Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-09-02
TOLD OF THE TRACK.
The Differences in the Southwestern
Traftics-Other News.

Traftics-Other News.
No Roadway is being made by Off
Gals of the Southwestern Traffic
association lines toward healing the
differences which bid fair to wreck
their association. The gist of the
whole dispute is in regard to the
membership of the Rock Island, the
recent completion of its Texas line
making it impossible to form a good
association without it.
The difficulty is that the Rock ISL
and route was laid out after the
tariffs on through business were es-
tablished. For instance, st. Louis is
116 per cent point. That is, on
business from the Atlantic seaboard
the rate to St. Louis is 16 per cent
higher than to Chicago. But the
Rock Island crossed the Mississippi
at Rock Island, a 122 per cent point.
Naturally it cannot compete for
Texas business and charge 6 per
cent more than the st. Louis lines
charge. 1t therefore wishes to put
itself on an equality by making
Davenport a II per cent point. 1t
not only wishes this equality, but
will certainly obtain it. On no 9th
er terms can it do a through bust
ness on its new Texas line, and it
certainly does not propose to depend
entirely on local business. This
question is by no means new one.
The Atchison crosses the Mississippi
at Fort Madison and its first tariff
established its crossing as a 116 per
cent point. There is no further OBJ
iect in the St. Louis lines kicking
against the pricks. Either in or out
of the association. the Rock Island
will make competing rates via Rock
Island, The st. Louis lines recog-
nize this as inevitable. but by their
delay in yielding are piling up addi-
tiOnal hinderances to the formation
OF strong association in the south
west.
The Milwaukee Cut.
As has previously been chronicled
in the Geographic columns, the c.
NJ. & St. p. recently notified con-
ductors, engineers, iremen, brake
men and switchmen that a 10 per
cent reduction in wages was contem-
templated. and invited them to APP
point representative on the subject
The trainmen of each division sent
a al tA
waukee. which delegated a commit
tee to meet the company's officers in
Chicago. The men declined to ac-
cede to the proposed cut of 10 pei
/ cent, and proposed instead that for
I the next three months the wages OF
engineers be scaled so per month,
/ iiremen 50 and other trainmen pro
{ portionately.
The company declined this propo-
sition. and the Brotherhood OF
Switchmen then offered to loan the
management several millions of dol
lars. the head officers pleading the
scarcity of money as the cause for the
proposed cut in wages. But this
proposition was also refused and the
meeting resulted in disagreement.
From all the principal centers of that
great trunk line came the reports
that the employees would not agree to
. the cut. but in the event of its being
made would 90 on 4 strike and every
train on the company's 5000 miles
of road-eXcept mail trains-would
ne tied up. But the dreaded strike
has been averted, the company rec
ognizing the capriciousness of its
demands and has Withdrawn the or
der which applied the reduced scale
on Monday.
Killed on the Track
Thursday an extra freight train on
the c.. Il. |. Il p. ran over and killed
a woman at Peru. From appearances
the woman was suicide. the engi-
nppr haVinp renOrtpd that he saw her