The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-06-18

in Alabama was also higher than in Georgia and South Carolina. He had sup posed that there must be some good cause for the difference in rate charged In Ala bama and Georgia and to ascertain what was this difference he had made care full investigation comparing the popula- tions, area, cotton crop and railroad mil cage he could find no reason for the ap- parent discrimination against Alabama.
 The freight tonage per mile of track was greater in Alabama than in either of the other states. Mir. Nesbit said that the rates in Georgia and Alabama on cot ton shipped to Liverpool and to the cas- tern mills was practically the same. Prices paid for cotton at interior points in the state were based upon the freight rates from that point. The local rate in Alabama. he stated, to be 20 cents per bale higher than In Georgia, and conse- quently the Alabama producer received 20 cents a bale less for his cotton than the Georgia producer.
 MT. Nesbts argument closed the case for the complainants, and Walter D. Hines, first vice-presldent of the Louis vile and Nashville railroad, opened for the railroad interest. Mir. Hines stated at the outset that while 1t had been agreed by the commission to give the complain ant the opening and close, the railroads would ask permission to file written brief in reply to any new argument that might be advanced by the complainant.
 He first devoted his attention to the pe- titions that had been filed before the com mission asking for the establishment of the Georgia rates in Alabama. As he ur- derstood 1t, most of those petitions had been sent out by one party to the several sections of the state with the request to persons interested to secure as many signers as possible. He said it was known how easily persons could be induced to sign petitions when not having an oppor tunity to. understand just what their sig natures meant. Therefore he did not con sider that these petitions would have par ticular weight with the commission. MT Conner had said in his remarks yesterday that it was human nature to take all that one could get and it therefore follows that he will ask for all that he thinks he can get. The signers of the petitions present cd had nothing to lose, hence the sigma lures.
 Denied That High Rates Are Fixed. MT. Hines denied that railroads fixed high and selfish rates. because he said such action would be against their own interest. He would ask the commission for a determination of the case before them on the facts. and at the same time he would undertake to give reasons why the Alabama rate should not be decreased to the Georgia rate, confining his compari- son of the different states to Georgia and Alabama. The speaker charged that the Georgia rates had always been unreason- ably low and are now. As a rule rates were not fixed by the profits made by a railroad on interstate business, but by intra-compound state traffic. A road has the right to earn a fair and reasonable profit on intra-state traffic. He then gave brief history of the establishment of the Georgia rates, showing that the courts had not finally ruled on the aues- tion of railroad rates when the Georgia rate was established in 1SS0 He did not think that this rate would have been es- tablished had the court prior to that time made it's sweeping decision in the Georgia cases. He denied that the freight rate in Georgia had anything to do with the value of the Georgia railroad stock, but