The record-union., 1893-02-08

the ran lines joining the two communl-
I ties. Originally, however, the classitica-
/ ton as applied to the graduated table OF
I class rates was one devised and adopted
/ by the Southern Pacific Company of its
own motion, built with the intention OF
enabling San Francisco to compete by rail
in that territory as against the water car
rlers. When later the Western classifica-
! ton became prominent, il was deemed
expedient to apply it to the table of grad
uated rates that had been in force for q
term of years to and from the territory
mentioned, the particular desire being to
place San + francisco merchants IN position
to enter that territory in competition with
merchants OF other commercial centers
That were using similar classification.
1t may be proper to say here that as a
classification in the ordinary acceptation
OF the term, not as a constitutional or
statutory provision, making it rigid or
lntiexible instrument, the Southern Pa
chic Company has no material objection
thereto, and is not averse to its applica-
tlon where 1t can be made without such
loss in revenue as will embarass or make
II lmpractlcable to continue operating the
various railroads in the State of Califor-
MIA now under its control.
The State of California embraces about
156,000 square miles. Of this % per cent.
Tor $4,000 square miles, is valley and foot
hill, 224 per cent. desert, 524 per cent.
mountains. The State of Kansas embraces
about Sl,700 square miles, the whole OF
which is practically level and pro-
ductive country. The people of the State
OF California have within it's boundaries,
radiating from San Francisco, say 500
miles OF navigable inland waters, over
which established steamer and sail lines
are now operating, and the whole of its
coast line, from Oregon to Mexico, ap-
proximately 700 miles of ocean front,
where they have like competitive ad-
! VantageS. The railroads operated by the
Southern Pacific Company compete with
the waterways above described in greater
or less degree throughout the whole of the
State, and directly at all the principal
towns about the bay of San Francisco,
with its numerous navigable inlets and
sloughs, on the Sacramento and San
| Joaquin Rivers, with the Pacific Ocean at
Santa Cruz and Monterey Bays, Santa
| Barbara, Ventura, and Santa Monica and
San Pedro Bays. In other words, water
competition affects in greater or less degree
| practically every rate made by the South
ern Pacific Company's roads within the
State of California to-day. This, coupled
with the TACT that large portion OF the
States area is mountainous, desert, nom
productive, costly of operation, should
| bring conviction to the minds of your
| honorable committee of the impractical
| bility OF introducing and applying the
California distance tariff, or any other
uniform distance tariff, whether it he sub
ject to the Wastern classification or any
other classification.
For example: The distance by the
shortest operated rail line from Napa to
! San Francisco is seventy miles. Cali
fornia wine in wood, carloads, per West
| tern classification takes second class. The
| proposed California distance tariff makes
second-class rate for seventy miles
| "A
| imum that could be charged, In fact, the
Southern Pacific Company, forced by the
water competition from Napa to San
| Francisco, charges on this commodity to-
day but five cents per 100 pounds, which
produces but a trit1e, maybe one mill per
| ton per mile above the actual cost of
| the service; but the business is taken in
the face of the cheapest known mode of
carriage, and is regarded as desirable be-
cause of its ability to contribute that one
solitary mill toward meeting the other or
| commonly called fixed expenses incident
| to the conduct of transportation, and to
that degree it lightens the burden or re-
duces the charge that must necessarily be
| imposed on all the remaining traffic. I'm
der the terms of the proposed amendment,
| the Southern Pacific Company could not
| make effective d commodity or independ-
ent rating on any article that is classified
in the Western classification. The only
| method would be TO reduce the class rate
in cases where it is found necessary in
order to meet competition or any pecul-
! iarity of condition that might control.
Should the Southern Pacific Company
| desire to continue in the business and
having been compelled by influences be-
yond it's control to establish this as its
| second-claSS rate for the seventy miles
from Napa to San Francisco, it thus fixes
| five cents per 100 pounds as second-class
| ROT "a for n (rIU V los hot
any two given points within the State of
| California on any commodity the West
| ern classification names, and there are
| several, as taking second-class rate. Hay-
| ing established this as the rate for sew
enty miles, you will at once perceive that
| for seventy-tive miles distance, presery-
| ing the same dltferential as the California
distance tariff observes, the second-class
rate would be six cents as against Cali
! fornia distance tariff provision of twenty
six cents; for eighty miles it would be
eight cents as against California distance
tariff provision of twenty-eight cents; for
| 100 miles it would be sixteen cents as
against California distance tariff pro-
vision of 80 cents. The injustice of such
requirement you will at once appreciate,
| and that it's effect will be to remove the
| Southern Pacific Compauys roads as
! competitors with water or other rival car
riers, for this very essential reason, that
/ II cdnIlOU cOuIluut Ill DuSluGSS us COM
mon carriers and base its rates through
out the whole state of California on The
extreme competitive conditions that ex-
! iSt between Napa and San Francisco: and
it's withdrawal from the field means an
advance in the rates of its Water-carrying
| competitors Just as surely as the tides
rise and fall. There are scores of
instances where similar conditions pre-
vail, and where Just such results as out
lined i'll the Napa wine rate would follow
| the adoption OF rigid claSSi fcatiOn and
| the California or any other distance tariff
In the State of Kansas, where the ad-
verse physical conditions existing in the
State OF California do not have existence,
! where the country is practically level, no
| inland waterways worthy of the name of
! competitor, no coast line, no mountain
ranges or deserts to traverse-even there,
and without rigid classification being
imposed, a uniform distance tariff does
not meet the requirements. The Santa
| Fe, as well as other roads in Kansas, have
in addition to the distance tariff nuner-
Gus special tariffs and commodity tariffs
and rates issued from time to time to
meet the commercial requirements of the
various communities they serve. In fact
however, as has been presented, it is not
! intended that California, with its un-
favorable physical conditions as com
pared with Kansas. is to have as it's
maximum rates the Kansas distance
! tariff, but it is proposed that it shall have
as its maximum rates distance tariff as
compiled by the Traffic Association of
san Francisco, and which is lower than
the Kansas distance tariff in the follow
ing degree:
Per Cent. Per cent
First class......2o Glass A....................1o
| Second class............27 2 Class B..... i 2
Third class..............25 Glass C..........l o
| Fourth cliss............2Sl Class d D........2 D
! Fifth class .....,......... 3 / Glass E.. / &;
| The representative of San Francisco's