The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-17

sion, not having made 1t life study, were not capable of coping with the experi- enced traffic men of the railroads, but that they had law to enforce and that i, they had rates from all over the country to study and from which to arrive at a decision.
 Compares Rates.
 Mir Conner next began a comparison of rates in many states on various classes of freight taking a couple of hours to com plete 1t. This portion of the speech re- ceived special consideration from the ex- pert rate men.
 Mir Conner began his comparison with the rate on farm stuff'' in three states North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama-on the Seaboard Airline. This road tra- verses the three states, and if it is not a fair comparison I don't know what is" < Mir Conner declared. He then quoted as the rate on meat:
 Rates Cited.
 20 Miles. 40 Miles. 50 Miles N. Carolina ....... 13 Is Georgia ...... Il l5z lo.4 Alabama Is 10 1S
 GRAIN.
 20 Miles. 40 Miles. 60 Miles N. Carolina Georgia 7.2 S.2 Alabama lS 10
 20 Niles. 40 Miles, SO Miles ]. N. Carolina Alabama Hpbsln ',.,' .. ....1S ...... 1s - as a.
 PEANUTS.
 20 Miles 70 Miles. 30 Miles N. Carolina ....... 10 IA 16 Georgia 10 zO "A Alabama ......... IS .22 7 1a ak r&v.Ixr f0s xFnIou nf many tables quoted by MT. Conner. cover ing practically all of the railroad lines en- tering the state.
 The speaker declared during his discus sion of rates that 1t was the duty of the commission to make a rate on everything. He cited an alleged case in Carrollton where party shipped car load of pota- toes and the freight amounted to the value of the potatoes. The shipper asked for rate and had been told that if he had 100 car loads he would get rate. MT. Conner said he wanted rates so that equal rates could be secured on a single barrel of potatoes.
 The commission at 2 o'clock recessed un- til 3:30 p. m.
 Afternoon Session.
 At the afternoon session, MT. Conner continued his argument, still in the midst of the comparison of freight rates. Be-
  sons MT. Conner exclaimed that the rates in Alabama were the highest in the union. MT. Conner next took up the value of railroad property in different states and comparison of conditions, earnings. and the like, and he read from several in, terviews of prominent men to show that in Georgia there was perfect harmony in the state of eGorgia between the railroads and the people. due largely to the rather strict laws of that state controlling the roads.
 MT Conner said that he had been in- formed by the clerk of the commission that one of its greatest troubles in ad- justing rates was that different towns would raise different objections. The speaker declared that the manner in which to remedy this was for the com mission to establish an uniform rate, ap- plying alike to every village, town and city in the state.
 Mir. culp Challenges. Mir Conner quoted several tables of fg- ures showing the amounts derived by the railroads from freights in Alabama, and Mir. Culp of the Southern challenged his figures, showing houId be cut 50 per cer tt the total of $23, 900.00 the business which oama. matter received In tt natter shipped through
 TO this MT. orted: .9The consumer If 1t wasn't the consu reight you would have aa ~ long ago." MT. Comei ie net earnings of near roads in Alabama me- was taxed with, but this, stating that it natter shipped through a'7te