, application may be made to the Director of Public Service and Accounting to adjust the divisions to such bases as will produce more equitable results. Applications for changed apportionment bases based upon ordinary traffic fluctuations will not be considered. II. MODIFICATION OF PRACTICES IN ACCOUNTING FOR FREIGHT AND RELATED REVENUES. 6. Destination carriers shall completely revise waybills as to rates, classifications, extensions, footings, weights, etc., thus insuring the correctness of the revenues based on tariffs applicable, and they shall account to interested carriers for their respective proportions of such revenues in the manner hereinbefore prescribed. If flagrant or continued use of erroneous rates or classifications be observed by destination carriers, the attention of billing carriers must be specially called thereto. Where ordinary changes or corrections are made in waybilled revenue by destination agents, correction notices need not be made therefor to intermediate or originating carriers unless advances or prepaid charges be involved. 7. Paragraph 10 of General Order No. 11 provides that settlements by destination carriers with all other interested carriers shall be accepted as final. This provision discontinues the adjustment among |