The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1900-10-11
DOUBLE DEALING OF THE
RAILROAD COMMISSION
Lsceives the People With the Pretense OF Reduced
Rates, but Makes no Actual Effort to Secure
Reduction on Farmers Produce.
PROPOSED ORDER WOULD
ONLY AFFECT SEVEN TOWNS
And the New Rate Would Apply Only to Articles
Not Shipped Out of Points Where 1t Is Pro-
posed to Put the Rate Into Effect.
The Whole Thing Deliberate Deception.
The Whole Thing Deliberate Deception.

of freight shipped, and that therefore,
the proposed rate was burdensome and
confiscatory. Recognizing the force OF
the answer, and having known all
along that the roads would refuse to
comply with the order, tn, comm ;ssion
notified the southwestern roads to
come into a &C inference, and agreed
that they would abandon every effort
in the direction of a reduction, and
make no att mpt at changing the "a 'es
or Gle ssincatio if the roads would
agree to put iii force, out of New Ulm
and three or four other towns which
the commission NJ med, rate which
would be the same as that then in
force out of the distributing centers,
ST. Psul. Minneapolis ard the Mime
sofa Transfer. In order that clear
understanding of the ca Sc may be had,
it should be stated that the roads ship
ping out of st. Paul last year handled
six billions pounds of out-freight. That
which could be shipped out of New
Ulm in any one year would not exceed
five hundred thousand pounds. What
the commission, therefore, asked, was
not that there should be any general
reduction in rates, but that the roads
should agree to specify as distributing
points a certain number of favored
towns, New Ulm always being the first
one nsme.1, and that those favored
towns should be given the same rate
on shipments out as that which was
then in existence at the distributing
points where freight was handled by
the billion pounds.
The commission pleaded with these
roads to make this concession, submit
ting the names Of towns which they
desired to have added to the list Of
distributing points. These towns were:
Saltwater, Duluth, West Duluth, Fer
gus Falls. Moorhead, Crookston, Red
Wing, Winona, Mankato, Albert Lea,
Rochester. Faribault, New Ulm. Itch
field, Austin. Little Falls and Hast
ings. In the various discussions at the
conferences between the. commission
and the representatives Of the roads,
the commission gradually withdrew
name after name Of the towns submit
ted. until 1t finally came down to the
point where the commission had
agreed to compromise upon the basis
of an amended list of additions to the
distributing points, as follows: New
Ulm, Austin, Rochester Red Wing,
Albert Lea, Mankato. and Winona.
This revised list was the one upon
which the commission made it's final
stand, and which the roads had SUBJ
stantially agreed to accept, with the
distinct understanding. that no further
conditions be asked by, the commission,
during the present fiscal year.
Now let the interested shipper set
himself to the task Of ascertaining just
what benefit would accrue from the
adoption of the exactions made by the
commission. Let II be understood to
begin with that there is not a. reduc-
ton Of one cent in million pounds of
freight contemplated in the general
plan Of revision. All that is asked is
that the roads add the seven towns of
New Ulm, Rochester, Austin, Red
Wing, Mankato, winona and Albert
Lea to the list of distributing points.
That would give to the towns named
the same rate on out freight that Is
enjoyed by st. Paul, Minneapolis and
the Minnesota Transfer, and it would
not affect by one single penny the rate
on freight shipped to those points
from any other point. In other words,
the shippers of the towns named
would have the benefit Of the reduced
rate on brick paints, oils, dry goods,
clothing, boots and shoes, groceries,
barbed wire, iron, nails, machinery
and furniture, shipped from those
points to other points within the state.
How much of that class of freight
would be shipped out of New Ulm,
Rochester and the other towns includ-
ed in the list? Not enough so that the
difference would pay the postage or.
the correspondence between the ship
per and the consignee in the ordinary
course of business. All of the goods
and merchandise upon which the re-
duced rate applied are shipped from
the existing. distributing points, name
ly, st. Paul, Minneapolis and the Min
nesota Transfer, to the points which
the commission named as additions to
the list of distributing points. The
shipments out of these towns are in
Guided in, and covered by, the express
reservation in the commissions order,
where 1t says, as above stated, that
nothing herein shall be taken as pro-
posing a cancellation or modification
of any existing commodity tariff al
most every article shipped out of these
towns is included under the commodi-
ty tariff and. therefore, the rate on 1t
is fixed and unalterable by the specific
order of the commission itself.
With this clearly STATED showing OF
the case, the commissions grand coup
collapses like house of cardboard,
and is swept away as completely as
was the loud pretense Of reform in the
management of the grain inspection
bureau and prison Irvine plant when
Auditor Dunn fell upon them in his
Milaca speech. 1t was obviously the
purpose Of the commission to manu-
facture political capital for the CAM
paign, and it's cunningly-advertised
programme was arranged as thought
fully as any other detail of the Demo-
cratic campaign. The absurd pretenss