Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1892-01-29

- NOii'H' wiz ilIIoill NtduiitOll TO L aTmVlIie,
only l2o miles, it is II cents From Buffa-
10 Gap 1t miles West of StauntCn) it is Is
cents to Norfolk and from Louisville to
Norioih Is Oily ~ cents. From anypoint
Oh the Valley railroad between Harrison
burg and Timber Ridge to Sn. ithlield, Va,
1t is 70 cents 100 lbs., while from Cinein-
natlto Smithfield it is 16! cents These
are samples Of the Objectionable rates that
have been furnished us by shippers which
the people want changed in the interest of
some sort of uniformity.
Our contemporary publishes statistics of
railroad building for the year 1891. We
were not aware that they were out for that
year so early, but if it Will kindly give Us
its authority we will be glad to obtain it
and answer its objections from the stand
point of 1891. as we have, most conclusively
we think. from the stand point of 1880.
s'The VINDICAT0R accuses Is also of igno-
rance of the facts on the subject of the giving
Of special rates for the transportation of the
beets for sugar industry. There is no doubt
the railway company they did give the rates
at once. The '.haggling" that the VINDIcA-
yoR quotes was merely the getting at the
facts, as the correspondence on the subject
will at once show. ''-Sta@nton Ne,cs
The facts in this matter are important
much more important than the mere cues
ton of whether our contemporary was
aware of their existence. They are I'M
portant because the way the railways Of
Virginia transact their business with the
people OF the State, is one of the grievances
that has led to the Kent bill. In this par
ticular case they are fortunately largely
of record and not difficult to be obtained.
Staunton papers. When the starting of IL
beet sugar factory III this city, an enter
prise largely dependent on the farmers, was
first mooted, ill the latter part Of Septein-
Der, we think, 1.-The railway company was
corresponded with about the freight on beets,
but 30 satisfactory answer was gotten
On October 26th, a public meeting of ALI
ance men and other farmers was held in
| the Court House at which this fact was
stated, ard committee was appointed to
correspond with the officers of 1.-THE rail
! way company 1t did it's work and en-
closed with its letter 4 circular of the Far
mers' Alliance suggesting rates-the same.
we believe, that the railroads Ill Nebraska;
were giving. On November 18th another
public meeting was held III the court house,
and the correspondence committee pro-
duced a letter it had received from the Off
| Ger OF the railway company dated Novem-
ber nth. lnit itappeared that he had spent
some time and labor getting at the facts
and SO far from giving the rates asked for
sat once, gave this as his conclusion: 1--WE
6Gre looted mt tl,is matter cdrefully, and
conferred with our people on the subject
aud find we cannot see our way clear to
grant you the rates suggested in the circu-
lar letter of the committee above referred
to-" And to this WAS added the old ''wIlat
1t viii bear" clause that has become fa-
NOUS: for the railway officer eyen after
giving rates higher tlidn the rates in other
States, and which our farmer rs could not ac-
they were accepted: sit might be found
hy actual experience, after giving the mat
ter a trial, that tie business acouid stand
q higher rate than those named; or it
might he possible that some slight modif-
cltion could be made"
This coming flOn prominent general
officer Of the railroad who had Lot only
looked into the matter ''taseiully but also
conferred with our people, looked TAI her
blue for the rates Oh beets asked for by the
farmers. But they had dealt with railroads
before, and their reply to this letter was a
resolution instructing the Railroad Cores
pondence Committee to ''persjst i'll calling
the attention of the leading officers Of the
railroads to the Importance to them and
to the State Of this new industry, and ito
secure as low Tor lower rate if possible) as
is given by Western roads on sugar beets
to beet sugar factories. y That WAS their
maximum petition-as low rates as were
given by other roads in other States.
Then, at that point, the County Alliance
as body took a hand and addressed pc
ion to the General Traffic Manager of
the railroad. They got a reply dated \ 10
yember 9th, saying that he had written to
tie other general officer Suggesting figures
to submit to you which are a concession
from those previously named" The end of
it all was that the other general Ulcer came
to Staunton December 10 h. nearly three
months after the rTespondence had been
begun, and granted the rates the farmers
asked. Having failed to force on the far
meEs a h lgher rate, and having failed by de-
lay TO wear ont their persistence, 1.-THE rail-
road finally did What WAS reasonable and
what a Railroad Commission would have
made it do at first. The correspondence
Oh the subject" so far made public. shows
ufayorably for the company; if it has ANY
other that shows more favoraUly it should
publish it. 1t is an important p srt of this
discussion of the railroad law, to establish
how long a railroad company may haggia
with and put Off the people, how many
different rates it MAY Try Oh them, and how
many officers Of the company The people are
to apply to While they are merely getting
at the facts
THE IVOJI1N PHYSICIAN BILL.
a telegram from Deiegate Koiner TO the
INDICATOR, say S that the Senate, yester-
I daV after hearing SDeecheS from Npil.ii arS