The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1888-01-05

| by means of our West Shore connections
| il is about twenty miles the shortest to
Buffalo and points West. Chicago. etc.
Connections are made with all the
truck lines running through the State
of New York to the West, and with the
West Shore, Delaware and Hudson Ca.
nal Company, New York. Lake Erie
and Western Delaware, Lackawanna
and Western, and Lehigh Valley Rail.
roads, we are now doing large thro'
business, while cur interchange of traffic
with our friends in the North, the
Cheshire and Central Vermont and its
connections, remains undisturbed.
! We also connect directly with the
| Erie Canal at the Rotterdam Junction,
the western terminus of this road, at
which place are unrivaled facilities for
the construction of an elevator anG the
transportation of grain and other mer
chandise directly from and to the canal
to and from the tracks of this company.
A contract has therefore, been made
with responsible parties for the erection
of an elevator of $50, 900 bushels capaci
tv, To be completed May /, 1883 meas
ure which appeared to be absolutely
necessary to prevent diversion of trade
from Boston and from its direct route
with the West.
At the time of writing this report the
double track on the main line now ex-
tends from Boston to Johnsonville, n.
| Y, 175 miles in addition to which there
are about 6ll5 miles of double track be-.
tween JohnsOnvlle and Rotterdam,
leaving of single track in main line, IS
miles Johnsonville to Troy, and 3O15
miles 20 Rotterdam junction.
Since the formation of Western line
over the Ftchburg Railroad we have
spared no pans to furnish proper &C.
comodations to the citizens of Boston
and to those living upon the line of the
road. Not content with simply furnish.
ing as good facilities as any other line,
we have been the pioneers in several en-
terprises which have been of great ben
eft to the city of Boston. We haye
the most complete service of
Palace sleeping cars of any railroad
company in Boston. This company was
the first to run through sleeping cars
from Boston to st. Louis,
we were the first to furnish parties
of New England settlers in the West
and California with the luxury of
through passenger cars. without change
between Boston and Chicago.
We also first opened to the travelling
public facilities for excursions through
the beautiful scenery of the western
counties and along the picturesque
shores of the Hudson.
In these various particulars Others
have simply followed in our footsteps.
1t is our desire in the future, as in the
past, to be the leader in all efforts to
furnish the city Of Boston with proper
facilities for western business.
The Interstate Commerce law has
gone into operation since our last report
and. although it is yet too soon to form
an opinion as to its effect,it may be said
that it has not been as injurious as was
generally feared at the time of its pas
sage, although it has afforded increased
facilities for competition by the Cana
dian lines. and by the Canal route t.
New York during the season of naviga-
lion.
1t has been the custom for many years
by means of rebates and otherwise, to
reduce the rates from Western points to
Boston upon export business to those of
New York.
This equalization of rates is absolutely
necessary to the existence of export
business from this port.
Soon after the passage of the Inter
state Commerce act, representatives OF
the leading railroads in New England
met together for con erence in regard
to their future action.
A committee was appointed with in
slructions to take the advice of counsel
upon various questions which arose
under said act, and among others, upon
the legality of continuing the payment
of rebates upon export business,
IL was the unanimous opinion of the
counsel consulted by this committee
that the practice of paying these rebates
was not illegal under the Interstate com
merce Act.
This company concurred in such opin
ion and was advised by its counsel thai
there was no question whatever that
the existing practice in this respect wat
legal under the Interstate Commerce
bill. Greatly to the surprise of thit
company, the counsel of one of the roads
terminating in Boston advised that the
payment of such rebates would he lille
gal uuder the said bill Land communicate
ed such decision to the trunk lines
This company strongly protested agains
their discontlnuance, but Unavailingly
and such rebates were discontinued
when the act took effect.
Petitions to the Interstate Commerce.
Commission were at once filed by tn,
railroad companies and others interest
ed in the export trade, praying for re
, lief.
| MI ,o,nsoI .o,.o,,n.;,, tLo Lr;.oI
burg Railroad Company at the hearing
stated to the commission that it was thu
, opinion of this company that the Inter
state Commerce law did not forbid tn,
, continuance of the payment of thi
draw back, and requested the Commits
, sioners to report leave TO withdraw upol
that ground.
. This view was taken by the Commits
: sioners, and leave to withdraw wa
: granted upon the ground that there wa
7 no occasion for calling upon the com
D mission to give sanction to pratcic
which would be legal without it.
Immediately after this decision tn
trunr lines authorized the resumption
of the payment of export rebates, an,
4 the business Of exporting Western pro
y ducts from the port of Boston has beel
!. uninterrupted.
Although the report shows, as the re
s suit of the years freight business,
!. substantial increase over the result Q
any previous year, it is nevertheless
t fact that we have suffered from e1cep
q tIonal disabilities which affected us non
8 the less unfsvorably, because they wer
beyond our power to remedy them.
They were mainly that the lake steam
9 ship lines Of two out Of three Of ou
q principal trunk line connections wei
}. extremely Inefficient during the la
}. summer;so much 30 that both thetfun
e lines in question are taking vigoroT
s measures to prevent the. recurrence {
k such loss Of lake tonnage 10 tbemselYl
and to " in the future,