Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1888-03-01

that there are now no complaints pending
before the commission against us would
seem to indicate that the people are satifed
to pay us what they are paying for the bust
ness we are doing. assure you that any
reduction either in freight or passenger rates
must necessarily, as l. read these figures,
push MS TO the wall. Ii these reductions are
made it will totally prohibit our impFoy-
ing this property, carrying ON those improve
ments already commenced, keeping up our
rolling stock, coaches and engines and freight
cars up TO the condition in which they are
in. | might mention here that other eXpen-
SEES are eontt mplated which We're mentioned
here this forenoon, expenses which should DO
made if Il Is possible out of the revenues.
This Is a matter which our friend Mr.. Coffin
has interested himself very directly in, and
is the interests of our employees, especially
the train men, especially the freight train
men. II is the outlay for improved
couplings for ears, and for better
brakes for their control These expenses
were estimated to-day here at $75 a car.
From my experience in handling cars, re-
placing, building, and so forth, | should
have put it more. But even at that, with
the amount of cars that we should have to
equip, 1t would seem TO be impossible; we
could not do it. IL you were TO pass Il law
before the end of the session of this Legis-
lature compelling the railroads of Iowa to
adopt these safety appliances, which admit
are good, and which we would cheerfully
adopt If we were able as soon as an agree
ment could be arrived at for the ears to be
inter changeable, 1t would be out of our
power to adopt these things, for the reason
that we would not have the money to pay
for them.
do not think that II is worth while to add
anything to this 1t is plain statement of
facts. These figures can be verified by any
one who will take the trouble and time to in
vestigate. They are patent TO everybody.
And while it may not be much credit for the
beggar to show his rags, at the same time we
are poor, and If our revenues should be cut
off in any direction, if they fall below what
they now are, we must inevitably go into
bankruptcy with its usual trials and tribula-
tons. Most of you know what these bank
rupt roads are. l have been with the prop
erty ever since there was forty miles of road,
and now there is thousand. 1t haa gone
through bankruptcy, and while 1t was going
through / was afraid to ride on it myself.
Shall we be compelled TO go through such a
siege again, and be compelled to lose
the business we have built up, and to
carry such business as we would have
at q great risk? There are so many argu-
ments that our revenues should not be re-
duced, and so far have failed to hear one
argument to show that they should be re-
duced. With this plain statement of our af-
fairs beg of you gentlemen to adopt no
legislation here which will cripple us to the
extent which these reductions are bound to
do.
Member: Mr.. Ives, you will allow me a
suggestion. You, of course, are an Iowa
man and represent Iowa railroads, and we
represent, part of MS, the people of Iowa.
One of the great complaints we have is this I;
not so much, may be- as to high rates gener-
ally, but for instance, in my county we
have mill. Our miller buys his wheat in
Minnesota and Kansas, and he undertakes
to grind it. He wants to ship it within
twenty or twenty-five miles of his town. He
absolutely cannot do it. Minneapolis will
place flour south of there twenty miles at al
most the same rate he can ship it down. His
mill must close If the rate stays as it is. Our
shippers and business men come to us and
say we cannot do business in Iowa on the
local rates out of our towns, and they say to
us we have TO leave Iowa we have to shut
up our business and close our mills unless
we get some relief on these local rates.
Now, is there any suggestion you can make?
If there is, let us have it,
Mr.. Ives: / will take up the mill ques-
ton first. AS you say, your miller has to
60 abroad for his wheat. Iowa is no longer
a wheat raising State. They do not raise
wheat enough, nor half enough, to make
bread for the people of Iowa. Then they
must go abroad for this wheat. They go
abroad for this wheat and pay the freight
from the point either in Kansas or
Minnesota TO the point in Iowa.
Wheat, from the very nature of it, is bound
to be Of the same rate per ton or hundred
pounds as -four; that has been the rule ever
since have been in the business. Now
then, it is plain to see if he goes to Minneso-
ia and buys the wheat and ships it to where
his mill is located, his neighbor, perhaps a
store keeper across the street. can go to the
same place and buys the -four and ships it
down and lands it opposite the miller and
pay only the same rate of freight. OF course
that is matter that can not be remedied.
1t could not be remedied il the wheat was
raised in lowa-if the wheat was raised in
the northwest part of Iowa and this mill
were in the interior, and there was a mill
up there to manufacture it and send it here.
The miller buys the wheat and brings it to
the mill and the merchant goes and gets the
-four and brings it down. As it originates
from the same point where the wheat is
produced and where that flour can be made,
you can readily see the rate is going to be
the same. Twenty miles to one side the
rate would be no more from the starting
point to practically the same distance on
either side of him and in that way as mat
ter of course the -four landed here or land
ed there is at the same rate at which his
wheat is landed at his mill. He has no
margin to manufacture that -four and then
ship it off to one side to meet rate which
is only equal to his in the first place. l
cannot see how it is possible that any rate
can be made for moving the -four from this
mill the twenty or forty miles in either di-
rection in which he may wish to find local
market for that flour, and still carry for
the same distance from the starting point
to these other points, both wheat and flour.
do not see any way to do it.
Member: The rate from Minneapolis right
down there south of our town twenty-five or
thirty or forty miles is not very much higher
than the rate from our town twenty or thirty
miles south. The railroads charge nearly as
much for hauling one hundred and eighty
miles more as they do for that twenty-five or
forty miles, and our people cannot see why
they have to do that.
Mr.. Ives: The only explanation l can
give is this: l will not pretend to say 1t Is
any remedy, but the facts are that the rates
ON the Minneapolis flour to the EASTERN
markets are made over the through lines.
Any of the longer lines reaching Iowa, If
they carry any of that flour, must carry 1t at
the same rate. We had to give it up. The
rates were too low. Wherever that -four
does reach ii must be carried at not higher
rate under the operations of the interstate
law, which requires that the rates shall be
no higher for short haul than longer one
But it Is impossible to cut down under the