Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-08-03
KANSAS STATE NEWS.
Important Decision.

The Railroad Commissioner racantIv
made two important decisions. The arst
was in relation to switch charges ana 1xas
upon complaint of g. R. Anderson. 81 Mo.
hon. The decision was that the sscbsre,e ~
1--we dollars per car made by the M,ssouri
Pacific Railway for the SWITCHING 90 oo.l
over one-halt mile Of their track at Fort
Scott, from the junction OF the Missouri
racine Railway with the Kansas City, Fort
scott q Gulf Railway, to be Transported
! over the latterroad, is excessive and exorbi.
tant. The Board finds that. for the same
service at the same place, the CHARGE Of
NIFTY cents per car is made for the transfer
OF live stock and one dollar per car load
Tor the transfer OF fence posts. The BOARD
further finds that no extra power or force
is employed by the Missouri Pacific Rail.
way to perform this service in addition IN
that employed in operating the usual
freight trains on their line" Tho BOARD
decided that not to exceed two dollars nor
car was sufficient charge for such service.
Ihe Board is also ''of the opinion that
such switching expense should not
De borne by the shipper. lint
that the railroads, at points where thew
center and receive freight from connecting
lines should provide such facilities for the
transfer OF shipments by connections other
wise as will in no way discriminate against
shippers engaged in business on connect
ing lines Of road."-The second decision
related to the charges made to sbinners
who use elevators and those who do not.
This complaint was from Eudora. The
party complaining in this instance stated
that ha xua rho
from Eudora to Kansas City, two cents per
hundred pounds over and above the rate Of
grain shipped over the same line when con-
signed to elevators. His grain was
consigned to the Zenith mills
The railroad admitted the charge
and justified it by showing that ''whers
grain is promptly delivered to elevators it
is, as rule, promptly disposed of, requires
less switching and less labor in every way
at our Missouri River stations than when
delivered on the track" The Commission.
ers reviewed the case at some length, and
decided that these considerations presented
possible state of things which is likely
TO entail great loss on the Company by i'm
peding its business, and Inconvenience on
the public by abridging the Com.
pany's carrying facilities. 1t is,
on many accounts, highly desirable
that shippers should avail themselves of
the facilities provided for herapid loading
and unloading of grain off and on cars. .
Besides, it is not fair nor reasonable that
the shipper who, to avoid and save elevator
charge, unloads his grain by methods that
detain the car upon the track at the place
of delivery for twelve hours should be
charged the same and no more than one
who, by paying for the use of modern
methods, detains the car but one-fourth of
of that time" The practice of taxing side
track deliveries by an increased rate on
shipment, the Board said was not sanctioned
by the law. The Commissioners were
of the opinion ''that the more just method,
and one more in consonance with the spirit
of the law, would be to tax the detention
of the cars by way of demurrage, beyond
such time as the Company shall fix as
reasonable, having reference to all the
facilities available at point of destination"
In this case the complainant shipped to the
Zenith mill, and it does not appear that he
was chargeable with unreasonably detain
ing the cars, and the Board thought the
rate Of two cents extra in the rate to him
was excessive.