Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1891-08-14
The Elevator Companies Threaten to
Operate Their Houses as Pri-
vate Elevators.
This Would Be q Serious Loss to
the Wheat Raisers of North
Dakota.
What Will the Elevators Do?

terests of that place would naturally be
against any new ideas the inhabitants of
this state might advance. However,
there is going to be some friction, as the
Minneapolis elevator companies have
formally decided to operate their houses
in North Dakota as private elevators, be-
cause of the rules of the North Dakota
railroad commission has established to
govern their operation as public elevat-
ors. These, the elevator companies say,
they cannot possibly abide by because
of their alleged impracticability and I'M
reasonableness. The elevator COM
panies appear willing to admit that the
change to private elevators will not be to
their interest or to that of the farmers;
but they hold that no other course is
reasonably open to them.
T. This decision has been made after a
good deal Of discussion with the railroad
commissioners, who have been in Mime
apolis in conference with the elevator
companies, and who have been unyield-
ing in their demands of the elevator
companies, according to the story of the
latter.
The new grain law passed by the
North Dakota legislature has some feat
ures Objectionable to the elevator CON-
panies, but after carefully considering
the matter, they had decided to waive
their objections and accept the condi-
tions of the law. The principal change
from the old law affected storage. The
old law provided for a handling charge
of "a cents, and free storage of Is days.
The new law cut the handling charge to
2 cents and increased the free storage to
20. This made considerable difference
with the income of the elevator compa-
MES, and while there was a disposition
at first to make strenuous objections to
it, a decision was finally reached that
they would operate under it. Then
the margin allowed in fixing the price
of wheat above the freight charge to
Minneapolis or te .minal point, had been
about S cents. The railroad commits
sion wanted the margin fixed
at 4 cents, and the .ele-
vator companies finally acceded to this.
So that up to this time the elevator COM
panies had decided to combine under the
new law as public elevators by waving
objection to the two demands made of
them, and so furnish the farmers the de-
sired storage facilities.
Then there came the straw that broke
the cancels back and which threatens to
leave the farmers of North Dakota with
out storage. except such as they can
themselves furnish. This straw was the
decision of the railroad commissioners
that all wheat must be inspected at the
border of the state before it could leave
it. This brought the railroad companies
up taut, and they put their foot down in
q determination that further parleying
was useless, and they would step outside
of the state law and open their houses as
private. When the commission was in
Minneapolis an elevator man says the
commission was asked the purpose of
such a rule, and one replied:
S f. "There is no particular purpose, but it
will please the farmer"
"And 1t will hurt him, too," added the
Journals informant.
The members Of the commission are
reported to have admitted the useless
ness of the inspection, as all wheat must
be sold on terminal grades. The eleva-
tor companies freely declare that politi-
cal reasons are responsible for the in
spection rule instead of business rea-
sons.
The chief inspector, under the rule of
the commission, was appointed a short
time ago, and he proves to be J. B.
Wineman, q son-in-law o.. Geo. B. Walsh
Of Grand Forks, chairman of the rail
road commission.
The elevator companies hold that in
making this rule the commissioners OK
cceded their authority, as the point has
been tested in Illinois and decided
against the commission on the ground
that a farmer or settler is not obliged to
have wheat inspected anywhere, and
that therefore the rule would be worth
less on this ground alone. But another
objection urged is that the rule would
be an interference with interstate COM
merce, and therefore could not be en-.
forced. Still another objection is that
its enforcement would be impossible, as
it would interfere with the shipment of
wheat at a time when the elevators were
pushed to their utmost to afford trans
portation facilities. The inspection
could only be done by daylight, and
most Of the wheat leaves North Dakota
in the night. The rule would require a
great delay to the shipments, and the
construction Of. numerous sidetracks at
the border to hold the wheat cars. As
ffsAL. $780,. 10 n.~.,n:rWlL