The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1898-12-01
CHARGES OF DISCRIMINATION

Aaainat the Choshpoake y oliio RailFuNa
Before the later state CommereO pon1--
misGi0n-The Dsfonso has its Inntnaa,
WASHINGTON. D. C., Nov. so-At
to.day's session OF the interstate cotn-
merce commission. which Is inyestigat-
ing charges of rate and facility dis
crIminetion by the Chesapeake 8 Ohio
Railroad CompanE, o. G. Blake the
Cincinnati coal operator, and the COM
pIainant In the case, testified that the
principal operation Of his contracts was
to make him pay the regular scheduled
tatiff rates while other coal handlers
were obtaining lower rates. He also De-
clared that in the New River district
the railroad company haasaesiucte q
furnish him promptly Sufticisnt cars fer
his business.
During his cross examination General
ST. Clair, of counsel for the railroad
company, submitted In evidence 9 let
ter written BY samuel Dixon, manages
Of the Mcdonald colliery company. ana
the Sugar Creek Coal and Coke coU=
pany, In the New River district 4
each Of which Blake iH intereatea,
President ingalls,, Of the CHESAPEAKE Z
Ohio company. in which Dixon said tnae
while the railroad had not furniaheQ
cars enough to take care Of the t4Q
mining companies orders, yet @ tho
best OF his knowledge there haa not
been any discrimination against etthee
Of the companies In the car supply.
The defense presented their case g
the afternoon session, President II. y.
inRaIIs. OF the Chesapeake & Ohio, bee
ine their principal witness. Briefly no
referred to the advent Of he Chesapeake
q Ohio into the territory ttaveraea oy
Il, and OF Its efforts to introduoe into
the city Of Cincinnati the fuel Of the
Virginia and the West Virginia coal
fields In competition with that already
In use there. While admitting that the
inyestigatlon had disclosed q rather Pc
culiar condition of AFFAIRS, vet ~ 9
general way he defended the manner
In which business had been done a1
conservlnH to the best interests Of all,
IN his cross examination, he admitted
that coal freight agent Benjamin, oe
Tie Chesapeake & Ohio. had done some
ILLEGAL acts in connection with the rate
making. and said the rates should h2po
been published. The witness made ie
known IN q very emphatic manner e4at
hereafter the publlSh0d tRrih rates oe
the company would be maintained. IA
a week or ten days a new tarin sehed-
lile will be announced-loWe than ehe
present, but higher than the rates 9ls
lowed IN existing contracts. He would
be very sorry II such rates tegule9d
llsastrously to the railroads OF opera
tori. but they would have to be palet
"a the company was not going TO stand
as a vlolator OF the Interstate come
merce law or be put In q poRltton Where
any one offended by It could bring con-
stantly' before the commission.
The other witnesses called by the de-
fense included ]. r. BeurV, Justua Col-
lIng and Enoch Carver. operators n ne
west yirginla coal fields, who teStine0
that they had no complaints to make
against the Chesapeake q Ohio railroad,
nor aid they desire a change OF extses
Ing conditions, although It was adn1lts
ted that at times they had been unable
TO nj! contracts because OF an insutli-
cheney Of cars. After BRIEF aFgunssul .
by both sides, Chairman Knapp HllQ
there seemed 10 be no testimony war
ranting the commission in making any
order respecting the terminal facilities
of the road at Cincinnati, as 70. which
discrimination Is charged, The general
charge OF freight determination WIN be
treated in some future order OF che
commission. The chairman said Il wag
a reRretable thing that railroad large
" engaged In business should be conT
Quoting II in a conceded violation OF the
mandate Of Congress. He. however.
c0mpllmented the company on the eK.
ceptionnl fTankness with which II had
replied 10 the demands OF the commits
slon and made known at this inquiry
exactly what had occurred and he also
expreSsed qualification that the COM
pn1y had promised to hereafter CONS
nlv with the law. The investigation
would have q salutary effect as contTl-
butlng in part to disclosure to the
country OF the situation now existing IN
the transportation business carried on
A.. a-,snk . - t1t.o0Na