The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-09-06
HUNTINGToN's SALARY
1t Is $4,000 Year, With
Sixteen Hours for
Days Work.
THE INVESTIGATION ENDED
DR.. Stanton Says He Is Ready tc
Vote on the La Rue Reso-
luton.

The investigation by the Board OF Rail
road Commissioners into the affairs of the
Southern Pacific for the purpose OF ena-
bling the commissioners to vote 1ntelll-
gently upon Chairman La Rue's resolution
for a Is per cent horizontal reduction in
rates was concluded yesterday afternoon.
The board will meet tomorrow morning
to review the testimony and vote on the
resolution.
DR.. Stanton is ready to vote and to file a
written reason fer his vote without any
further testimony, discussion or review.
Mr.. La Rue wants to look over the tran
script of the official stenographer's notes,
and wouldn't mind hearing Attorney Mar
tin and Denis Kearney talk little, and
Mr.. Clark, who hasn't had much to say
during the investigation, would like the
transcript to guide him in his delibera-
tions.
The commission yesterday through the
persistence of Denis Kearney learned that
Mr. Huntington's salary was SIC, 900 a year.
1t endeavored to learn, through the steady
and unrelenting efforts of Mr.. La Rue,
something about the intricacies of railroad
building by corporation that issues con-
struction bonds to itself under another
name. What it learned was indirect, and
though not wholly unimportant yet of that
peculiar sort that could be considered only
inferentially.
Mr.. La Rue got into politics before the
day was over, but was unable to adduce
testimony that money was paid by the
Southern Pacific for the carrying of cleo
tons, controlling conventions and lobby
ing in the Legislature. He placed the
representatives of the corporation on
record as not making positive denial Of
his assertions.
There was the usual array of figures to
show that the operation of the Southern
Pacific is an expensive luxury which nets
nothing to the stockholders and enliches
bondholders.
There was showing by the locomotive
engineers that the reduction OF rates would
fall heavily on the men who handle the
trains that haul the traffic.
Assistant General Manager Curtis was
the first TO testify before the Railroad
Commission yesterday morning. He re-
ferred to testimony given on Wednesday
- Secretary Lansing, and in explanation
of it said that Mr.. Lansing had given the
average earnings per ton per mile as 1.2I
average for local traffic was 2.54 cents in
1894 and 263 cents in 1898. He then COM
pared results with those OF the Pennsyl-
vana Railroad. On this road in 1864 the
average earnings per ton per mile were
2.49 cents and in 1888 81 cents. The tom
mage on the road increased from 547 600 in
1864 to 2,726, coo in 1893, showing, as Mr..
Curtis claimed, that as the rates were
lowered the tonnage increased. He next
gave figures Tor the Southern Pacific.
Rates on this road were lowered from 2.S4
cents per ton per mile in 1872 to 1.21 cents
in 1894. while the tonnage had increased
from 208, 600 in 1872 to 314, 900 in 1894. He
added that when the rates on the Pennsyl-
vania road were the same as those now on
the Southern Pacific the Eastern road was
Carrying three times the tonnage that is
now being transported over the Southern
Pacific, while cost of operation was con-
siderably less on the Pennsylvania than it
is now on the Southern Pacific.
General Freight Agent Smurr supple
mented these figures by stating that for
the first hall of 1895 the average local earn
ings per ton per mile for the Southern Pa
cihc were 2.28 cents as compared to 2.48
cents for the same period in 1894.
As the result of prompting by Attorney
Martin the commission was informed by
Mr.. Curtis that the amount OF taxes paid
by the Southern Pacific was little greater
than that paid by other roads in the United
States.
Secretary Lansing laid some figures be-
fore the commission, as follows:
PASSENGER EARNINGS OF THE PACIFIC SYSTEM,
SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY.