The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-07-07
RAILROAD NEWS.
Santa Fe Sorting 44O Cars OF
Damaged Merchandise.
Chicago Salvage Firm Will Take
Anything offered.
PART is RESHIPPED.
Company Will Settle With the
COnsignees Later.
Every Sort of Merchandise Is in
the Lot.
PART is RESHIPPED.

Florence. Kan, July THE railroad
section of Florence looks like a bunch of
Junk shops. The Santa Fe road is
handling all of it's freight caught in the
kaw river flood at this place. Some
thing over 440 cars Of merchandise of
different kind in transit over the Santa
Fe were caught in the high water and
most of the stuff was absolutely ruined.
A small portion of it was not hurt
much. The company is now trying to
save what ii can. The 440 cars were
hauled to Florence and side-tracked. For
the past three weeks a big force of
men have been at work cleaning the
stuff, checking it up and rebilling what
Is worth shipping. 1t is a big task. A
freight caboose has been transformed
into an accounting Office where a corps
Of freight and auditing clerks are at
work. Several fiat cars are used as Il
platform.
The work is being done systematical-
". All of the cars were first opened up
and the contents taken out ana stacked
In piles in the fields along the right of
way. Several gangs were then put 20
work cleaning the stuff. Another gang
cleaned the cars. The flood left lot Of
mud in each car and the freight was in
most the same shape that the furniture
In some of the houses in the flooded dis
trict was in.
To add to the trouble the waybilIs of
perhaps one-fourth of the freight We're
destroyed at Kansas city. The shipping
tags on a lot of the stuff were either
washed away OF blurred by the muddy
water so they caIaiot be read. 1t is like
trying to work a Chinese puzzle to fig
ure out where the goods were originally
consigned.
A Chicago salvage firm has contracted
10 take everything the company cannot
reshlp As fast as the goods are cleaned
they are reshipped, if it can be found
where they should go. If this cannot be
sscertained then they are turned over
to the salvage company and shipped to
Chicago. The salvage company is get
ting most of the stuff.
All stuff that is worth more than the
freight charges is reshipped. If the
eOnsignee refuses to accept il the COM
pany will sell it as unclaimed freight
to pay the freight charges. Then it will
settle with the cOnsignee or consignor,
as the case may be, later on. The rail-
roads have agreed to make good the loss
on all freight damaged or lost in the
flood where the loss or damage is due
to their own negligence in handling.
But they viii resist all claims for dam
ages where they were using due dill
gence in carrying the freight. This will
keep the claim department busy for
doubt grow out of the matter
All kinds of merchandise were caught
en- route by the floods. The 440 cars o.
Santa Fe stuff alone would supply
good sized town with about everything
needed. Everything found in the cata-
logue of all the different kinds of fac
tories and wholesale houses has been
taken from the cars. One car contain
ed a big shipment of imported hats for
women. The whole bunch isn't worth
30 cents now. Another contained several
Eases of fine silk goods. These are
badly damaged. Case after case of
prints. calico and the common class of
dry goods have been taken out. Rusty
hardware by the ton has been removed
and cleaned and repolished. Farm ma
chinery by the car load has been clean
ed up and sent on. Canned goods by
the hundreds of cases with the paper
wrappers washed off have been turned
over to the salvage concern. About the
only thing that wasn't damaged to som
extent was a shipment of celluloid COL
lars. The railroad company has estab-
Iished A laundry on the ground and
much of the stuff is being washed and
roned. The fields along the track are
used for sorting and drying rooms. The
is doing everything possible
10 save and check out the stuff. 1t will
take at least two weeks more to COM
plete the work.