Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-12-01
ST. PAUL NEWS.
TRANSPORTATION NOTES.
Rate Cutting to Chicago.

Rate Cutting to Chicago.
The difficulties between the Chicago,
Milwaukee & ST. Paul road, the Albert Lea
route, and the Chicago, st. Paul Omaha
road, the three lines from st. Paul to Chi
cago, have at last reached point to which
they have been tending for several months.
It is we'll understood that the managers OF
the roads met a year ago and entered into
an agreement, fixing the rates between st.
aul and Chicago at 50 and $12. This
agreement will expire in about one month
To make the matter more bind
ing on the local ticket
agents here in ST. Paul, they got together
and made what they called a local agree
ment, the objects of which was to main
tain the rates fixed upon by the general
managers. Into this agreement the differ
ent roads spoken of took certain number
of ticket brokers, commonly called scalp
ers, to whom tickets were to be sold. The
brokers were required to deposit $50,
against which the agents were to draw IN
case they violated any part of the agree
ment. The purpose of the agreement was
good, but, if what the agents have said,
from the first, is true, the agree
ment has been violated right
straight along from the beginning,
by the scalpers, and by some if not ali the
roads themselves. Complaints against
one of the roads have been frequently
made, and IN most cases the charges have
been maintained. Within the last two or
three weeks the violations of the agree
ment here in ST. Paul have been very i'm
perfectly concealed, and during the past
week almost openly proclaimed. 1t is be-
yond question the fact that rates have
been cut right along; yet while the scalp
ers were selling the tickets on
the street at a cut, the
railroads all declared and protested
that they were living up to the agreement
and the public was puzzled to know how
the scalpers could live by buying tickets
at So and selling them at $3.50. Finally,
those seal ers who we're in the agreement
found there was more money outside the
agreement than there was inside, and be-
gan to withdraw; and still it was main
tanned by the railroad men that they were
maintaining rates. To test the matter cut
rate tickets were bought in considerable
Quantities by one of the roads and pre-
sented to one of the other roads that had
sold them for redemption. For a time
these tickets were redeemed at regular
etes, but as any one could see it could not
proceed this way for any great length of
time. Buying at high price and selling
for smaller price was not the way to
make money and gradually the redemp
ton business became more and more dis
gushing till finally an end was put to 1t.
While all this has been going on, and es
pecially within the last week, diligent efforts
have been made to settle up matters and
thus to keep the local agreement alive.
This seems, at last to have failed utterly
and the local agreement is practically
annulled, as the Chicago, st. Paul q Omaha
road verbally declined to redeem tickets
generally. The Chicago, Milwaukee 81 st.
Paul, and the Albert Lea roads offer to re-
deem all tickets, but this The Chicago, st.
Paul & Omaha was not willing to agree to.
Consequently the local agreement goes to
pieces. This will not necessarily result
in any very serious cutting of rates mas
much as though the local agreement has
gone to pieces, still all the ticket agents
are bound by the man
ayers agreement to maintain the rates
agreed upon. The result will probably
be that commissions will be paid to
scalpers, which will substantially fix the
rates ct $3.50 and $1,000 to Chicago.
II 10 AOIO tldu ldiI "
state that the Chicago, st. Paul & Omaha
road gives as reason for refusing to re-
deem generally that the other two roads
watch the Chicago, st. Paul g. Omaha
trains, and induce passengers to give up
the tickets they have purchased from that
road, and in place thereof accept tickets
over the other two roads. Then these
tickets are presented for re-
demption at face value under
the agreement. Other tickets
than these the Omaha road iswilling to re-
deem, but these it is not. The other two
roads reply that this is merely subter-
fuge; that the Omaha road has the same
chance to get passengers off their trains,
as they have to get them from tho Omaha
road, and that there is nothing in this out
pretense. The Omaha road responds 10
This by saying that 1t is against the policy
of that road to keep runners on the street
and around the railroad depots to rope in
passengers. This in brief was the stu
atiOu last NIGHT