Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1892-02-03

have reduced the through rate He and ON
our haul Of sixty-eight miles reduced our
revenue 2-55c and increased the revenue OF
the Southern Pacific and the Houston and
Texas Central railways 1.3c per 100 pounds I;
to Carlyle You have reduced the through
rate &c per 100 pounds, and on our haul of
los miles reduced our revenue IS Of cent
and increased the revenue OF the Southern
Pacific and the Houston and Texas Central
railways z of a cent per 100 pounds; TO
Oklaunion on or haul of 155 miles you
have reduced the through rate &c, and
reduced our revenue 4S5c per 100 pounds
and increased the proportion Of the
Houston and Texas Central and
Southern Pacific railways z of cent
per 100 pounds; to Gypsum, our haul Of 200
miles, YOU have reduced the through rate
81 cents ana reduced our revenue SOS
cents, and increased the Southern Pacific
and Houston and Texas Central revenue l-3
cents per 100 pounds; TO Claude, our haul
of 30S miles, you have reduced the through
rate cents per leo pounds, and reduced
our revenue SIS cents, and increased the
Southern Pacific and Houston and Texas
Central railways proportion is cents per
100 miles; to Hartley, our haul of 403 miles,
you have reduced the through rate cents
per 100 pounds, and reduced our revenue
IL cents and increased the proportion Of
the Southern Pacific and Houston and Texas
Central railways is cents per 100 pounds.
can easily understand how easy it was
for MIR. Ripley 10 so embarrass you as to
make YOU believe that decision in his
favor was necessary for the salvation Of
your tariff; but in view of the foregoing
clearly defined facts, showing how the
principle on which it was based has been
stultifed, trust that you will Immediately
reconsider the decision embodied in your
circular No. 43, and render this company
justice.
Here it has been shown that the per-
centages OF reduction in the through rates
are far greater on the weak line than on
the trunk line, but not satisfied with this
the commission still further robs the weak
lines revenue, and adds it to the strong
line. Can the statement be denied with
these incontrovertible truths presented,
that the commission have in the applica-
ton of their tariffs thrown by far the pre-
ponderance of the burden upon the strictly
home linesl
In order that the commission may not
evade the distinction in the application to
the Houston and Texas Central railway as
a strong line, between its being home and
not an interstate line, it is only necessary
to refer to commissions circular No. 43,
November %, ruling upon lumber division
between the Southern Pacific, Houston and
Texas Central and Fort Worth and Denver
City railways, the principle Of which is
equally applicable Us between home lines
and interstate lines, and for the informa-
ton of the commission as well as the pub
lie will state that the interstate lines
recognizing the commissions ruling in
circular No. 43 to be unjust, unfair and
without precedent under like conditions
among traffic men have declined to avail
themselves of the inequitable advantage it
would confer upon them and they have
therefore permitted their divisions to re-
main as they were previous to the commits
sion's ruling referred to.
l viii now emphatically state that many
of the rates promulgated in commission
tariffs viii not pay the Texas roads for the
actual cost of service performed and use of
equipment. for in every carload rate must
be included the rent of the car The COM
mission itself established this rent at s3 q
day, in their demurrage tariff, but when in
course Of argument it was demonstrated to
them that there was more revenue to the
Texas roads in this rent than in performing
service with the car at some of their rates,
they reduced it to 81 a day. / can honestly
state that this is the first effort l have wit
messed Oh the part OF the commission to-
ward consistency. To continue it is only
necessary to show one instance in any of
the commission tariffs, where the rate pro-
Vided is less than actual cost OF service, or
only equal to actual cost of service, to con-
vict the issue of the tariff as violation of
their oath of Office. Example:
COMMISSIONS COMMODITY TARIFF no. 9.
Wood, coal and coke in carloads-Rate on
wood in dollars and cents per cord. Minimum
eight cords per car:
Distance. Rate per cord.
Eighty miles and over 20 miles. 81 10
We will take q shipment offered from
Decatur on the Fort Worth and Denver
City railway to Dallas, on the Texas and
Pacific railroad, distance seventy-two
miles-divided, Fort Worth and Denver
City to Fort Worth forty miles; Texas and
Pacific, Fort Worth TO Dallas, thirty-two
miles. Gross revenue per car of eight cords
1920. To order the empty car from some
other point on the road, transport it empty
to Decatur, time consumed in loading after
shipper received notice car was ready,
transporting car loaded Decatur to Dallas,
time consumed in unloading at Dallas after
consignee had received notice car had ar
rived, would consume at the lowest calcula-
ton five and an average Of seven or eight
days. The rent OF the car is worth to the
road according to the commissions own
established rates, 81 per day, say Sc for
rent of car, leaving $500 remaining be-
tween the Fort Worth and Denver City and
the Texas and Pacific railways for the
the rent feature altogether, which
would be manifestly unjust
comparison, but even doing so we would
have, say, the rate divided equally between
the Fort Worth and Denver City and the
Texas and Pacific railways gross revenues
respectively to each road OF S460 for the
Fort Worth and Denver City service of
forty miles and S460 for the Texas and Pa
Ciic service OF thirty-two miles. The rela-
tive proportion of cost OF service on this
car to its proportion of earnings on the cap
ital invested to handle it would be enor-
nous and if this statement could be math-
ematically demonstrated it would legally
cancel it and every rate bearing q like rela-
ton to it, but in the particular example
under consideration no such intricate cal
culatious arc necessary. This cars proper
ton of the salaries paid all the men who
have to handle it in and out of Decatur. De-
catur to Dallas with transfer at Fort Worth,
and at Dallas, with its proportion OF wages
paid for maintenance of track etc, would
alone almost, if not quite, consume the reve.
nue. derived from it, without considering all
the many other expenses incident TO its
transportation, and that if q return load is
not ready for it at Dallas it has 10 be re-
turned to Fort Worth empty. The truth is
that common sense stamps the rate as alb
surd, unreasonable and unjust. have made
this one example rather exhaustive because
the commission knows as well as 1 do /
could pick at random hundreds of them
from the various tariffs bearing the same,
and far more reprehensible and unpardon-
able relation to it, and 1 desire not to
weary my readers by prolonging the COM
munication any further than is absolutely
necessary to substantiate the charge on
which it is based, and believe the inteili-
gent public will coincide with me that