The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-01-01
THE RAILWAYS In 1900
FEWER LOADED CARS. But AVER
AGE TONNAGE HANDLED.
Heaviest Passenger Traffic In the His
tory of indianapolis Lines-Bad
Year for scaIpers

The following exhibits. which are COM
piled from official records of the fifteen
lines certering at Indianapolis. show thas
there were received and forwarded at this
point in the year 1900 a total of 1.40l ,491
cars. 10S4,9S3 being loaded. This was a
decrease in loaded-car movement, as COM
pared with the twelve months ending Dec
81. 1893, of 1889. This at first glance may
seem large decrease, but is readily ac-
counted for. Fully so per cent. of the
cars now handled by indianapolis lines
are of larger capacity than the cars form
erly in use. The roads have adopted a
system of loading cars through which every
foot of space is utilized, and careful es-
Inmates show that from TO per cent
more freight is loaded per car than In
the car 1895. at which time but a small
per cent of the cars were $4,000 pounds
capacity. In analyzing the anneul exhib-
its ii is found that in the six months
ending June 30 there were handled at this
point 537,112 loaded cars, while in the last
half of the year the number was 5f7,S1
loaded cars. In the year 1900 there was not
any month that the loaded car movement
at this city reached 10000 cars, while i'm
1899 there were two months that the move
ment exceeded 100000 cars, and four months
in 1898. The decrease in loaded car move.
ment is not serious in its results, for the
reason that better rates have been main
tanned during 1900 than any year of the
last fifteen. Neither does this decreased
movement mean that there was lack of
tonnage In 1900 as compared with 1899 or
1888, as not one of the Indianapolis lines
has been able to furnish the cars which
shippers would have loaded. The records
show that the largest loaded-car move
nent In any month of 1900 was i'm Oc-
tober. when 1856 cars were handled at
this point; i'm August, $3.50; in Deem
Der. 81 .175. The business of March and
April also exceeded 81 900 cars.
RESULT OF ANALYSIS.
An analysis shows that in local business
more care were handled than In the year
1893. while in through business there was
a marked decrease in east-bound ship
ments, the grain movement to Atlantic
export points being the lightest of the last
four or five years. The shipments of -four
and provisions from Indianapolis proper
were considerably below those of 1899 The
shipments of cerealine products were about
the same as either of the last two years.
The shipments of dressed meats were heav-
Ter than in any former year. indianapolis
in the last few years having made remark
able development In this direction. West
bound, the entire year, the volume of traffic
In higher class freights exceeded that OF
any former year This Is also true of ship
ments OF manufactured goods from East
ern manufacturers to the South, the South
west and West. The shipments of anthra-
cite coal on account OF the strike fell con-
siderably lower than those of the fall of
1892 while the tonnage of soft coal handled
by the Central Traffic Association lines
was considerably I'm excess of any year of
the last twelve owing to the fact that nat
ural gas is failing to such an extent that
many manufacturers are burning coal.
The Big -Four, the Pennsylvania, the
Lake Erie & Western, the Monon and the
Cincinnati. Hamilton e. Dayton increased
their freight car equipment during the year
over 1900 cars. including the new coal.
live stock and refrigerator cars. So far
as Indianapolis is concerned the roads
have enjoyed the largest outbound local
traffic in their history. The wholesale
houses on Meridian and Pennsylvania
streets shipped more goods than in any
former year. On inbound business de-
crease is shown, owing to the fact that
street improvements in this city have
practically come to a standstill owing to
legal complications which cut the local
lines out OF bringing in thousands of car
loads of broken stone, cement. sand and
like articles. The iron works, such as the
Maleable, the Atlas engine, the Dean Bros,
Brown e. Ketcham, e. c. Atkins Co..
shipped larger tonnage of their product
than I'm any former year. Nordyke e. Mar
mon. f.. c. Atkins & Co., the Parry Manu-
featuring Company and the furniture man.
ufaeturers were heavy shippers, enjoying
the most prosperous year since their re-
spective lines OF business were established
BUSINESS OF VARIOUS LINES.
The falling off in through car movement
was chiefly with the Big Four, the Penn
sylvania and the Vandalia the Lake Erie
e. Western, through its new alliance with
the Lake Shore increased its loaded car
movement some 1000 cars over that Of
1899. The Monon about held it's own. The
Indiana, Decatur & Western enjoyed the
best year in its history. the shipments OF
corn from stations on it's lines for some
three months ranging sixty TO seventy cars
per day. This, in turn, helped the Cincin-
natl. Hamilton q Dayton somewhat. The
exhibit of the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Day.
ton, however, is not so favorable as in
1899. owing TO the failure OF the wheat
crop which usually furnishes ii with a
large business for Toledo. In other lines
of traffic its exhibit is fully up to 1899.
One of the noticeable features OF the
year is the increase in traffic handled on
the bulk tracks. The Pennsylvania line,
the Big Four, the Lake Erie a. Western,
the Cincinnati, Hamilton Dayton, the
Monon each now having extensive bulk
tracks, there being a capacity In the sew
eral yards to handle fully 1000 cars. This
is proving a great convenience In loading
and unloading heavy and bulky freight.
The car famine which set in In the early
fall extended through the remainder of the
year. and is still curtailing traffic.
Below is given the loaded car movement
at indianapolis, by months, for the year
hot he