The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-06-17
THE RAILROAD COMMITTEE.
Determination In Freights between New
York aud the Interior.

Mr. J. II. Rutter, General Traffic Manager
Of the New York Central and Hudson River
Railroad Company. was recalled to the witness
stand at The opening Of yesterdays session Of
the Assembly Special Committee on Railroads
Western roads. he said. name tho tariffs on cast
bound freight. and Eastern roads for west-boun
freight. All rates arc based on Chicago. An or
binary car load is ten tons. but lrst-class west
bound frcights do not average more than from
six to seven tons. Tho cooperative freight lines
operating over the New York Central and Hud-
son River Railroad are the Red White"
Blue" Canada Southern" and Hoosac
Tunnel" There is also one special corporation
Of this nature. the Merchants Despatch" All
the through business Is done by those freight
companies. and they divide the Tariffs In pro-
portion to the mileage Of the different roads
over which the freight is carried. He had never
been able 20 determine definitely tho cost Of
transportation Of freight for ho could not tell
what portion Of officials salaries ami other gem
eral expenses should be charged 10 the freight
account Tho business Of the road might be
doubled and vet not add % per cent. to- OK
penses. Ilo had no expert knowledge of the
actual cost of trnnspo rtution rs based upon the
clements Of runl, grade. bulk ~ traffic or Kind
Of traffic. Special rates to shippers have greatly
decreased since 1870.
Special rates have heretofore been given to
business, The dav before the ratc tn the gem
erNl puhliN on grain WINS , cents per cWt. 4
contract at lessor rate was made with David
Dows y Co.. which was l2's cents per cwt. on
grain from Chicago. Thut contract WIS made
~ May, iNSt. upon the basis 81 their receiving
300 rar loads oi grain. Anybody else APPLYING
Tor the r.tr NJ mat tine would have got the
cents Mns. on the dav II WIS given. an open
rate Twelve and u half cents he did not deem
a,paying rate f1r hauling 'roieht over the length
hauled westward over the whole length " tho
New YORK Central Railroad. ms tncy pick up
loNuS on ln' why, m RV,Hge ol 90 ccpis lgr
cWt between New YORK and Chicago would give
tho roads u iair profit. In 1872 and 1873 tho
average was over 40 cents On wcst-bouud
Nj, Harvey. Harrington. wholesale grocer
testified mat his customers do not visit New
did. Ono cause for this no supposed to he the
selling ~ goods 10y samples offered 60 custom
ers at their own stores hy interior lohhers. n
system originally innugurUted by manufactur-
roads Ia IN" Interior Jobbcrs he deemed another
cause. II enables them TO lay down goods 10
th"ir customers more cheapy than New York
lohners cnn and consequently they get the
trade; llc did not know Of any special cases Of
disrrimination. His firm does much less with
retail dealers now than It used to. but u great
deal with Interior lobhcrs and they make their
own arrangements with the railroads for specinl
rates. A year ago he and other New York deal
crs asked 10 have teas reduced from second TO
third class 10 enable them TO compete with Chit
caEo lobucrs, who get their teas over the Pacific
Railroad. as New Workers also do in great part
but tn.y Were refused.
r. l.. blhNtn. cashier To IS Il. Huhhltt X Co,
soap manufacturers. test fed that the firm with
which hr WAS connected sold large quantities ~
soap 10 Crous" K Co. OF Syracuse. Generally
the schedule rate was deducted. but when the
lowest ratio they could got from the New York
Central and Hudson River Railroad was IL
cents Grouse & Co. were getting $ cents. and 50
ma.ing ( eents ut IL M, New York manufa'-
turrrs. Mr. Goodman, tho assistant freight
agent. refused 20 give Babbiti e.. tho sam,
rate ~ Grouse Go. were getting. saying that
tho shipments ~ Grouse & Co. Amounted 10
seventy ear loads per week. but said that hc
would give Babbitt \ Co. special rates also
wh'h inc cana WAS otened. Ihcy had found
the same q difficulties IN shipping 10 lohhers Ia
Buffnlo and Rochester. Throughout the State.
IN iact. they had found that the interior mer-
chants could all get better rites from the New
York Central and Hudson River Railroad Com
pany than they could
Robert r Austin. wholesale grocer. testified
that his Gust Omers do not come To- New York to
bay rs mu n as they used to. and he believed
the cause was the special rates given by the
rMir9ada 10 interior lobhers. He thought It
added a per cent. 10 the cost OF goods TO handle
them ~ small lots.
Mr. Rnttsr resumed his place on the witness
stand. He snid that rates on frelghis. when
there Is compgtltlon between rival companies.
might vary dozen times in single day-de-
pendent upon the number OF cars on hand to
load and the anxiety 10 procure freight for
shipment. There is an agreement now respect
ing west-bound freights from New York be-
E% rs nn nf sM d ht 0n2 PgRndpsyyanna
has been IN operation Two years. II Is a
pool. dividing tho business AMI giving
Fink j. tho general comm ssioner 81 that pool
Tho New York Central Company, whom the
pool was formed. got oue-third ~ the business
from New York. the other two-thiris going To
%" Pennsylvania aud Eric roads. the peuusyl-
vAula and Baltimore and Ohio making a FUR
tlnr special division between them. The New
York nirAl was not satisfied with that. and
claimed 40 per cent. Three or four months ago
they We're allowed % per cent On the statistics
of their through tranir To- the hands II Commits
siuuer Fink. The pool is ON west hound fire. .ht
only. There De- pool between this rool and the
Grand Trunk Hallway regarding freight from
Bo9' y. and there - aa agrec mont for q pool
between an the roads from Boston westward.
| hut .is percentages have not yet been arranged.
TIA" pool agreement covers freight vs. stWdri-
bound from Philad.lphin and Baltimore. us
well rs Now YORK. The differences in rriehts
between Philadephia and Baltimore and Now
YORK were forced upon the New York Central
road. An agreement Otherwise could not have
been effected The difference ia not an unjust
dis Elimination but is based upon Just allowance
prOpQruoncd TO distance 4 discrimination in
New 1ogk's favor on the same principle US
against Boston was NOE made because. first. II
has always been customary 10 consider that the
rates from Boston and New York should be tho
same. and. second. because the difference in
distance from those cities 10 the West-say to
ChicagO-is not sum ,ient 10 be important The
existing rates are 10 exist until the % Of this
month. and then will be raised from the bas Ii
Of 10 cents 10 20 cents on fourth class cast
bound.