The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1896-11-18

dSdlU6t JuSt!Cc, ICooOn o"o '""' Nv
far as these nine roads are concerned
So 1t was an unjust and unlawful dis
elimination to give information to
one mercantile firm as to ine action
of this Board before action was taken
and Withhold like information f'om all
other firms similarly situated
I offered a resolution that the rule
of the Interstate Commission be the
rule of this Board: "rhat on request
Of either the complainant or defend
ant this Board shall make public the
cases and the reasons for the decision
of the Board.'' See page At, Nov
9-Minutes.
Your reasons for reduction were
published in State papers. Dec. 2oth,
1895 The main reason was that
ga road passing through North Car.
ollna, South Carolina and Georgia
should serve all their patrons in these
States on a parity in the rates used,
Page 81 Minutes This was spe'
cious argument calculated to mis'ead.
The conditions which obtain in these
States are entirely different For in
stance in South Carolina the average
haul is 10 miles and the net income
is $493 per mile In Georgia the
average haul is $50 miles and the net
income is $940 per mile. 1t is
against every principle of taxation
to tax 10 acre farm worth S493
the same as a $50 acre farm worth
1910, and SO it is against every
principle of "ius: and reasonable"
rate making to fix the same rates for
conditions so widely different 1t
is therefore unjust to fix the same
rate for South Carolina as for Geor-
gia.
My position in this matter was en-
dorsed by the Legislature. If the
fertilizer rates should be the same as
in Georgia then of course the pas,
sengec rates should be the same.
The passenge. rates were thoroughly
discussed in the Legislature and the
first class rates for South Carolina
was fixed at 81 cents per mile
against 8 cents in Georgia for the
same service
If the fertilizer rate should be the
same as the Georgia rate, then why
should the cotton rate not be the
same? The South Carolina rate on
cotton for 70 mile banl is % cents,
and the Geoegia rate for the same
haul is % cents In speech pub
lished in State papers February 10.
1894, and again October 25. 1895, l
urged or this Board a reduction of
the rate on cotton instead of ferti
lizer, if they must reduce something;
because the rate on crude cotton
was higher than the manufactured
article: The weight and bulk of
these two commodities are practi-
cally the same, and the manufactured
goods are five times more valuable.
Crude material should have lower
rate than more valuable manufactured
articles The reduction of the rate
on cotton would have been altogether
in the interest of the farmer for whom
these fertilizer manufacturers were
so solicitous. The reduction of the
fertilizer rate was not in the interest
of the farmer At the conference it
was shown that the bulk of fertilizers
was sold by the carload to merchants
The parties who pay the freight and
fix the price get the reduction. Fer
tiiizers are sold almost altogether
delivered and the price is fixed by
the fertilizer manufacturer. The
farmer sis not in it y What benefit
is freight reduction of so cents
ton. when the price is raised SO cents
ton. The truth is the reduction OF
the fertilizer rate was against the in
terests of the farmer in that it de.
stroyed competition. increasing the
demand and the price The rail-
roads which serve the people were
hurt. The fertilizer factories of
Charleston which competed with the
interior mills were shut out of the
most valuable territory in the State,
and were injured
The sole bene6ciaries of the fert-
lizer reduction were two or three in
terror mills The many have been
made to suffer for the benefit of the
few. In communication to this Board
of October 10th, Mr.. W. A. Clark,
President of the Columbia Phosphate
Company, tells what interest the
farmers have in freight reduction
on fertilizer. He says: "To illus
trate: they have been offering acid,
sacked and tagged F. 0. B., Charles
ton, at S725 Now add to this
SO 80 freight to the interior makes
$40 81 payable May 1st, 1897 Now
I.I..k;x. c,on, +b;c @! TX U,hich h