Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-04-03
AN IRON KINGS FACTS
Carnegie Comes Down to Details
About Freight Discrimination.
GREETING TO PRESIDENT ROBERTS
Exact Figures on the UnfairnesS in Coke
and Ore Freight Rates.
PITTSBURG CAN'T STAND IT VERY LONG


night by special train on his annual
spring inspection Of the lines of the COM
pany. He was accompanied by j. N. Du-
Barry, Second Vice President; Charles E.
Pugh, General Manager; T. N. Ely, Gen
eral Superintendent of Motive Power; W.
H. Brown, Chief Engineer; W. G. Nc
Curdy, j. NJ. Harding. of Philadelphia;
R. E. Petit, General Superintendent, and
M. W. Thompson, Engineer of Mainte-
nance of Way, of Altoona.
In this connection it is stated that ALLIE
gheny officials, having in view the procur-
ing of good terms for elevated tracks,
sought interviews with the railroad mag
mates, though with what result could not be
learned.
Likewise most decidedly in this connec-
tion is the following letter. received from
Mr.. Andrew Carnegie last night, and which
THE DISPATCH was persistent enough to call
to the railway Presidents attention, even
though he had retired when the hotel rules
had been overridden sufficiently to admit Of
reaching his room. Mr.. Roberts, having had
chance to dream over the matter, may be pre-
pared to confer thereon with the Chamber of
Commerce Committee to-day. At all events,
he knows of 1t before he gets his morning
paper.
Here is the letter from Mr.. Carnegie, re.
ferred to above:
THE IRON KINGS STATEMENT.
To the Editor of The Dispatch:
DEAR SIR-Your editorial this morning is ex-
actly in the right vein.
TO bring the matter distinctly before the cit
A.
ment:
First-The Pennsylvania Railroad Company
brings train load of coke from Connellsville
mines to the city of Pittsburg; the cars belong
to the shipper and are loaded and unloaded by
him. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company
only hauls the cars; the engines and crews that
haul them stop at Pittsburg. Upon this coke
if destined for Chicago furnaces, the Pennsyl-
vania Railroad Company's share is 80 cents per
ton Should the coke be destined for Pitts
burg furnaces, the Pennsylvania Railroad Com
pany charges 20 cents per ton. In both cases
the Pennsylvania Railroad Company has per-
formed exactly the same service. There is no
question of longer or shorter haul or termi-
mails. If any man can show that a train load of
such coke coming from Connellsville to Pitts
burg destined for Pittsburg costs the Pennsyl-
vania Railroad cent more than train load of
coke destined for Chicago for the service per-
formed to Pittsburg, let him do So.
Sc cond-A train load of ironstone is carried
to Hooking Valley furnaces from the lakes, a
distance of l75 miles, for S5 cents per ton. If a
train of similar ironstone is brought from the
lakes to Pittsburg, distance of $50 miles, the
charge is 81 25 per ton. These two overcharges
sum up as follows per ton of iron:
One ton of coke required per ton of
iron, overcharge to Pittsburg, as
apainst Chicago nauta
One and siX-tenths tons of ironstone re-
quired to make one ton of Bessemer
pig iron, overcharge to Pittsburg, as
compared with Hooking Valley fur
naces ................. Y cents
AR
The amount extorted by the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company upon Pittsburg traffic over
and above what is charged to furnaces beyond
the State being thus 81 II per ton of iron.
MARKED DETERMINATIONS.
The rate charged by the Baltimore and Ohio
Railroad Company upon ironstone from lakes
to the Hooking Valley furnaces is now the
usual rate upon ironstone. The railroads CEN
tering in Chicago carry it from Lake Superior
mines at the same rate per ton per mile viz:
n cent. The distances to the Chicago furnaces
from the Superior mines is greater than from
the lakes to Pittsburg, but the railroad CON-
panies take back the cars empty from Chicago,
while from Pittsburg the railroad company
gets loading back with coal.
/ give only these two instances to prove my
statement that every ton of pig iron manufact-
ured in the Pittsburg district is overcharged
by the Pennsylvania Railroad monopoly 81 per
ton. Upon every ton of finished iron shipped
East or West from Pittsburg Except rails) is
overcharged from half to dollar per ton 1t
is by such means the Pennsylvania Railroad
has built up its surplus fund of $50 900, and
extracted from the State of Pennsylvania last
year 81, 900 900 more than its interest and divi-
dend. If Pittsburg stands this it will stand
anything. lido not believe it will stand it long.
Indeed it cannot stand it long.
Of course 1 am personally interested in this
matter, very deeply interested, indeed Upon
the overthrow Of this injustice the success of
our enterprises very largely depends, but every
idle workman in Pittsburg is far more deeply
interested than L
referred to the Committee on Railways and
Transportation of the Board of Trade. Manu-
facturers and merchants who can state similar
cases of discrimination to those which have
named, should promptly lay them before that
body.
The President of the Pennsylvania road is to
be in town tomorrow. Let the committee call
upon him and demand justice. They might be
able to convince him that his policy of extort-
ing from Pittsburg and the State OF Pennsyl-
vania 81, 100000 per annum beyond dividends
result injuriously to the railway company he
manages A State commission would soon
sweep away most of the four millions per an
mum surplus he is now uIjustly extorting from
his own State. Yours very respectfully,
ANDREW CARNEGIE.
PITTsBURG, April 2, 1889.
PRESIDENT ROBERTS THINKING.
President Roberts and the other officials of
the Pennsylvania Railroad arrived at the
Monongahela House last night A reporter of
THE DISPATCH carried Mr.. Carnegie's letter
to the hotel, and penning brief note to the
railroad magnate, informed him of the iron
masters charges. and asked for an interview
upon the subject of unfair coke and ore
freight rates. The hotel clerk refused to send
this sealed note up to President Roberts room,
remarking that it was merely the same thing as
a reporters card, and such cards could not pass
beyond the office lobby. Hotel clerks cannot
usually be beaten, but this clerk was outwitted
and by other means the letter was placed in
President Roberts hands within 20 minutes.
Superintendent Pitcairn, of the Pittsburg
division. subsequently came down stairs and
asked for The DISPATCH reporter.
Mr. Roberts has retired" he said.
Then he read the letter about Mr.. Carnegie's
charges" anxiously inquired the reporter.
"Oh, yes." replied Mr.. Pitcairn. HE would
have been pleased to see DISPATCH reporter
had he called earlier"
'.Do you know anything about these coke
and ore freights, Mr.. Pitcairn"
Nothing whatever. President Roberts does
not handle such matters, either"
A CHILD'S FATAL FALL.