The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-03-03
MILLS CLOSE FOR
LACK OF CARS
Four Have Shut Down and
Others May Be Com
= PEELED To.
The freight problem has reached il

The freight problem has reached its
crisis.
-Four Minneapolis mills are shut
down. There will be more out of COM
mission tomorrow unless the condi-
tons change in some manner at pres
ent not to be anticipated.
Managers of the milling companies
said yesterday morning that this was
the worst day experienced since the
freight blockade opened Usually there
is an accumulation of cars over Sun
day while the mills are imperative,
sufficient to keep things moving Mon
day and Tuesday.
When business opened yesterday
morning the mills had hardly enough
cars in sight to take care of the days
run. Some of them will store flour as
they have been doing for the last eight
weeks. Others may prefer to stop
grinding until the chances of securing
adequate transportation facilities are
improved.
For weeks 1t has been sort of hand
to mouth business with the mills. The
men in charge Of shipping have NO
been able to tell over night whether
with the next day. Now 1t appears
that the most serious situation yet en-
countered has been presented for solu-
ton. There is not a car in sight for
today. Nobody knows whether there
will be any cars or not, and the millerS,
are tired Of fighting a game that gives
them loss whether they win or lose.
1t Is one thing to get freight out of
Il Iii, 10 do
livered. There is no special advantage
in having thousands Of tons of goods
tied up on congested railway lines for
months. The managers of the mills
are in a Quandary as to the best course
to pursue. But it is desirable In t'AT
| local aspects of the situation to kcSp
| the mills running as long as it Is pos
| sible to turn wheel.
The Consolidated Milling company
has already two mills out Of business
for the present. The other six are
still working against odds. 1t is a
| grave questio whether they can be
| kept going for the next twenty four
| hours. The Pillsbury-W ashburn and
| Washburn- Crosby companies have one
| mill each shut down. In the case of
| the former, General Manager Henry l..
Little said today that it was a question
| Of water primarily. ." a,......-., ......
Mr.. Little admitted that this was the
| very worst time in the whole range of
| freight congestion that has prevailed
| since December. He pointed out that
| there was no probability of q shut
! down on the part of the Pillsbury-
! Washburn mills, because within forty
| days at the outside transportation via
| the lakes would be open and there was
| an avenue of shipment to the head Of
| the lakes which would be taken advan-
| tage of to keep the mills open. The
| shipping department admitted, how
| ever, that this was the very worst day
| in the history of the freight blockade,
and that the situation on all lines east,
| instead of growing better had steadily
! been growing worse. '-
G. G. Bovey, of the Washburn- Cros-
| by company, said: II believe that the
! Northwestern roads are unable to sup
| ply us with cars because the cars that
should rightfully be available for the
| transaction of their business are scat
| tered all over the Eastern railway sys-
| TENS and it is impossible to get them
| back. What Is lacking, and what
| seems essential to solution of the
| freight problem, even in a partial sense,
| is some system of car exchange which
! should be recognized and accepted by
all railway systems in the United
| States. SO long as the connecting or
| CARNATIONS lack a properly organized
and systematiZed method of exchange
in this important matter, just so long
we shall have the same sort of trou-
BILE.
1.-The situation as it stands is this:
We are worse off for cars than we
have ever been. l do not know that
there will be cars enough to keep US
running as we are now. If. we are
compelled to shut down any of the
mills it will be for the reason that we
| hnN Ka
the best, but are alarmed at the out
| look
! 1t is agreed among transportation
men and shippers who have gone into
the situation thoroughly that there can
be no relief until lake traffic opens in
| hn mid Il