The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-01-04
OUT in OPEN WAR
HUTCHINSON LANDLORDS UNPURl
THE FLAG OF REBELLION.

THE FLAG OF REBELLION,
They Want the Hotel Association of Kan
sas to Recognize Them as BeIligerents
at its Meeting in this City Next Week
They also Want the Railroad BosteIer-
les Boycottcd Ivy the Public in Favor of
the Regular City Taverns-They Appeal
to the Travelling Men With the Justice
of Their Cause,
The State Hotel Keepers association
viii meet in this city next week and one
OF the things they are expected to do is
open war on the Santa Fe eating houses
Ihls action was foreshadowed yes
terday by avn open letter issued and
sent broadcast by Usher & Hassinger
and w. c. Thompson. managers respec-
lively Of the Midland and Brunswick
hotels of Hutchinson. The letter reads
as follows:
I'VE. as hotel keepers, object to the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail-
way company becoming competitors
through their lessee in the field of local
and commercial hotel business; the rail-
way company through the concessions
made by them TO their lessee in the way
Of free transportation in freight, or If
not entirely free the cost is nominal, be-
come active competitors with private
capital and individuals As long as the
necessity existed of their maintaining
railroad eating houses for the benefit Of
their passengers their right was CON-
ceded, but now that branch of the bust
nesss having been abandoned we must
earnestly object to their maintaining a
hotel on the basis outlined by them
through their agent in an open inter
View with a representative of the
press.
Mr.. Usher of the Midland hotel ar
CUES in this wise:
There was a time in Kansas when
the railroad eating houses were neces-
sity, but that time has passed now, and
the railroad hotels have entered into
competition with private capital to
maintain trade which does not belong
10 them. In this town, for instance, the
Midland and Brunswick spend from
$4,000 to $4,000 for provisions, etc,
every dollar of which is expended
among the business houses of this town.
1t is extremely doubtful If the Santa Fe
hotel spends as much as $1,000 1t has
no interests here, and no permanent in
Vestments but draws its money to go
into foreign pockets. We cannot COM
pete with it, because it is granted fav-
ors by the railroad company in the mat
ter of transportation not accorded to
US. The coal which costs US Sc to 81 per
ton here, costs them perhaps 81 at the
fnine and no charge is made for trans
portatiOn. If it is placed upon an equal
basis with US, we have no complaint to
make, but we do object to running in
competition with the Santa Fe Rail-
way company"
An effort will be made to enlist the
travelling public in the movement and
also the local commercial bodies of
towns and cities throughout the state.
The board of trade or commercial club
Of Hutchinson is already on the side of
It's local hotels and it will help them to
buck the Santa Fe.
In conversation with some well
known travelling men al the Carey last
night a reporter for the Eagle learned
that their sympathies were with the 10
cal hotels although they admit that
there are more advantages in patron.z-
ing the railroad houses.
One well known travelling man said:
"Don't understand me to say that rail-
Road eating houses are better than the
regular hotels of the city. That is not
true generally. 1 only say that In
IOWflS where tH1efe are DOtn regular no
tells and railroad eating houses the rail-
road house is probab bly, the best. The
reason for this is plain and IL / under
stand the open letter of the Hutchinson
hotel keepers this is their principal
grievance. The reason why the regu-
lar hotels in cities where there are rail-
road hotels are inferior is because they
are deprived of the patronage that so
TO the railroad houses, while the latter
are deprived OF nothing as they are
operated only for the transient trade,
and they get that. Both the Midland
and the Brunswick are very good no
tells; they would be better had it not
been for the Santa Fe house opposition.
If you abolish the railroad eating
house at Hutchinson the other hotels
can afford TO improve and as / said
before. they want this chance of i'm
proving OF course, the correct bust
ness principle is to go to the hotels
where you can get the most value for
your money. but as a rule, Kansas peo-
pie are highly endowed with local pride
and l would not be surprised to see
pretty vigorous war made on the rail-
l.