The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-11-22
FILED AN ANSWER
MISSOURI PACIFIC PRESENTS ITS
SIDE OF Rate CASE.
It Denies That it is Corporation IN
der the Laws OF Kanses-AIleges
That Rates Are Not More Exhorb-
liant to Wichita Than TO Omaha

The Missouri Pacific Railroad COMPANY
by its attorneys, filed yesterday with the
clerk OF the United States district court
their answer to he petition OF the plaintiff
in the case of the city of Wichita VS.. the
Missouri Pacific Railroad company. in
which the plaintiff claims that the freigh,
| tariff charged by said road are eXorbi
tant and discriminating rates against The
city.
It will be remembered that when the
petition was first filed the company
filed demurrer TO the plaintiffs petit
ton which was argued b-fore judy
Williams. The judge overru ed the de-
murrer of the defendants. and granted the
com pany sixty days in which to file their
answer to the petition of the piaintiff
Yesterday the answer was filed, which is
voluminous affair, covering thirteen
closely typewriter pages. The answer in
substance i, as follows:
1.-The Missouri Pacfc::railroad company
admits that il IS corporation, existing
under the laws of the state of Missouri;
that at the time of filing the PETITION OF
the plaintiff IN this case, the com panv was
engaged as a common carrier of ali class
of freight usually transported by railroad
companies between the cities of St. Louis,
Mo-, and Omaha, Neb.; also between the
city of St Louis and the city of Wichita.
Kan, also To and from all informed
late points between the cities mentioned:
but it denies that it Is a corporation incor-
porated under the laws of Kansas a. the
Missouri Pacific railroad company of Kan
sas, aud IL further alleges that the princi-
pal Office Of said company is located III
st. Louis, in the state of Missouri.
1T admits that all shipments of freight
between st. Louis and Wichita, and ali
shipments of freight between ST. Louis
and Omaha, passes over the same
track between ST. Louis and Holden, No,
- alleged in the plaintiffs petition, but il
denies that from Holden. Mo-. the defend
ant has two lines of railroad, one of which
runs northwest from Holden TO Omaha,
Neb., distance Of 500 miles. and smother
which runs south west To the city Of " ich-
ita, dist ance of ASS miles from st. Louis,
AS alleged and set forth in The plaintiffs
petition. This defendant further denies
that IL owns all of said lines of railroad
between st. Louis and Omaha, and be-
tween st. Louis and Wichita. over which
it moves traffic As nllege IN rhe plaintiffs
petition ana bill of cOnIl int. The de-
fenCHnt alleges that part OF the line or
lines lying in Kansas over which freight Is
carried between Holden and Wichita be-
longs tn a corporation known Ms the Kan
sas aud Colorado PacItic railroad company
which WAS organized under the laws of the
state of Kansas.
The defendant admits that it had at
the time of filing this suit schedule OF
freight traffic between Wichita aud ST.
Louis, also between Omaha and ST. Louis.
aud that said defendants did collect the
amount rs shown by the schedule for the
transportation of freight between the
points mentioned. but il does deny that
said freight tariffs are unjust, uureasou-
able. excessive or eXhorbitani or that they
constitute an unjust aud unreasonable
discrimination against shippers as alleged
in the plaintiffs petition. That the diff
f-rences rs shown by the schedule are
wholly owing TO the fact that the cou-
ditions and circumstances are disimilar
betweent ST Louis and Omaha, and be-
tween St. Louis and Wichita, and are
wholly governed by causes over which the
defendant has no control.
That there is great dissimilarity OF the
circumst ances and conditions in respect TO
the length of the haul; cost of services;
volume of business; conditions of com
petition; storage capacity aud geographical
position: situation of the two terminal
points; com petition by water transports.
ton and other railroad lines; by reason of
many commercial advantages; by reason
Of the environments of the respective
cities OF " ichta and Omaha"