The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1892-06-14

man who grants it alike guilty n
fixes an equal punishment Q each.
This, of course, makes the 0oCalnlng
of direct testimony practically lmpos-
sible, for every with any connec-
tion with the matter under inquiry
NAV shield himself behind the privilege
which the Supreme Court has reiterated
is the right of every witness, to refuse
to answer any question where the evil
dence might tend to degrade or incrimi-
nate him.
Voullaire's papers are enormously
voluminous. After his arrest he made
a confidante of Frank w. Clark, a
prisoner occupying a cell adjoining the
one in which he was confined in the
Tombs. Clark, who has been convicted
of forgery, is now awaiting the result
of his appeal to the General Term of
the Supreme Court. He has had some
experience with the police and he
strongly advised Voullaire not to give
up a single sheet of paper while he was
behind the bars. Voullaire agreed to
follow this suggestion, and he asked
Clark what should be done with the
papers which were then in the posses
sion of a friend outside of jail. Clark
arranged to have n of his acqualnt-
ances take the bundle to a safe deposit
company and to leave it there subject
to Voullaire's demands. Most of the
papers are now locked up II a tireprOOt
safe-sOme of them were omitted from
q bundle, as is evidenced by the two
fac SMILES published on this page of
the Herald and by the extracts that
follow.
METHOD OF LAW BREAKING.
The documents that the railroads are
irving to recover are sensational in
their plain, matter of fact method of
showing the way railroads constantly
and openly violate the law. Among
| other things these documents prove
that some of the largest shippers are
! doing business under exceptionally
favorable arrangements with the rail
way companies. They are getting
rates that are not accorded to general
shippers. The public is being discrimi-
mated against, and these large shippers
receive just such undue advantages as
the Interstate Commerce law was
framed to prevent.
Here are some of the apparent evil
dences of law breaking: 1t is shown
that the large meat shippers, including
Messrs. Armour, Swift and Morris, are
obtaining advantages in the shipment
of their products not accorded other
shippers. They are allowed to bill
their goods from Chicago to New York
city, and by stopping them at Jersey
City, a point which carries the same
railroad tariff as New York. receive a
refund alleged to be for lighterage
| charges, but as the products are never
l~ightered, this refund amounts to three
/ cents per hundred pounds and is a di-
rect cut Of the rate. These shippers
are also obtaining payment of one
quarter cent per mile extra mileage
upon the railroad cars owned by them.
This form of rebate has been declared
| by the Interstate Commission to be
particularly obnoxious,
Papers in Vouilare's possession show
the pay ment to j. V. FarweII & Co.,
Eof Chicago, by the Delaware, Lacka-
wanna and Western Railroad Company
of a rebate for Sc, 618. Proof is given
that Swift & Co., of Chicago, through
a confidential clerk named A. r. Fay,
have received extensive rebates from
the Lackawannan line. The rebates
were paid to this clerk under the guise
| of commissions.
REBATES RETURNED.
Convincing testimony over the sig
nature of the official whO granted the
rebate, which proves that the West
Shore road arranged to pay back a
| direct rebate of one cent a hundred
pounds on large shipments Of marble
from the Rutland quarries to PhiIa
delphia.
The Standard Oil Company and the
Sugar Trust have received payments
in the shape of rebates for llghterage
which should receive rigid investiga-
ton.
Rebates in the form of carriage allow
ances have been paid to John B. Man
ming, Of Buffalo, n. Y, on a shipment
Of malt to Weehawken, N. J.. Evi-
dence is given showing special rates on
shipments of paper from Saugerties to
Minneapolis and st. Paul in direct vio-
lation to the Interstate law.
Proof is given of extensive discrimi-
nation in the making of deep cuts by
special rates in favor of @. g. Q. Oteren,
a large broom manufacturer. 1t is
shown that the New York Central has
made extensive cuts by means of I'M
derbilling the weight of cars.
CIRCUMvENTING THE LAW.
Letters and Vouchers Showing that
Railroads and Business Men Pay Lit
tie Attention to the Interstate Com
merce Act.
One Of the most puzzling methods of
clrCumventing the law is found in the
payment of rebates in the form Of light
erage charges by the railroads termi-
mating in New York. There are so
many rules governing harbor transpor-
tation there that a great deal of manip-
ulation can be done with lighterage
rates without detection. In many
cases nothing less than a searching
official inquiry can clearly establish to
just what extent rebates are paid under
the owe of lighterage charges.
Among the papers distracted from
railroad offices by Voullaire are many