The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1895-01-16
THE VALLEY RAILROAD
SOUTHERN PACIFIC RATES,

has are charges. And these charges are gov
erned-by what? By what can be obtained. by
all the traffic will bear. And sometimes they
overestimate-they have never yet made the
mis- axe of undere stimatng-the amount that
the traffic will bear and survive. OF course, it
isn't the intention of this philanthropic cor
poration to entirely crush out the fruit grow
er's business. That would be cruel and, incl
dentally, not good policy on the part of the
octopus. Of course, fruit must be raised, else
there would be nothing for the Southern Pa
cifc to carry But it need not be raised by
free men. Slaves can raise fruit How to
properly subjugate the fruit growers and keep
them in state of servi.uds has been the prob
lem. 1t wasn't very difficult to enslave the San
Francisco shippers. That did not even tax the
ingenuity OF the pious Mr. Huntington. To
bring the valley growers to q proper sense OF
gratefulness for the privilege of living and
growing fruit on Mr.. Huntington's plantation
has been task that even the giant brain of
the pious old man has not been entirely equal
to up to the present writing.
True, the Southern Pacific has succeeded in
many instances in reducing the valley grow
ers to the material condition of slaves. 1t has
impoverished them, but the deuce take their
stubborn spirit, they have declined to kiss the
hand that smitas them and steals the fruit of
their labor. Here they are today in Los An
geles streets walking upright like free men
landmark well their audacity actually plot
ting to throw off the financial yoke that Oc-
topus Huntington has tried all these years to
fasten upon them forever. Vassals plotting
against their lord What stuff these valley
men must be made of Why are they not at
home working on the old mans plantation?
During the A. R. U. strike in this state there
was an endeavor to create public sentiment
against the strikers by stating that the fruit
growers near the line OF road would be ruined
by inability to get their products to market"
says Barry's Star. Injecting with an old ac-
quaintsnce, who for several years had been en-
gagged in the business near Colfax, we referred
to that view. He said it was nonsense, for the
simple reason that the fire. ght rates charged
by the monopoly were so high that, in connec-
ton with the speculations to which growers
are exposed from commission merchants, fruit
growing had become improbable, and but lit
tie would have been shipp; d last summer had
there been no strike. And here are the figures
as TO the charges from Colfax as he gave them:
To Denver and Salt Lake, $3.50 per carload of
II to IA tons; to Chicago IL cents a pound,
or $500 to $3.50 carload. To Buffalo, $395.47,
and TO New York. $414O6.
THESE rates are without refrigerators, for
which the extra charge is $164.7S to Buff
falo, and $175 to New York.
but there Is competition, as from Los An
geles to Chicago the charge is only $3.50, re-
frigerators included That is about what the
charges would be from Colfax, while the &C tual
charge is $500 to $3.50, without refrigerators,
which would probably be $3.50 more-a differ
ence, of nearly two to one.
"But the comparison does not do the subject
full justice, as competition really increases the
expense OF the same to the companies, whe cas-
that expense would be very much decreased
under complete government ownership.
"The testimony OF Mr.. Stubs before the in
terstate commerce commission some years ago
and the concurrent estimates of experts as
embodied in professional journals are to the
effect that the actual cost of moving freight
on roads varies but little from three mills per
ton per mile. This, we presume, does not in
clude the expenses OF station and depot serv-
ice. For these however, a fixed allowance
of. say, $500 per carload, irrespective of dis
lance, would appear to be ample but much
more might be allowed. and still the sum
would be much less than the rates now
charged
"1ake. for instance, the following compari-
son between the Stubs figures of cost and the
actual charges: Colfax to Salt Lake, 12i miles,
81 IT per ton, $30.7S per carload of Ia tons
Ghey are likely to be IL to ID tons add So,
00.IS ..
charges $3.50.
1--WE have no table of distances bayond Salt
Lake on that line, but Denver is about 800
miles father and the actual cost of service to
that place would be, on the same basis of cal
culation, 90 cents per ton more
"From Colfax to Chicago is very close to
1926 miles, which, according to the estimate
again, would make the cost $6.6S per ton, or
$685. per carload of Ia tons, Or with fixed
charges added. $96.52. The actual present
charge is from $500 to $3.50.
Buffalo is about 300 miles from Chicago by
the route south of Lake Erie, or about $50 by
the Canadian route. The movement cost would
therefore be about 1871 per ton, or $lO6. 81 for
14-ton car; add the SO for fixed expenses
and we have a cost of $1O9.54 per car, for
which the railroad charge, $395.47, the differ
ence representing what the people have to
pay for the luxury of having roads run by
private corporations with $50, 900 salaries for
the managers. whole RATS OF lawyers, spies, de-
tectves, lobbyists. politicians, etc. as against
the rates that would be charged were the
roads owned and run by the government.
New York is about g. 151 miles from Colfax
which on the same basis of calculation as
above would give rate of $9.40 per ton or
$132.30 per carload 1886 80 including station
all the traffic will bear now are $ll4.O6
The cost to the public for millionaire d.
rectors, officials and other business is $276.72,
or more than double the necessary total charge
under government ownership.
"These are the kind of facts that the press
keep from the people. Yet fruit ra sing is one
OF the most important industries of the state.
If fruit raisers had taken The Star for the last
ten years, they would not have to threaten the
railroad las they did that they would ship no
fruit next season unless the rates were lowered,
as they will be. AS ii is, for the trfling de-
ductons from the enormous overcharges ex-
acted this season, the fruit growers will still
permit the monopoly to charge them more
than double what the service is worth"
Coming still nearer home there is the case
of Editor W. W. Barnes OF the Hanford Demo-
crat who has had personal experience with the
octopus He tells about it in the following
paragraph
"The Southern Pacific Railroad company
have numerous ways OF filching from the pub
lie. Not satisfied with all the traffic will
bear they overcharge. short time since
the Democrat received a package of freight
weighing sxty-ive pounds but the octopus
collected for Ito pounds. On two other bills
of freight the overcharge exceeded 100 pounds.
If it treats all OF its customers alike, it is no
wonder there is general howl for a compel
ing railroad"