The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-04-29
Shows How Business Is Handled
at Hutchinson.
BOUGHT UP SWITCHES.
Trust Then Divided Freight
Profits With Roads.
Independent Concerns Are Fore
ed Out Of Competition.

state commerce commission WhACA
has just been made public, the COM
mission tells what it found out in in
vestigating the relations of the Hutch
inson & Arkansas River railroad COM
pany to what is known as the salt
trust and to other railroad companies
incidentally there is considerable in
formation in the report concerning
the Kansas salt industry. 1t says:
"A new crop of expedients for the
purpose of favoring particular ship
pers has been begotten. An iIlustra-
ton of this is seen by referring to the.
facts developed upon an inquiry into
salt rates recently held at Hutchinson,
Kas. Hutchinson is the center of the
salt industry of Kansas, although fac
tories are operated at several other
points in that vicinity, the salt beds
being of extensive area. The Kansas
salt works at the present time are
popularity known as trust and in
dependent The commission has no
information as to the existence of any
trust, but it did appear that the So
called trust mills, nine in number,
with a producing capacity of some g.
500 barrels a day, were all owned or
controlled by the Hutchinson Salt
company, while the independent mills
were operated each by a different in
dividual company. The number of
these concerns is seven with a ca
pacity varying from 200 to 500 barrels
each, and a total of 2,50O.
1T was fairly indicated by the testi-
mony that salt rawtes from Hutchin-
son and similar territory to the Mis-
souri, river were not generally main
tanned prior to the spring of 1902.
Since that time the published tariff
was uniformly collected The present
rate to Kansas City and correspond
TTf rsfNr int 1c rs
per 100 pounds on bulk salt, and Il
cents on salt in barrels Vast amounts
of salt are bought in bulk by the Kan
sas City packing houses
In July, 1902, a railroad corpora
ton known as the Hutchinson & Ar
kansas River railroad company was
organized The avowed object of this
company was to construct a railroad
from kechi to Hutchinson for the
purpose of bringing in the Frisco
road A survey was made, but the
f4 road was never built Another pur-
, pose was to connect the salt factories
owned by the trust with the other
> railroads centering at Hutchinson.
e Soon after its organization the Hutch
insOn & Arkansas River railroad COM
pany bought of the salt trust about s.
600 feet of switches leading from the
salt mills to the different railroads
for $1,000. This is the only track the
company owned, and it had no equip
z ment of any kind. The capital stock
consisted of 500 shares of 500 each.
[ OF this number 7s4 were held by Jo-
seph Z. Tracey; the six others are
; held, one each, by the other directors.
l The directors were: Joseph p. Tracey.
) d. Peterkin, Mark Morton, JOY Nor
, ton, J. G. Baddleley, Frank and G..
Phillips. Joy Morton was president,
: Frank Vincent vice president and gen
eral manager. Mark Morton treasurer.
5 joy Morton is the president and Mark
Morton is treasurer of the Hutchinson
salt company. known as the trust,
and Frank Vincent is resident man
r ager of the salt works. 1t will be
z seen that all of the officers of the rail-
road, except Mr.. Tracey, are also Off
GERS of the salt company. The testi-
mony didn't show definitely who Mr.
Tracey was Baddleley and Phillips
are clerks in the salt office, and Peter
kin is secretary to Joy Morton. Joy
Morton testified that he and those
whom he represented owned all the
stock in the salt trust.
soon after the organization of the
Hutchison & Arkansas River road and
the purchase of the switches, Mr. Ira
cey approached the traffic officials oi
the Rock Island, Santa Fe and Mis-
, souri, Pacific and represented that, Ow-
ing to competitive conditions upon the
f Missouri river, both foreign and dornes-
tic salt from the east was being sold
there is large quantities, and that il
any bulk salt was to be moved from
the Hutchinson field to the Missouri
river packing houses, some inducenent
: must De held out to the producers. Ht
]
? Hutchinson & Arkansas River railroad
a division of the rate from Hutchinson
to the Missouri river a price would be
named on Hutchinson salt which WouIt
, sell it in competition with other sources
of supply. The rate was 10 cents tC
J Kansas City and u cents to Omaha
1 The Hutchinson &. Arkansas River roas
was allowed a division of % per cent
Tariff sheets in due form were ISSUED
| by the various roads on salt These
divisions continued from about Angus
/, 1902, until the time of the hearing
except for a short time after the Ell
kins bill was passed.
q The cost of producing salt at Hutch
| inSon is approximately 81 a ton ex
elusive of Office expenses and fnteres
on the plant After granting the divis
p | ion of freight charges, the Hutchinson
| Salt company contracted with parties
~ | on the Missouri river on a basis o
$210 at Hutchinson, or S4.1O at Kanss
| City and St. Joseph. and 81 at Omaha
Previous to the granting of these divis
| ions, independent salt concerns haC
shipped considerable quantities of bull
salt to the Missouri river. but upon tn
expiration of their contracts the.
couldn't sell any One independent firn
said il had contract to supply Swift
a Co. with salt at Kansas City. ST
o Joseph and Omaha which expired il
:, April, 1902; that this contract was 70
e S4.25 a ton at Kansas City; that Goa
o had advanced 30 cents per ton and tha
t this would increase the cost of manu-
y featuring salt 25 cents ton He ask
e ed for an advance in the price for tn
o next contract, but was turned dow
l. and the trust took the contract for S4.1
z. The freight division was equal to 8
]. cents a ton. This is a good profit o
1. salt With this advantage the trus
could run its plants at a good profit