Omaha daily bee., 1896-02-09
RAILROAD SIDE OF THE CASE
Discussion Of Live Stock Switching Rates
from the Transportation Standpoint.
BLAME LAID ON THE YARDS COMPANY
Kansas City and Chicago Preferred
to Omaha on Account of the
Local Switching Charges and
for Other Reasons.

There are two sides to every story" said
well known local railroad man. "The
| newspapers have been working up a good
| deal OF feeling against the railroads for in
| juring the South Omaha market The fact
Is, the railroads are not to blame at all. They
are the means, but not the cause of the
| trouble. The real cause for the diversion of
| live stock to Kansas City and Chicago is to
be found in the sefshness of the stock yards
company and allied interests. For example,
shipper has cattle to forward to market
and has a notion that he will try the South
Omaha market, and If he does not get a
good bid there will take them to Chicago. At
his request the railroad company takes the
cattle to South Omaha, when 1t would be a
good deal less trouble to haul them straight
through to Chicago without hating On ar
irving at South Omaha the stock yards COM
pany takes the cattle in hand and makes
charge for switching the cars around to the
yards, and charge for unloading. Then 1t
makes another charge for switching the cars
out of the yards and delivering them back
again to the railroad company. In this way
it costs the road $3.50 for every car 1t halts
at the South Omaha market besides the
trouble and expense of hauling it down there
Is 1t any wonder that the railroads do not
go out and work for the South Omaha market
WHEN IL means Only extra trouble ana eX-
pense for them with no commensurate re-
turns?
with the first of the year the railroads
commenced adding the switching charges to
the regular freight bills, thus making the
shipper pay the stock yards charges instead
OF paying 1t themselves, as had been the
rule previously. This action on the part of
the roads has raised terrible howl about
the railroads killing South Omaha. Why
not lay the blame on the stock yards COM
pany? This charge of $3.50 per car for switch
ing which they say is hurting South Omaha
so much is made by the stock yards COM
pany. The Kansas City Stock Yards COM
pany does not make any such charge, and
If the South Omaha company is inclined to
tax the business, why should the railroads
be blamed for it?
There is also another feature to this SUBJ
ject-the South Omaha people want the rail-
roads that have lines running to Chicago to
favor their market and bring as much stock
there as possible, instead of carrying it on
to Chicago. AS already stated, the rail-
road companies allow their shippers to halt
their stock at that market and sell there If
it suits them. What is the result? A road
will bring in stock billed to Chicago with
the stopover privilege and If the stock is
sold there to a speculator 1t will go on to
Chicago, but not necessarily over the road
that brought 1t in. Last year the Elkhorn
delivered at South Omaha S,911 cars of live
stock but hauled out only 432 cars. Thus
the Elkhorn lost through South Omaha S,479
cars of stock which it might have hauled to
Chicago. The stock yards people do not ap-
pear to think that they are under any OBJ
legation to the railroad company that brings
in the stock. The Milwaukee does not bring
in stock to amount to anything but hauled
out last year 2,111 cars, the largest number
of any road except the Burlington. For
some reason the stock yards people seem to
favor the Milwaukee and turn everything
possible to that road and then make a great
fuss because the other roads do not bring
in more stock for them to turn over to the
Milwaukee"