The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-19
A Suicidal Movement.

st. Louis Commercial Traveller.
Information comes from Ohio that a
strenuous effort is being made to secure
the Endorsement of the commercial travellers
of the State to bill now pending in the
Ohio Legislature, reducing railroad fares in
that State to a fiat rate of 2 cents per mile;
and that petitions are now being circulated
among the travelling men throughout the
Buckeye State, requesting the passage of
the bill.
We certainly trust that this report can
have no foundation in fact, for the reason
that such action on the part of the travel
ing men Of Ohio at this time would be
suicidal not only as far as their own in
terests are concerned, but would operate
against the best interests of every com
mercial traveller In the territory of the Cen
trail Passenger Association where the one
thousand-mile interchangeable ticket is now
in use.
brothers by the enactment of such legis-
lation, but serious consequences are bound
to follow if the bill becomes a law; from
the fact that every road In the Central
Passenger Association territory will be
forced, as q matter of self-protection, to
withdraw from the interchangeable mileage
agreement.
1t is more than likely that the argument
which is being most effectively used, in
order to secure the support of travelling
law and thereby put the fiat rate of 2 cents
per mile into operation, that an inter-
changeable mileage book will not be neces-
sary for the reason that the travelling man
could then purchase his transportation as
he needed it at the same rate that he now
pays when he purchases one-thousand-
mile ticket.
But this fact must not be overlooked, that
if the travelling men of Ohio array them
selves in opposition to the railroads in con-
nectiOn with this legislation, that the rail-
roads viii, even II the bill is defeated. adopt
retaliatory measures and withdraw the in
Interchangeable mileage book from sale.
The records of the nterstate-commerce
Commission clearly show that outside of
several of the thickly populated Eastern
duct it's passenger traffic without an actual
loss, upon revenue which does not average
at least 2A cents per mile for each pas
senger carried; therefore. If q law of this
character were to become operative in the
State of Ohio there would be but one re-
course left TO the railroads and that would
be to reduce the expense Of conducting their
passenger traffic, which would mean ma
terial elimination of many expensive con-
venienceS which are now in use Tor the
benefit Of the travelling public, and the re-
duction of the train service to an extent
which would most seriously interfere with
the work of commercial travellers and cause
them loss of much valuable time.
Some two years ago when there seemed
to be no disposition on the part Of railroads
to comply with the requests of travellers
for an INTERCHANGEABLE mileage book at a
2-cent rate the Commercial Traveller adVO-
Ohio, provided the railroads continued in
their refusal TO issue an INTERCHANGEABLE
mileage book: but it does seem to use at
this time-more than year after the rail-
roads have acceded 10 these requests and
given the commercial travellers of the State
of Ohio, not only the five-thousand- emile in
Interchangeable book for which they asked
but a one-thousand-miIe book-that the eff
fort TO commit the fraternity OF CONNER
cial travellers to this antagonistic and in
tolerant policy is not only Immediately
prejudicia1 to their own best interests but
perilous 10 their future welfare.
The Commercial Traveller is not seeking
to champion the railroads in matters of
this kind. but it does seem that elements
Of consistency should enter into the PROPOSE
ton and that few calamity hOwlers should
not be allowed to launch propaganda
which on its face stamps an entire profess
sion of reputable business men as being
unappreciative and insincere.