The Wichita daily eagle., 1895-08-20
KANSAS FREIGHT RATES.

any figure in determining rates 1Ol
any product OR commodity.
The Eagle two or three years ago In
exhaustively treating the fgreight-ratt
question. in connection with the Mis-
souri, river traffic-trust. and the disas
trOus determinations growing out OF
that combines rule, not only TO Wien
ita but to all Kansas, and consequently
to the Kansas railway lines themselves
thought it had made itself perfectly
understood But it seems it did not.
| We shall not attempt at this time TO
go over the ground again, but VIII
make q statement or two which can
hardly fail Of being understood, as
/ illustrated.
| The freight-rate sheets or schedules
of the railway lines of the country are
made up by traffic managers and gen
| eral freight agents, their expert clerks
| and accountants, who meet to discuss
and decide as to every line Of road,
every shipping point and every kind
of commodity. This work covers
| groups of roads and sections of the
United States. Tonnage nor mileage
are not considered when such consid-
GRAFTON in any way adversely effects
the earnings or the prerOgatives of
any one of the traffic groups or OF the
single lines of such groups. These
traffic managers and general freight
agents have never been practical ship
pers or business men. They are pro-
mOted freight clerks and the like, who
have acquired an expertness in figur-
ing out and applying certain formulat-
ed rules, co-contractS and side-arrange-
ments, for the determining what any
commodity shall pay in the way of
freight charges. Distance nor tom
mage have nothing to do with these
findings, but common-points, basing-
lines and distributing-centers, every
thing. Presidents, managers, directors
stockholders nor owners have any say
in the fixing Of rates and no rate is
named with any reference to the cost
Of the service performed by the road,
the justice of the shipper or the in
terest of business. Every rate is de-
termined by code of rules based on
inter-obligationS, cOntingentinterests
and the like into which enters the hypo-
thetical rulings of interstate commits
sion, complicated by the holdings of
state railway commissions, and all
farther mixed beyond comprehension
by lake and gulf transportation, to-
gether with the conjectural rates Of
impossible rivers and improved creeks,
to say nothing Of the element of a pos
sible action of some connecting link,
or Canadian trunk line. 1t is all much
like the practice before the courts Of
law. There are so many forms, such
a number Of objections and motions
and ruling and other extraneOus ver-
bage that the truths and facts of the
case are covered up beyond the COM
prhensiOn or reach of either the Judge
or the jury or the lawyers themselves.
Let US illustrate. Supposing local
or travelling man of the Rock
Island should turn up at one of these
TranSmisSouri or western combine of
roads, with the announcement that
there had been an inexhaustable mine
of aSafOetida discovered on that line
down in Oklahoma and that he wanted
a rate. The traffic managers or their
clerks of all the roads in the combine
would be questioned as to their asa
fOetida mines. None Of them having
any such commodity the rate sheets of
all the other lines and combines Of
lines from the Atlantic to the Pacific
would be hunted for this commodity.
Finding that nobody produced, had,
or handled aSafOetida, the association
would tell the Rock Island to make it's
own classification on their new dis
covery and charge what they pleased |
for carrying it, providing the through |
rate did not amount to more than the |
stuff was selling for in New York And |
so the Rock Island would get up a new
class or otherwise charge all that the |
would stand.
But suppose instead of an asafoetida |
mine it should turn out to be a big
coal mine, and that the Rock Island |
man should say TO the traffic associa-
ton: I'VE can ship and deliver that
coal at Wichita, Wellington and other
points in Kansas on our line for $3.50
per ton and make lots of money at that
price. Does anybody suppose that
this question would be submitted TO
The Atlantic Seaboard lines or the gulf |
ana lake lines or TO anybody else? Not
much. The Missouri Pacific would
point to the rules Of the combine and
say we are net going to haul coal from
tilch Hill to Wichita for any such
money If we can help il. The Santa
he would say we will not only not haul
coal from the Rocky mountains TO Wich-
ia for any such price but cannot. Re-
suit, the new discovery of coal would
De worth nothing TO Wichita or any,
body else, as the Rocky mountain rate
over the Santa Fe would fix the Rock
Island rate TO Wichita.
Or suppose again that the Santa Fe
he Missouri Pacific and the Rock
sland local traffic men should all 60
osether 10 a meeting Of the traffic
managers with the news that four or
I've big rains had deluged the south
west and that millions of tons of grass
lad unexpectedly sprung up. and that
nay was short and commanding a very
'lg price in Il dozen eastern states.
W ouid this new line of freight and its