Weekly Trinity journal., 1874-01-31

fares under this bill in certain cases. On
the Oakland route, the first thing the
present company did after acquiring pos
session was to raise the fares and they
did not put them down until an opposi-
ton steamer forced them to do so. The
only reason why they remained down
was because there was a number of small
steamers lying around the bay ready to
come in at the very moment they shoule
attempt to raise the fares. The same
state Of things applied to Chico, situated
within a few miles of the Sacramento
river; and to Sacramento, where the
steamer Whtpple was plying, furnishing
the only reason why the fare from Sac
mento to San Francisco was not s..
What the Legislature should do, in his
opinion, was to come to the rescue of
weaker portions of the State which could
not set on foot such competitive agencies
as could regulate these matters Of them
selves in the heart of population and bust
ness" Now observe Coggins states the
competitive principle and admits it, but
turns right about and dubs him self SILLY
boy" by asking Legislative agencies to
undo what nature has done. In other
words Squatham is 200 miles from mar
ket Pinhook is 100 miles. Now, Cog
gins would legislate so as to place Sqat-
ham and Pinhook on a market equality
at the expense of the unfortunate carrier
who vibrates between market and Squat
ham.
BOWERS thought it strange after all
that had been said before the people, that
members came to legislate totally unin-
formed upon the fundamental principles
OF the question.
On Saturday the debate was resumed.
SWIFT again spoke but adduced no argu-
ment, gave no figures, cited no points OF
excellence in the bill, simply warned the
Dolys OF duty and told them to swallow
the bill. | am perfectly fair in summa-
rizng all he said.
EsTEE would amend to exempt San
/ Francisco and Oakland from the fare I"
provisions, and limit the ferry TO Is cents
per passenger. This brought the coun-
try members about his ears and his
amendment was stamped out instantly.
Estee declared the bill would, for this
reason, become the most unpopular of
measures in San Francisco, but legisla-
tors cried out whole hog" you want no
To- ard :.
the first to ask for iavors she shall not
have them. Estee plead long and well,
but to no avail.
FREEMAN, author of the bill, said Tin
nin's amendment would increase the pro
posed rates 15 on roads over 80 miles
long.
GRAY said l am pledged to regulate
freights and fares, but how can | vote
for this bill when it will raise them in
Butte county and kill of our little rail
road.
COGGINs got up again and said the c..
L. X. Il. brought ore from Ogden for IA
cents per ton per mile and he thought
could afford to carry groceries to Read
ing and return gram tor cents. Poor
Coggins He can't or won e SET the ore
is carried to prevent the trade gong east,
and to foster an industry az JuUOr OF Cal
ifornia, and that the ore rate is not a
basis rate.
KLoTz said Tinnin's amendment would
make freight to Reading Sl4 40 per ton.
The present rate is SIS ; formerly it was
$25 to $50.
/ TINNIN warmly opposed the bill rs it
Disseminated against his county. He
was brief, but right to the point. The
amendment was lost.
AMENDMENTS.
After this host of amendments were
offered. Some were mere clerical cor
rections and were adopted. An attempt
to reduce the advance on charges pro-
vided for in the bill at 90 per cent. to 25
per cent, where the altitude of the road
exceeds $500 feet, was lost.
| BOWERS made this the occasion for n
concise speech. He showed the cost of
mountain roads to be five or six times ms
great as valley divisions, in merely oper-
ating alone. He pointed out how the
larger engines tear up the road more,
how more engines and fewer cars com
pose trains, the wear of break power, the
grinding of the rails, etc. All this was
in addition to natural difficulties to over
come, such a snow mountains, making
tunnels, snowshed-, etc. He quoted the
universally admitted proposition that for
every rise Of 20 feet in ii mile, the work
required to overcome the same. is equal
| toj traversing an additional mile of level
| line. That gives, he said, the ratio basis
for fairly adjusting this matter of freights
on steep grades. The facts justify, he
proved, greater increase than so per
cent. Next came the proposition to COM
pei the roads to load the freight.
FERGUSON moved to amend so it should
apply to regular stations only. With
out thnt qualification all the accommo-
dating side tracks to farms and way sta
tions would be abandoned and every one
would have to 60 to a regular station,
for no road could keep force to load
cars at every side track.
SWIFT said it had been decided to
leave the bill as it was, and thus again the
party lash was cracked. Gilmore, Tully,
and Klotz supported the amendment.
AMMERNAN showed how on the littla
road to Vacaville it would cost more to
load a car than the bill allows for freight,
| tho rnfn Of frninhi hninor 90 nnntc u-hiln Il