Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1886-03-18
THE REBATE QUESTION.
Answer OF the Railroad Commissions
ers u Numerous Inquiries.

The Board of Railroad Commissioners have
been frequently of late In receipt of letters of
| complaint on subjects OF public interest A
case at Eagle Grove has occupied their atten-
| ton few days, and the following letter was
| recently mailed as an answer from the Com
missioners The case is explained In the let
| ter:
DEs MONIES, Iowa. March IL, 1856 Ron
| s. IL, Heuett, Eagle GroUe, IoDd.-DEAR SIR:
Your postal cards dated Feb. 9th and March
| 10, also letter OF the 10th to DIR. WEIGH, which
was handed TO us, have been under considera-
| ton by this board. In answer to your question
| of March 10 on postal card, viz: "low about
rebates TO some and not TO others by railroad
companiesn We would say that section ii,
chapter II, laws Of the Seventeenth General
| Assembly, expressly prohibits any rebate to
one shipper that Is not extended to another
under like conditions and similar crcumstan-
ces, and to this section we would respectfully
refer you. Amy complaint made to this board
OF such discrimination or violation OF this law
Will receive prompt attention and consider
alton. 2. AS To the matter referred TO by
yours to DR.. WEIGH, viz. That the two hauls
by different roads of car load OF freight
should not exceed the one haul of an equal
distance made by one road, except the Incl
dental charge Tor switching and transfer OF
bills Of lading, strikes us as asking transporta-
ton companies that which has been UNIVERSAL
~
pies. All admit that long haul can be made
for less per ton per mile than short one.
Suppose a car of freight Is to go one hundred
miles from the place Of loading TO destination,
fifty miles on one road and the same distance
on another. The first road could afford to take
the shipment the entire one hundred miles on
its own road as cheaply as 1t could take 1t the
fifty miles and then take ii out Of q train and
set ii out on the transfer track for another road
to take the other fifty miles. The shorter the
two hauls are, the greater will be the apparent
inconsistency TO the shipper, between the sum
OF the two charges for the two short bauls and
the one for the same distance in a long haul,
and vice versa, the longer the two short hauls,
the less will there seem reason Tor complaint.
Whenever 1t is shown that one OF the short
hauls or even both are unreasonable, ana made
so with the evident intention OF compelling
shippers to send their goods by long, circuit
Gus route, In order to enhance the interest OF
either one Of the railroad companies TO the
detriment of the shipper, then such q course
is q fit subject for investigation Oh TINS boaru,
or Of the court.
3. Quoting from your postal OF the 9th ult!
II want To call your attention TO section Ivy,
of the code-does 1t mean anythlngt III So
how Is so much of such work done" we VIII
say, IL is un doubtedly true that this commits
sion or the courts OF the state have jurisdic-
ton over any pooling contract so far as II may
affect the local freight from point TO point
within the state, but 1t Is yet an undecided
question whether the commissioners or the
courts of the state can control pooling, when
they have to do with through, or freights TAX
en- up within for points without, or from points
without to points within the state While II
is perfectly proper for this board to act on It's
own motion on any violation OF the laws OF the
state that may come under their observation,
vet If the parties are not so seriously aggrieyed
as TO be willing to bring their complaint be-
fore the board by the simple writing OF pos
tai card or short letter, 1t would seem that we
should not be too forward to act on such cases.
Yours truly,
[signedI ... l.. 5. COFFIN.