The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-03-22
California's Great Grievance.
Haruer's Weekly

Harper's Weekly.
The shibholeth that acts as a watch
word In bringing all the people together
Is the phrase: charge all that the traffic
VIII bear IL Is an expression that is
variously credited TO Mr.. Huntington. the
original Mr.. Croker and TO various sub
ordinate officials OF the company. IL is
taken to Indicate the consistent unyart-
Ing policy of the Southern Pacific corpora
ton in respect to charges for Transports
ton. But the air is full of stories Illus
trative OF this policy. 1t does not matter
whether they are all true: they are be-
heved TO be true. OF those that can be
proved two or three may be told here.
On one of the days when the Sand Lots
movement was strong the late Mr.. Char
les Croker met n wealthy merchant
down town and said 10 him that he
hoped the people of San Francisco would
allow him 10 live among them, but the
talk of the Sand-Lotters suggested that
they would not. The merchant replied
that If Mr.. Croker would do as he would
advise. he. Mr. Croker. would be the
most popular man In town. His advice
was that Croker should write 10 the
Chamber OF Commerce. asking that a
committee be appointed to meet him and
confer upon the question what the South
ern Pacific company could do to meet the
approval OF the community. Mr.. Croker
ASt6ut1 1pT HbuFt anu tEGn Htsl-
will do nothing OF the sort. l will get all
l can out Of the road, and when railroad
ing plays out I VIII be such a rich man
that | won't care"
The same merchant who reports this
once had an enormous shipment to make
to the East. He was informed by an off,
Ger Of the Southern Pacific that Il had
"got him In the door and was going TO
squeeze him" II proposed that he pay
Ss v.5f fssfxn fsa
than he had ever paid before. lie hired
steamship and sent his goods around
the Horn sooner, than pay II, and the
next year the company made rate Of
slightly more than half what IL had asked
him during the previous year.
4 hop raiser who shipped his harvest
each year called for empty cars on one
occasion. and the local freight agent
asked him IL he knew what rate he was
going TO pay THE same as before. I
suppose" said the rancaer. 'Oh. no.
said the agent. Hops have gone UP.
have they not?" The crop had failed in
Germany and was a poor one In New
York so that the commodity had risen
IN value from 3 or 20 cents TO nearly 81
a pound In the previous year the hop
men had lost heavily. Therefore the
rancher asked: what has the price got
to do with you?" 1T has this 10 do with
u.s. said the agent, II will have 10 raise
your rate from cents To four cents n
pound Those are my orders, and think
you are getting of very easily"
The shipper sent has hops by wagon 10
the nearest waterway and by boat TO San
Francisco. and paid only about cents "A
pound for that mode of transporting
them. Then the railway agent came again
10 him and said: why did you not tell
ms what you were going 20 do? ! would
have got a rate OF l cent pound for
you
II ia because OF such relations between
the people and the railroad that the public
believes the story that one great ranch
owner has sworn that until another rail-
road Is built. he will not raise upon his
land a single pound of anything for mar
kat except what can walk 70 the place
OF sale upon its own legs. So he raises
miles. horses, hogs and sheep, and drives
them to the coast or the nearest station
of the Santa Fe route
.''rhe transconttuenta. business OF the
Southern Pacific Company does nos pay
az the rate the company has been forced
~ make said another merchant. They
have been forced IA make Up for their
transcontIrentsl losses by excessively
heavy local rates IN California. That Is
vhv we see that. as IL the ease of wheat.
they cannot carry K at all on the trans
continental route. yet they charge rate
az IS a ton for a 3D~ruile haul 70 the sea
hoard though tie same commodity has
h.eu hauled at a profit for = q ton over
: 30 miles between 81. Louis and the At
farts~ 4"