The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1897-11-06
THE OLD AND TIE NEW STANDBY


Who Caused. the Reduction of FreIgh
Rates on the River.
| ED. ES-MoUNTAINEER:
The principal object in view wher
the Regulator was. built was to Obtain
relief from the excessive freight rates
then prevalent, and no one win dis
ppte that this object was mglished
for the first three OF, four years OF its
existance, but at the moment its rep
reseatatiyes laid the public good aside
for private gain and personal profit, ioi
which the affair savors, they forfeited
their claim to the undivided supper,
of the people. Three years ago there
were 15O wheat-lade2 tsamns Coming to
The Dalles daily from Klickftat county,
Two years ago "the old stand by ,,
made 2 prohibitory rate that compelled
these 15o teams per day to haul their
wheat to Grants and ship it by rail to
Portland, thereby losing thousands of
dollars in trade to our merchants.
Ithas now been year since the Cas-
cade locks were, opened, and up to
about month ago, at which time the
White Star Line made its appearance
upon the scene, the people Of the In
land Empire had not received one
cents worth of benefit from this vast
expenditure. Freight and passenger
rates had not been. reduced In any way.
as the people had long looked forward
to. II the rates that "the old standby,
had been charging the people before
the locks were opened were sufficient
to pay off a large Indebtedness, and to
accumulate a surplus, what exce5ses
have the people been subjected to since
that time. Free lockage having OBJ,
waited the expense OF hreaking cargo,
which their rates included,
Do you not want an open river to the
"a In the full sense Of the worda Will
not the interests of the property hold.
ers be facilitated by cheap rates? Will
not trade be drawn to this center from
the farthest possible point? Have not
the property holders of The DalIes who
are stockholders in "the old stand by,'
been blind to their own interests in
developing the original source of re-
lief into monopoly, similar to that
they were organized to combat?
Is it justice to the small merchants
of this place, who invested proportion-
ately in the establishment of "the old
stand by," that are not too full handed,
to be handicapped by the proposition
Of special rates to the few? What has
it cost. the property holders OF The
Dalles and yaeinity, the stock and wool
growers, to affor1 ."the old stand by''
it's very comfortable surplus? Will
five times the original cost of "the old
stand by's" outfit square the account?
This sudden anxiety of "the old stand
by" to be remembered by the people of |
the Inland Empire has been oooasioned |
by the advent OF the White Star Line,
plying between this city and Portland,
and which is doing very satisfactory |
business for It's owners at rate many |
times less than that of "the- old stand |
by"
Is it to the interest, of the small |
dealer. the farmer, tie stockgrower,
and the entire product of the Inland /
Empire to do business with "the old
stand by" or the new, better known as
the White Star Line? Who has been
paying Is cents for wheat for the last
two days, the old or the new stand by?
II you say the new, ask why, and
point to rate of one dollar per ton
IN wheat from here to Portland.
CITIZEN. I