Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-08-11
WILL NOT Be READY
BURLINGTON BETWEEN oskA.
LoosAAND TRACEY DELAYED
A CAR FAMINE IS ANTICIPATED
Work on the New Branch Cannot Be
Completed by August 15-cars Not
Adequate for shippers-GuIf Will
Have Seaport.

1t has been stated that the Burling-
ton will open its new short line be.
tween Tracey and Oskaloosa on or
about August Is, but this
statement, according to ! To-
cal official of the Burlington,
Is little premature. 1t does not seem
possible that the new road could be
ready for all traffic at that date, re-
marked the official, for the recent
heavy rains and floods have damaged
the work. The new line when COM
pleted, will connect the Burlington &
Western branch with the Abba branch
to Des Moines
A car famine is anticipated this fall
and one that will be more severe than
any previous years famine. Much
m Merchandise is already being shipped,
and the rush usually incidental to the
shipping of oats and other grain will
commence August Is.
According to recent advices received
there will be big fight between the IL
3inois Central and moneyed interests on
one side and the Northwestern, the
Milwaukee and in all probability the
Rock Island on the other in couple
of years, owing to the endeavor of the
Central to establish shipping point
on the gulf, at either Galveston or Port
Arthur, Texas, with the object in view
of handling all the export grain from
the middle and western states instead
of shipping it to New York and other
Atlantic seaports. Nothing as yet has
been done relative to this change, but
1t Is daily being given attention by
those concerned in profitable way
should the change be made.
The Car Famine.
eThe demand for freight cars by
shippers at the present time is great
er than it has been for many years
and the big grain rush has not yet
commenced" said a local Burlington
official this morning
II anticipate a famine in freight
cars this fall that will be far in ad-
vance of the scarcity of last. We are
preparing to stop practically all of
our construction and ballasting In a
week or two in order to use the cars
in the work of easing up on the big
shipping rush.
"The work of shipping oats and
other grain will be on in rush
August l5, and last through
September. From the reports we
have regarding the size of the crop
there is evidence of a great demand
for cars.
"Our shipments of general merchan-
disc are now heavier than they have
been before this year.
Goal from Illinois and all Iowa is
going at a great rate up into the north
part of the state, Minnesota and the
DakotaS. We have three big trains of
coal week now. The demand for
cars for this work is alone enormous.
Then the shipments of merchandise
OF all kinds are on par with that of
coal. The people demand the coal
because they fear that we are going
to have another coal famine or that
the strike Of last year will still have
it's effects Fearing the scarcity of
cars such as occurred last year, the
big shippers of manufactured goods
are beginning to rush out their orders.
The threshing machines are abroad in
the land now and the oats shipments
to eastern markets will begin with a
rush about Aug. 10. Although we
need the work trains, we will take
them Off. Other big western roads
will do the same"
A Change In Traffic.
Should the contemplated change OF
the traffic from the eastern route to
the southern route be consummated it
will amount to hundreds Of thousands
of dollars per year. Owing to the
bulk of foreign trade being bound eth
er east or west, the roads having lines
running north and south will be able
to make much better rates than the
roads which have to divide the tariff
on the eastern and western haul.
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