St. Paul daily globe., 1892-05-26
ABOUT THOSE RATES.
An Important Hearing Before
the Interstate Commerce
Commission.
Attempts to Prove DiSerim-
ination and the Charging
Of Unjust Rates.
Now the New Real Estate
Board Is Ready to Begin
Business.
News Of the Convention
Politics in Little
Pieces.

4
representatives of the interstate com
merce commission began to hear testi,
mOny in the case of the Minneapolis
chamber of commerce against the rail
roads of the Northwest especially those
roads that have lines running into both
Minneapolis and Duluth. At first il
was intended that this hearing should
be given by the whole of the commits
sion, but Hon. William X. Morrison. OF
Illinois, and Judge James w. McDIll,
! of Iowa, were the only two Ot
the commissioners who eonld come tC
Minneapolis at this time. Sc this is but
a preliminary hearing of the case. The
evidence will all be submitted to these
two gentlemen, and the case will be
argued later on in Washington before
the whole commission. The chamber OF
commerce began the case through Flanr
merry Il Cooke, of Minneapolis. They
have given the handling of it over to
BrittOn & Brown, of Washington, eX,
perienced attorneys in this line of work.
The defense is represented by the fol
lowing array of legal talent:
NJ. d. Grover, of st. Paul, the Great North
| ern; John c. Built Jr., of Chicago. the
| Northern Pacific: LuSk, Bum & Hadley, st.
| Paul. the ST. Paul d Duluth; Howe u Perrin.
st. Paul, the Omaha; W. C. Coudy. Chicago,
| the Chicago d Northwestern; j. 7. Fish, the
| Milwaukee; A. II. Bright, of Minneapol
the 500; Hugh Regan. of Milwaukee, the
Milwaukee chamber OF commerce; Judge Nj.
| b. koon the 500.
The court room was we'll filled with
grain men and millerS all the afternoon.
4 ISlt Cna 20 oct
active of the interested parties on the
complaining side. He sat beside Attor-
DeY Brown all the afternoon, and
prompted him in the examination of the
one witness called.
Attorney BrttOn opened the case for
the cOmplalnantS. He had map with
the familiar equi-distant line showing
the relative distance of wheat centefS
from Minneapolis and Duluth. He
explained the action at some length,
but all that is familiar to
the readers of the Twin City
newspapers. In a nutshell. the con-
trOversy arises from this: Several of
the railroads make the same rate on
wheat from many points in the North
west to both Minneapolis and Duluth,
while those points are situated much
further from Duluth than from Mime
apOlis. This, it is alleged, is discrimin-
alton against Minneapolis in favor of a
competing point. Attorney Brown con-
Quoted the examination.
The Only witness Examined
Yesterday was E. F. Dodge, formerly traffic
manager of the St Paul d Duluth railway
Mr.. Dodge has evidently heen in the employ
of the grain men in the preparation of some
Of the evidence. But the examination YES
terday did not get into the important features
OF the case. 1t was mostly devoted to the
rate on -four from Minneapolis to Duluth
This rate is now z cents, and the millers
want ii reduced to 5 cents. rhc direct ex-
animation of Mr.. Dodge was conducted for
the purpose of showing that the st. Paul Il
Duluth had carried flour from Minneapolis
to Duluth for cents, and had made
money out Cf the traffic. This fve-eent rate
meant % mills per ton per mile. MI. Dodge
testified that he considered that profitable
rate Oh flour He considered it profitable be-
cause, when the Duluth road was hauling
flour al that rate, it paid operating expenses.
per cent dividend on S5,0h0,CU0 of pres
ferred stock, paid the interest on the bonds,
bought equipment and improved the condi-
ton of its line, He was not certain just what
proportion Of the total traffic the
flour carried at five cents would fig
ure up; but it would amount to a large
proportion to the total traffic. At one time
during the existence of that scent rate on
flour, the rateahad been cut to 2.5 cents on
account of the rate cutting INDUCED in by
otter roads via Chicago. In the years 1923,
while the scent rate on flour Inled the av-
erage earnings of the road per ton per mile
was at the rate Of Is cents, although once
this average rate of earning had been cut
down to 9.S mills. Then followed some
technical evidence about the billing of flour
to Duluth and beyond and list of the com
panies that controlled the lake transporta-
ton business during the time the scent rate
ruled.
What proportion of the total rate of flour
shipped from points southwest of Minneap-
oils to Duluth did your company receiver"
inquired Mr.. brown.
We'll we had a contract with the other
roads giving us a certain share-about four
cents hundred. We were glad to get it at
four cents"
Northern Pacific Blamed.
1t is conceded that there would be little
trouble with the railroads on this matter of
rates to Minneapolis and Duluth were it not
for the existence cf the Northern Pa
cific railroad. That road is so situ-
luth without running it through Minneapolis
and can send It there at the same rate
charged 10 Minneapolis. SO the Northern
Pacific becomes the disturbing element.
Hence there was visible awakening of in
tereSt when the questioning was turned TO-
ward the Northern Pacific. Mr.. Dodge testi-
fed that he was familiar with the line of the
Northern Pacific from Staples, where the
road branches, to Duluth. The line runs
through the woods most of the way There
is little local business i'll that section. There
is more local business, he says, tor
the road between Staples and Minneapolis
The Great Northern is in about the
same circumstances from st. Cloud to Du-
lnth-withOut much local business for that
portion of the road Mr.. Dodge identih ed
and asserted the correctness of Al tabulated
statement he had prepared, showing the rel
ative distance from Minneapolis and Duluth
to many points i'll Minnesota and the Da-
kOtas, from which the rate on wheat is the
same 10 both cities on the different lines.
This liable Is the foundation of the case of
the mllers. 1t shows besides the existence of
the same rate TO both Minneapolis and Du-
luth for different distances, Il comparison
between this rate on wheat and the inter
state rate for the same distance In nearly
| every case the interstate rate is lower than
! the rate on wheat. The object Of this table
| is to show not only that there is dlscrimina-
ton against Minneapolis, as pointed out but
| that the rate Oh wheat is too high, as COM
! pared with the interstate rate. Still another
tabulated statement was introduced. 1t was
| q comparative statement showing the aver
! age rate per ton per mile on general freight
| business and the average rate on wheat
| showing that the rate per ton per mile on
| wheat is higher than 1t is on other lines of
! freight.
Dodge on the Rack.
Then Judge Fish. for the Milwaukee. took
| up the cross-eXamlnatlon. First Dodge was
asked to give a detailed recital of his railroad
experience. Then he was asked about the
dividends paid by the ST. Paul & Duluth
| while it was carrying flour at five cents @
hundred. Mr.. Dodge could remember of but
one dividend having been paid on common
stock. That was per cent cash and Is pei
cent scrip. The principal freight traffic OF
the road was wheat and -four to
| Duluth and coal to Minneapolis and
st. Paul. The road charged, usually
S. ton on wheat and flour and
81. 50: on coal. In 1923. when Mr.. Dodge
first went with the St Paul L. Duluth, no
much flour was being shipped over the line
and it was charged rate of Is cents hun
dred. In 1885 the rate on -four was rs cent!
q hundred. Judge Fish also drew out of the
witness that the receipts of 500, GOO from the
land grant had gone into the general receipts
of the company and that had helped out the
earnings of the road. The cross-eXaminatioI
of Mr.. Dodge went on from 3:30 until efte
] z Id l..