Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-20
BOTTLED-UP TROUBLE.
Glassmen and Railroad officials
squabbling Over the Scale.
FREIGHTMEN GATHERING POINTS.
The Tableware Men Have Been Drawn Into
the Controversy.
FRANK DEAN TALKS ON THE SITUATION

| When the bottle manufacturers learned
| through The DISPATCH yesterday morn
| Ing that the local freight agents intended to
visit them during the day to gather infor-
nation about the classification, it put them
in good humor. Indeed they were not
willing that the railroad men should put
themselves to any trouble, and delegation
called at the Lake Shore office bright and
early to explain how the advance in bottle
rates injured their business. Not long ago,
! it Will be remembered, bottles were changed
in the classification from third to second
class, in less than carloads, and as q result
OF which the rates went up few cents.
1T is not often," remarked a manufac-
turer, "that the railroads take the pains to
learn anything about the business of their
shippers The new departure is in the
right direction. Railroads and business
men are inter-dependent The one can'tget
along in this age without the other.
Can't Compete With the West.
'1nstead of firing away in the dark and
growing about being squeezed, they should
come together often and discuss their diff
ferences. The bottle men have protested
and the truth is we can't afford to pay tine
freight and compete with Western manu-
tacturers."
True to their promise the agents made
the rounds. In the party were Frank
Dean, General Freight Agent of the Lake
Erie; w. L. Cromlish, General Freight
Agent of the Pittsburg and Western; e. P.
Bates, General Freight Agent of the ALLIE
gheny Valley road; H. ]. Lawrence, Lake
Shore; S. P. Woodside, Erie system; T. w.
Galleher, Division Freight Agent of the
Baltimore and Ohio; F. A. Orr, Ft. Wayne,
and Mr.. Means, of the Panhandle 1t will
thus be seen that all of the lines were repre-
sented.
General Freight Agent Frank Dean, of
the Lake Erie, said they found the glass
men in a good humor and disposed to be
fair. sit is pretty hard question to set
tle," he continued. 'The old green or
black bottles are almost thing of the past.
Most bottles now are made out of white
glass, and the trouble is to make distinc-
tion between the varieties The manufact-
urers of the cheaper grades think the old
classification should be restored, and they
are not concerned about the higher grades.
Tableware Men in the Fight.
"a number of manufacturers make table
ware as well as bottles, and as both are pro-
duced practically out of the same material,
they don't want to see rival get ahead of
them. For instance, these men would object
to the restoration of druggists bottles un-
less some concession was made to them on
other lines. The makers of bottles ex-
clusively are not interested in the table
ware business, but they would like to have
better rate for their products. With the
railroads, no matter how we act, it is q case
of jumping from the frying pan into the
fire. If we favor one side, then the other
manufacturers will be angry.
Another and more serious difficulty is |
that Western manufacturers use small lines |
in the territory over which the local roads |
have no control, and they have misquoted |
the classification. All sorts of tableware |
have been shipped as bottles. and this gives |
these Western people an advantage over
our manufacturers. The committee will |
meet on Thursday to compare notes and dis
cuss the classification. I can't say what |
will be done until we come together A |
recommendation may be made to the Cen
trail Traffic Association, but even this is un-