The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1880-11-13
RAILROAD MATTERS.
TUE RAILROAD WAR.

turc III the Southwestern Association rs
is called, Of railroads having each ndcpcnt
o. ent connection with Chicago, 81. Louis, Kan
sas city, Toledo, &c. The principal roads il
I vOlyed are thc Wabash combination, the Oh
cago and Alton, the C., Il. 4 @, the lllinoi
! Central, and {. Il. t. s. T., the last three IN
much less degree, however, than the Wabas
and Chicago and Alton. The war ragged bl
tcrly for several weeks, during which ticket
from Chicago to ST. Louis were sold at any
where from 81 to so cts. and to Kansas cit
from - down TO 81. Tickets were not ont
sold at these rates but were unlimited as I,
train and time. The result was that man,
thousands were bought 10y spectators anC
scalpers, enough to keep the roads-mainl,
the Chicago & Alton and Wabash-prett,
well supplied with passengers for a month o.
two to come. The competition became so no
and ruinous that finally-on the cpd of Octo
ber-a meeting of the presidents of the prin
cipal roads involved was called at New York
who proceeded to patch up a peace The
terms of that peace as understood by Presi
dent Humphreys and Jay Gould, of the
Wabash combination, were that the St Louis
and Chicago business was to be pooled
one,third going to the Wabash and twothirds
to the Alton and Illinois Central; and as Presi
dent Osborne, of the latter road, was not pres.
ent at this meeting of presidents, the prcsi
dent of the Alton road-Mr. T. b. Blackstone
was to arrange the terms of division with the
Illinois Central. Things moved along smooth
ly on this supposed understanding until week
ago, when the Illinois Central which had
heard nothing from Mr.. Blackstone about the
alleged agreement, finding the bulk of the
travel between Chicago and st. Louis going
over the rival roads on the cheap UNLIMITED"
tickets they had sold, dropped Its fare from
Chicago TO st. LOUIS one dollar This made
the Wabash folks mad and they put out
shingle Offering to carry passengers between
Chicago and ST. Louis for 81 less than any
other road" Thereupon the Alton got her
blood up and offered to carry passengers for 81
less than the Wabash. And so tho war goes
on. Anybody in Chicago desiring to 60 to
st. Louis, Kansas city, &c, can get a railroad
ticket for about any sum he chooses to pay, al
though the foolishncss Of selling UNLIMITED"
tickets in this second outbreak has thus far
been avoided. The Wabash folks of course
put the blame Of the renewal of the war on
Blackstone, throsgh his neglect to fix up terms
with the ILLINOIS Central, according to the
New York agreement; while Blackstone dc
MES that the New York agreement had any
reference 10 the business between Chicago
and Alton, of which his road does SO per cent,
but maintains that it referred solely to pass
enger business between Missouri river points
and Chicago, Toledo and Detroit" and there
lore had no reference to the Illinois Central,
fix up"
And so the war RACES with unabated fury.
The Alton, Wabash, Rock Island and Illinois
Central continue the sale of cheap fares to
and from all points in the southwest On
Wednesday few tickets from Chicago to Kan
sas city, by both the Wabash and Alton routes
were sole for 81, the ruling figures during the
lay, however, were 81 anu IS, though man
with but 81 in his pocket was not allowed to
go away ticketless. AS however, the tickets
are limited to day and train, the sales are like
wise limited the only buyers being actual
travellers. The Chicago Burlington and Quin-
~ was on Thursday still adhering to tariff rates,
but evidently can't hold on long in that way.
The number of travellers who are willing to
pay $l4.S0 for fare from Chicago to Kansas
City when tickets may be had for onc-tour.
centh part of that sum must De very small.