The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1878-10-19


Present Action Of tho Charlotte
| Railroad. -..,
letter 10 Mc Col,ns5ia Register
EpIToR REGIsTER J. have seen in
your paper one or two articles re-
forring to the new management Of
the Charlotte, Columbia and Augus-
ta Railroad, and giving them credit
for great and salutary changes in
tho regulation of their rates of
freight, &c. 1t has moro especially
been stated that they would 10
longer allow determinations in favor
OF either particular points or partic-
ulor shippers. Will you allow nc
to say 1cw words on the subject?
And, in doing SO, 1 will state first,
that my information is haq from tho
BEST sources.
This road, as is probably well
known, is operated under the char
ter granted the old Charlotte and
South Carolina ii tho year 1916.
The object of this charter was. aud
still is. to secure uninterrupted com-
munication inland with the North
aud West oM Charlotte, anha rnusc
was accordingly inSerteI3 3rcpuirjnr
that the two oads &houlI be con
ncctel, that ts>e gauges q oull be
the same, and that the Connection
shnuld "ncvcr be scvcrcd." The
spirit of this clause has been sYs-
tematically violated. 1t Was yiolat-
ed when the track at tho old Char.
lotto junction Of tho South Carolina
Railroad was tnkcn up; again when
a contract was entered into between
the two roads which made it impos-
sible for freight to pass from one
road to the other, and again when
the passenger trans we're run in
such II way rs never to connect.
This arrangement, it is said, WAS
forced upon the South Carolina
Railroad by Mr. a. Pope, general
freight agent, Atlantic Coast Limo
H apologize if T. have omitted any
initials y but it is difficult to under.
stand how Il railroad corporation can
be forced into a palpable violation
OF the law, however often they may
have been known to outrage the
public of their own free will
Whether this agreement is still in
force remains to be made known by
Mr.. Haas. It appears that the
noIthcrn-bonnd passenger trains
now connect. Does any one know
whether the other restrictions Of the
iniquitous contract have been re-
moved
And here itmay be well to note
en- 2;nsSaHt n small matter OF fare
paid by passengers on the Charlotte,
Columbia and Augusta Eailroad
stopping at Columbia. "A passenger
from Wmnsboro to Columbia, for
instance, pays S1.90, or five cents
per mile on thirty eight miles, as
shown by their public notices. The
distance between tho depots is
thirty. five miles, the other three
miles being, that portion of the old
road reaching from Columbia depot
to the old junction with the South
Carolina Railroad, part of which is
and none Of which the
passenger passes over. [ am free to
acknowledge there is no discrimina
ton here every passenger getting
off at Columbia is made to pay the
the extra fifteen cents with the ut
most impartiality. But T am not so
ready to concedo the application of
the same principle always in. tho
matter of freight rates over this
road. J. do not moan to say that
determinations arc made, to any
great extent, by the present manage
mont, in favor Of particular points
along the line Of the road, but do
say that the rates have been so ar
ranged as to discriminate as far as
possible against all Southern ship
pers, and in favor of Northern Ship
pers. In other words, I say that
the present managers propose to
run the Charlotte, Columbia and
Augusta Railroad as a feeder for
the benefit of the Piodm ont route
North, and tho Richmond and DAHL
vile road in particular, just as Mr..
A. Popc, general freight and passen-
ger agent, Atlantic Coast Line, etc,
used tho road as feeder for tho
Atlantic Coast Line TO effect this
object tho first change mado was q
temporary increase of the Southern
rates, and reduction of Northern
rates. This was done by Mr.. Haas
order early in September A little
later these were revised and the
Southern rates were lowered to last