The herald., 1896-05-16
TRACK AND TRAFFIC NOTES
The Valley Road Preparing for Ship.
ments Of Grain
Rates Not Yet riads Public but They Will Be
Low-TroubIes Of the Western
Trunk Lines

SAN ERANClSCO, May 10.-Ine
grain-shipping season in the San Joa-
quin valley to Stockton and Port Costa
will open this year early in July. Mr..
Stubbs. on behalf of the Southern Pa
cific, Is preparing to. make fight
against the Valley road for the grain
shipments between Stockton and Mer-
ced. Vice-President Watt who, in the
absence of President Claus Spreckels
in Europe. is at the head of the new
line. and Traffic Manager Morse are
keeping their plans very quiet, but 1t is
known that on June goth next they in
tend to open the road from Stockton to
Merced for grain shipments to Stock
ton, Port Costa and Sacramento. They
have made pro rata arrangements with
the steamboat companies to Port Costa
and Sacramento and have prepared
schedules of grain rates from points
along the new road to Stockton, Port
Costa and Sacramento. They do not in
tend to make their rates public until
couple of days before the opening of the
new road into Merced in order to pre-
vent the Southern Pacific from knowing
what their plans are until the last mo-
ment.
The new road has established five sta
tions within a distance Of seventy-fiv
miles south of Stockton. They are at
advantageous points for grain ship
ments. and will be known respectfully
as Burnham, Escalon, Clauston, LIE
Grande and Marguerite. People along
the line of the road have filed numerous
applications for other stations, and be-
tween now and June 18th the directors
will probably locate ten more with pro-
per sidetracks for the accommodation
of the wheat men. While the directors
are bending every energy to push the
road into Fresno by August 18th next,
they want to handle as much wheat as
possible north of Merced as soon as the
wheat-shipping season opens. They
think they will be able to quote rates
much lower than the Southern Pacific
ever has. and they will be able to cover
much Of the territory covered by its
main line in the San Joaquin and its
eastern branch running by the way of
Stockton, Charleston, Pennington and
Oakdale into Merced.
THE COMMISSION REPORT
SAN FRANCISCO, May 15.-The
board Of railroad commissioners has
completed it's first annual report to Gov
Budd. Commissioners LaRue and STAN
ton have signed the report. Commits
sioner Clark may make a minority re-
port. The report contains no statistics
OF the debts, earnings and expenses Of
the various California lines, but makes
the statement that a supplemental re-
port on these matters for 1895 will be
made in the course Of a few weeks. The
majority report objects to the action of
the Southern Pacific and the other over
land roads in increasing the freight bur-
dens OF the fruit men by tolerating the
various refrigerator fruit car compan-
les independent charges on eastern fruit
shipments. The report vindicates the
boards action in refusing to increase
rates on petroleum oil shipments in CAL
ifornia, and reaffirms the determination
to compel all steamship and steamboat
companies interested in California trade
to make annual reports. The statement
is then made that the commissioners
VIII endeavor to have the question of
their authority over street car lines de-
cided soon.
Reference is made to the orders re-
ducing Southern Pacific local grain
rates per cent, and reducing all South
ern Pacific local rates an average of 25
per cent. In discussing the Injunction
suit of the Southern Pacific the report
says; gi.
state and involve not only the right of
regulation of rates through the medium
or railroad commission. but the vital
question of the right of the people of
tne state OF California through the COM
mission to regulate or to interfere in any
manner with the charges fixed by the
Southern Pacific company. If the posi-
tlon taken by the complainants is sus-
talned. all hopes for the regulation of the
rates OF this corporation will be destroy
GU anu sucn charges as they may deem
proper will be enforced regardless of
the will of the people,
WESTERN ROADS.
CHICAGO, May 15.-The western
trunk lines have failed to hit upon ar,v
method of keeping up their tariff rates
beyond having the assurance of all the
roads IN the association that they will
do their best to maintain rates here
after. This has been tried MANY times
before. and the result has been that the
same OLD routine of calling another meet
ing and having all the roads promise
once more that they will never do SO
again, mas had to be followed out. It
VIII ne tried once more, and the chances
are that IT will meet with the same sue
cess In the future that 1t has received
IN the past. There seems to be no Way
IN which the western roads. can keeo
up the standard of freight rates at tht,
present time, and some of the general
ofncers OF the roads are in favor of trv-.
ing an entirely new agreement
IL Is likely that a meeting Of the
Western Passenger association will ha
called In the near future to consider the
question OF transporting bicycles The
majority OF western roads decla re then,
selves opposed to the free TRANSPORTS tion
or wheels. but there are two or three ~
the smaller roads that are in favor of II
and they will have the matter brought
before the general meeting of the West
ern Passenger association, to be held
after the return Of Chairman Caldwell
from California.