The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-11
CAR FAMINE CREATED
WAVE OF PROSPERITY ALMOST CON-
GESTS THE RAILROADS.
Great Difficulty in Securing Cars to
Move the Heavy Shipments of
Grain and Products.
THE LOCAL MANUFACTURES
TOO, ARE PARTICIPATING IN
THE MARKED IMPROVEMENT.
Increasing Their FOrces-Local Re-
Compared with Recent Years.


are becoming scarcer, and already it is i'm
possible to fill the orders for export ship
ment via Newport News and Baltimore
and the lines running to Toledo and Detroit
are troubled to furnish cars and yesterday
were several hundred cars short of filling
orders. j. A. Barnard, general manager of
the Peoria & Eastern who is well informed
concerning the needs in the way of cars
of the Big Four says he does not remember
when just such conditions have existed as
at present. He says there is no city in the
country which shows the real condition of
business more than does Indianapolis, and
there is no better pulse of business than
the loaded car movement via Indianapolis,
either east or west bound, as, when any
roads prosper Indianapolis lines have their
full share of prosperity. So far as the
PEORIA d Eastern is concerned it cannot
I'LL all its orders for cars, especially for ex-
port via Newport News, consequently he
has instructed agents to first furnish cars
called for in the local business and then
divert any surplus remaining to through
business The Big Four is hundreds Of cars
short every day of filing calls, and is now
moving the largest number of cars daily
in it's history, for some time past exceed
ing 5000 loaded cars per day. Five thou
sand loaded cars per day. in the past, has
been considered the maximum. j. r. Cava-
raugh, car-service superintendent of the
Big Four yesterday went to Cincinnati to
see what could be done to secure more
cars for the business via Newport News and
Baltimore, and for Toledo. He says not
only is there a loud call for grain cars
but for furniture cars and cars to move
the melon crops, and the movement of
miscellaneous freights, local in character,
seems heavy beyond precedent.
II. G. Stiles, general agent of the Cincin-
natl, Hamilton q Dayton. went to Cinein-
natl yesterday to see what could be done
to fill the orders of connections at Indi-
annapolis and handle the local business of
indianapolis and at points on the line.
John Lazarus, traffic manager of the In
diana, Decatur & Western, states that on
that line he could load in the next week
LOCO cars did he have them. Cars, he says,
are wanted to load with grain for the sea-
DCdrd and for Toledo, and their local bust
ness is seldom as heavy as at present
Caesar Rodney, general agent of the Van
dal1a at this point, says that since he has
been agent of the company he has not
known such a demand for cars. Last week
the road brought into Indianapolis over
LOO cars, chiefly loaded with corn, melons
and live stock.
Superintendent Mansfield, of the Indian
watching
carefully the company has been able to fill
most of the orders. On the l. q V. many of
the farmers are able to hold their wheat,
and as prices are going up, they will not
ship it, but the shipments of corn are
large.
The Pennsylvania lines have not as yet
felt the demand for cars to the extent that
the Big Four lines have, and the same is
true of the lines operating via Cleveland
and Buffalo. Comparatively speaking, but
little grain for export is going to New York
from this section, the Northwest using the
Lake Shore and Michigan Central to reach
the seabord, and it is stated that never in
the history of the New York Central has
its east-bound business been as heavy as at
present.
The Wabash is having a heavy run of
business, trains often running in eight to
ten sections
Another Important feature in business is
the heavy shipments of live stock and
dressed meats, they being unusually heavy
for August. What Indianians are most in
terested in is the local business While
crops are very important item, the manu-
featuring interests of the State are impor-
tant, consequently the demand for cars to
handle the business of the manufactures
becomes matter of interest. On Monday
the furniture manufactures of Shelbyville
ordered forty-hve cars to load at once,
those of Connersville forty cars, and Ander-
son, Muncie and many of the towns in the
gas belt are making numerous calls Tor
cars. Taken as q whole, the officials who
look after the supplying of equipment have
no easy task Car tracers are being sent
in every direction to see that cars are
unloaded promptly and returned to some
shipping point. Car-service associations
are on the alert to see that cars are not
held one minute over the time the car
service associations allow, and as each day
increases the calls for cars the question of
supply becomes more serious. 1t is having
q good effect at the shops of the railroad
companies, where repairing is done. These
shops are increasing their forces and work.
ing full time, and car works that have
been practically idle for two years are
receiving orders for cars, re-employing men
and giving such places as Michigan City
Jeffersonville and Terre Haute, where car
works are located, considerable BOOM
That business with the Indianapolis lines
has improved is evidenced in the fact that
in the first. week of August this year 1866
more loaded cars were handled at Indian
apoIis than in the corresponding week of
1896. and 1850 more than in the CORE
enopdiner week of 1898.