The Portland daily press., 1885-04-17
OuR FRREGMTs.
wha, Prominen, Railroad MAN says.

What n PrOninent Railroad Man Says.
reporter for the PRESS had conversation
with prominent railroad man yesterday,
OF this city, who has no interests either in the
Boston and Maine, or Boston and Lowell
roads, in reference TO the so-called diserimina-
ton in freights against Portland. The gentle
man said that all this talk of the Boston &
Maine discriminating against Portland was
sheer nonsense. The Boston & Maine do bus-
ness, said he, gust as We merchants said in Sat-
urdays Press, to make money for their stock
holders. In order to do that they get all the
business they can from whosoever it is possible
to procure it. had long talk, he said. with
the managers Of the Boston & Maine the other
day, and they stated that this talk about the
Boston & Maine trying to reduce Portland to a
one-horse town was absurd. Their desire is TO
build np Portland By doing all the business
with it they can, and by their withdrawal from
the color-line combination they really enable
Portland merchants to compete with Boston
on much more favorable terms than ever be-
lore. For instance, under the colored line sys-
tenn, and by the laws of New Hampshire aud
Masssch husetts, il Portsmouth, n. H., is bill
ing point, as we'll as Portland and Lewiston.
at, say, rate OF $50 from st. Louis to either of
these places, the Boston & Maine would receive
Sno more for the long hauls of freight say from
Bcston to Portland or Lewiston than for the
short haul from Boston to Portsmouth, thus
virtually destroying their local business cut of
which the profit comes. BY going out of the
colored line combination and establishing their
own local rates, they really institute better
condition Of things for the Portland merchant
as against Boston, because the Portlander re-
ceiving his -four or corn via the Portland &
Ogdeneburg, on oolored line rates, can send the
stuff to points over the Boston & Maine, after
- reaches Portland, at local freight charges,
which, ,sin many instances are better ION &C.
count of the situation of the points to which
goods are to be shipped) for Portland
than for Boston merchants, thus max
ing the competition-if any--between Boston
and Portland, favorable for Portland. The
Boston & Maine people told this gentleman
that they had big feeder at one end of their
line and their object was to get as large feeders
at the other end as possible, and, being inter- .
ested in the Maine Central, they would natur.
ally strive SO that that road shall have the ae.
vantage of short hauls over long hauls in local
freights.
There is still another point said the gentle
man. Our merchants are impressed and nat
urally, with the value Of the Portland & Og-
densbnrg to Portland. Very we'll. II they
viii examine the directors. reports of that road
they will see that the receipts of the summer
business, given to the Portland Z Ogdensburg
by the Boston & Maine, at North Conway, far
exceed in value all the profits that road gets
from other sources the remaining nine months
In the year. Doesth look as If the Boston &
Maine was unirendly to the Ogdensburg? Now
as for the Boston & Lowell their summer busi-
ness, which they are trying to build up, must
come from the other side of the mountains and
the Portland & ogdensburg wouldn't get the
advantage OF q cent. 1t is right and proper for
the Portland & Ogdensburg to make as ad van
tageous terms with the Boston & Lowell as
possible; in fact they must do SO. But the Bos-
ton " Lowell as soon as they find they are not
gaining any advantages in freights.as part of
the colored line, will pull cut and fix their own
rates and Portland will then have to pay what
ever that road sees fit, or go back. as was said
the other day, to the Grand Trunk which will
perhaps raise rates also. Bear in mind, said
the gentleman, that freight charges mast be
made at a rate that will pay the carrier just az
| charges in any other line of business.
From the Boston Evening Record)
The Portland PRESS reports good deal OF
dissatisfaction among the merchants of that
city because the Boston & Maine, since the ac-
QUESTION of the Eastern, has refused to contin.
ne Portland as billing point for through
frsights from the West at Boston rates, and
now exacts an arbitrary Of cents per 100 lbs
in addition to its mileage proportion OF the
through rate. Portland's only other western
outlets are the Portland & Ogdensburg and the
Grand Trunk. The former runs only to Fab
yans, in tho White Mountains, and there con-
meets with The Boston & Lowell, which now
controls to Lake Champlain. And some of the
merchants fear that the Boston & Lowell be-
i ing Boston line, will discriminate. against
Portland, and that if it does the Grand Trunk
will do tho same. 1t is feared that the Boston
& Maine and the Portland & Ogdensburg will
effect . consolidation, and then the hope that
|. some have from the Boston & Lowell's control
of the Vermont division will be cut off.
This article was shown to prominent offic-
ial of the Boston & Lowell road today and he
remarked that lew years ago the people of
Portland had the opportunities for indeper-
dece and they still have one. They controlled
the Portland & Rochester road and this had q
good connection with Boston, which enabled
the Boston & Lowell to give them much lower
rates than they have today. But in a moment of
false economy they sold it and it is nov in the
consolidation against which they charge extor-
tion. They control lthe Portland s. Ogdeps-
hur md fbax- do ELL Aha+
ored lines which run over it, coming through
Vermont from New York and the West, will
be very likely to be continued, proyid cd the
Boston & Lowell, which does not pretend to be-
charitable institution, and is looking sharply
after profit from its business finds that the
business pays its Vermont division and it's
White Mountains division. There is no pur-
pose to divert business from Portland which
naturally goes there But the city Of Portl and
can easily bottle up its merchants If it thinks
that chance TO derive interest from its invest
ment in the Portland & Ogdensburg is worth
more Than the preservation of an open and
friendly limo. When the Boston & Lowell
took the Vermont division they found it
blocked with Zoo cars of freight which it had
not the power to promptly haul out. Locomo-
tsyes were at once forwarded, and the freight
taken to it's destination. This illustrates the
advantage OF having so important road in the
control OF strong corporation. But they have
not yet had it long enough to test for them-
selves the value of that traffic 1t is said to be-
fairly remunerative. The late Mr.. Mills
found iC be quite SO on the Ogdensburg &
Lake Champtain. 1t is highly probable, there
fore, that if the city of Portland does nothing
to make useless the good understanding that
exists between the Boston & Lowell and the
receiver of the Portland & Ogdensburg, the
business of the lines will be continued and
there will be no ground for apprehension.
National Encnmpment.
s. g. Lawrence Pest 66, G. A. b., of Med