The record-union., 1899-10-19

different companies are much perplexed
to please their patrons
Manager Fillmore, in speaking of the
situation this morning, said:
I'VE, as we'll as all the other roads,
are suffering on account of a famine of
cars. This famine applies to all of the
trunk lines in the United States. The
traffic has been so great that there is
| not trunk line which is not shaving
trouble owing to the scarcity. of cars to
handle the volume of business offered.
We are probably better off than our
neighbors. At present we have 230
cars of eastbound freight at Sacra-
mento and Rocklin, principally at Rock
lin.
This accumulation of freight is part
ly due to the burning of our snowsheds
IN the mountains; before that we were
enabled to keep the freight moving by
doubling our engines, making them run
double trips, you understand
THE roads in and out of Chicago are
suffering. They are in pretty bad fix,
and are unable to handle the business
offered them. There are thousands of
cars standing on sidings waiting to get
be little let up in the volume of bus
mess by January 1st, but there is no
indication for a failing off in the freight
offered. One thing has been in our
favor. The low price offered for wheat
has made the farmers hold it in the
warehouses. If wheat was bringing a
price at which the farmers would sell
we would be unable to furnish cars
without shutting off other freight.
The handling of Government freight
and troops has cut large figure in our
traffic for the past few months. The
Asiatic trade sis also very heavy, and
our fruit crop has exceeded that of any
season, or rather in the history of the
railroad. The export has been large
IN green fruit, dried fruit and canned
goods. Several of our divisions could
use more cars if they had them
We are building more cars all the
time, and we are receiving from six to
eight cars day, and of 5000 new cars,
that were to have been delivered from
the East not later than May and the
last by september 1st, we have re-
ceived only l, 400 The Eastern manu-
factories are so pressed for orders from
all directions that they are unable to
turn them out. I heard that Mr..
huntington wanted to place an order
with firm in New York State for loco
motives. The reply was that the firm
could not possibly deliver them until
after August 1st of next year.
We feel pretty confident about our
own ability to handle the orange crop
We have contracted with the refrigera-
for 3 -
the orange trade.
we have been doing the best we can
with the shippers and have been divid-
ing up our equipment on the pro rata
system, so as to keep all going and
show no favoritism. Our patrons have
been very considerate and appreciate
our difficulties as fully as we do. and
they have accepted the situation grace
fully.
There has been very little complaint.
We expect to receive five more new en-
gines on November 1st and we have an
order for LOCO fiat cars and 500 stock
cars, Of which we are getting from six
TO eight day."
The Canadian Pacific is also suffer-
ing from car famine, and they have
lately placed an order for sixty loco
motives IN this country, also several
hundred cars.
In fact all the lines are clamoring for
cars, and the orders that have been
given during the year far exceeds the
orderst or many years. The North
ern Pacific has an order for over 1000
cars; Davenport, Rock Island and
Northwestern sixteen nassenear
coaches, 159 box cars, 200 coal cars.
fifty fiat cars; Chicago and Alton 900
box cars, anad they are getting fifteen
new cars daily. 100 furniture cars: Lou
lsville and Nashville sixteen passenger
cars and 1920 freight cars; Texas Mid
land 100 box cars; Chicago, Rock ISL
and and Pacific 500 box cars, 200 stock
100 coal cars.
There We're 1000 cars ordered by the
Denver and Rio Grande, which were
being sent them from an Indianapolis
mandatory. These cars were an
propriated by the different companies
over the lines they travelled, and a-ylg-
orous search is being made for them.
The order for locomotives is corre
spondingly large, the Atchison. Topeka
and Santa Fe having ordered seventy
nVe new consolidation engines lately.