The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-10-07
THE WAR OF RATES.

The rate war is still on. A round
trip ticket between here and Salt Lake
can still be purchased for so cents
and it is probable that if any Ogden
people go to the depot today with a
grip in their hands they will be &C
costed and apprised of the 80 cent rate
by numerous ticket sellers. No change
in the situation appears at first glance
ON the surface but investigation shows
that each party has prepared anew
for the struggle Heretofore the
tickets sold have been the usual con-
ference tickets. They had to be used
yesterday in going and were good re-
turning until the 18th. Yesterday a
Herald man interviewed the leading
officials of each road on the subject of
whether another series of tickets
would be issued and the rate con-
tinued? Up to late in the afternoon
it looked as though the war would be
dropped but later Mr.. Corse Of the
Union Pacific said his instructions
were to continue the so cent rate.
Mr.. Hail of the Rio Grande Western
said his instructions were likewise and
SO each road has taken "a fresh grip
for the struggle. Just what the form
of the new tickets will be could not
ably certain, however, that the going
limit will be not later than October g.,
and the returning limit not earlier
than October r.
Meanwhile lots of people are going
to Salt Lake and are hoping that the
! combatants will be imbued with the
| sentiments Of Macduff's opponent-the
one with the lay on indefinitely pro-
clivitfes
Yesterday the Union Pacific seemed
to have the advantage as it carried
passengers carried by its rival.
This was probably due in part
to the greater facilities accorded by
| the schedule Of their road for the early
return today of conference visitors.
| Exclusive of the evening train the
Union Pacific carried twenty-three
coaches well filed with passengers.
The BustIe About the .'War."
The hustle about the depot made
| men drop into reminiscent moods. and
! they talked of other rate wars While
! the present rate war is not financially
! Of great consequence, still the things
! that may come of it and the hustle it
causes, brings to mind other struggles.
! One group was talking of the time
! several years ago when the rate from
! here to Los Angeles was $1-the time
! of the fight between the Southern Pa
! cific and the Santa Fe systems. Others
called to mind the protracted struggle
| in the summer of 1886, when from
| Omaha to New York cost but SIS, and
much of that sum went as commission
to the agent selling the ticket. A more
recent fight was referred to in the
great war of 1892 between Missouri
! river points and Chicago.
A rumor was current on the streets
several times that tickets had dropped
to 25 cents, and once it was confidently
asserted that meal ticket went with
the transportation. This of course was
not true, but it had excuse for origin
ating in the efforts put forth by the
different ticket sellers. They used this
method of attracting attention.
For instance, one would cali out ''25
cents to Salt Lake" and the crowd
would surround him, when he
would follow up by saying thai
1t was also % cents to return, and
neither coupon was good without THE
Another seller seeing the crowd
around his rival. would say, Best
meals in the city," and as the crowd
came his way he would follow by say
ing that 'tthey could be had around
IH6 ueDOI VI Ills IOdu, do UIlt QtpOL was
centrally located and that the fare and
return over the road was only so cents
One very laugha bic incident occurred
when two middle-aged looking ladies
came and We're offered tickets by one
of the sellers The cheapness of the
bits of cardboard aroused their suspi-
cions They thought the tickets could
not be genuine, and questioned the sell
Ter sharply. Meanwhile THE opposition
man was selling them right and left
but the first fellow had been taught not
to give up. and he would not. He
showed signatures and stamps on the
tickets, and groaned when the ladies
slowly adjusted their glasses Ito look al
them. They were not satisfied, and be-
gan to lecture the boy on the ruiz
which stared him in the face if hi
were practicing fraud
Finally they went ITO the other fellow
but his tickets were equally cheap, ant
they gave him an equally severe lee
ture while the first seller had his turr
. at selling. The ladies finally went int
the depot and paid $3.50 for tickets
thankful that they had escaped such {
pair of sharpers Compassion, how
ever, moved them to send a tract bacl
to each of the boys. One tract stated
that THE way of ihe transgressor il
! hard the other, "Be sure thy sin viii
: find thee out -
LOCAL BRIEFS.