The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-05-25
Had No Right to Formulate
Switching Regulations.
WATT FOR COMPLAINT.
First Difficulty With Limitations
Of the Law.
Railroad Companies Say Switch
ing Rules Are Satisfactory.

!
commissioners on Wednesday after
noon discovered that the new railroad
law does not give them authority to
make any changes in existing regula-
tons unless somebody hles a COM
plant.
Not a single one of the thirty rail-
road men present would say that they
had any complaint to make about
switching charges.
Consequently, the board was obliged
to abandon its effort to draw up a
code of rules applying to the whole
state.
I'VE are very much obliged to you
gentlemen for the information which
you have given to us said Chairman
J. w. Robson, but under the circum-
stances as pointed out by your attor-
neys, we can't make any changes in
the present. regulations without a. com
plant. AS none of you seem inclined
to make any complaint, we will have
to suspend further action for the time
being"
The provisions of the new railroad
law, which were called to the atten-
ton of the board by Frank DOster, N.
H. LOOMS, A. A. Hurd, and other rail-
lows:
1T shall be the duty of the said
board from time to time to alter,
change or amend any such rule or
company or companies, which the
board upon complaint as hereinafter
provided, may find to be unreasonable,
unjust or discriminative.
There seemed to be no shippers
present at the meeting of the board
yesterday, in spite of the fact that the
board had sent invitations to some of
the leading commercial clubs In the
state to be represented. If the ship
pers have any complaint to make
Or h.
ing. they are not very anxious to let
the facts be known.
The railroad companies, however,
were we'll represented. In addition
always on hand for a hearing of this
nature, the Frisco. Santa Fe, Rock
Island, Union Pacific, Missouri Pa
cifc Kansas City Belt, Kansas City
Southern, and other lines We're repre-
scented by their freight department
officials. The board called on one rep
resentative from each road to get up
and explain the switching situation,
and each witness" was put through
/ a cross examination by the members
of the board, who seemingly were on
the trail of information about the
switching business.
Probably the most interesting de-
velopment of the afternoon was the
strong sentiment manifested in favor
of a tonnage system of charging
switching fees, instead of the blanket
rates now in effect.
IF the board desires to make any
changes in the present switching
charges" said J. r. Koontz, general
freight agent of the Santa Fe. "f
would recommend that it take up this
| tonnage proposition, and give the rail-
roads the right to charge so many
cents per 100 poun:s for switching
cars"
''That may be a good suggestion
said Chairman Robson, but you will
probably remember that your attor-
neys have shown that we can't make
! any changes at all unless some body
files a, complaint. Do you want to file
| a complaint2'
This retort seemed to amuse the
railroad men considerably, but 1t did
not bring out any complaint.
Each of the freight men who were
put on the witness stand was asked
/ whether his company had any com
plants to make against the existing
switching charges or RUS. All an
swered in the negative, but in n few
! cases the answer seemed to come
/ hard. The official would raise his eye
brows, purse his lips, and after a sec
ond's hesitation would blurt out,
No" It looked as though there
/ might be some dissatisfaction below
the surface.
Two of the most important witnesses
were D W. Rider of the Kansas City
/ Belt, and H. NJ. Murphy of the Kansas
! City Southern. These two roads prob
ably do the bulk of the switching bust
ness at Kansas City. Switching is
large portion of their income.
| D. W. Rider, superintendent of the
] Kansas City Belt, said his line was diff
i ferent from all other roads. It was q
4 switching concern and handled only
industry business. It didn't handle
/ transfers from one road to another but
only from roads to industries in Kansas
City. About IS per cent of its switching
was interstate. It has f1fty-three miles
of track and handle from It's to 375
cars a day. It gets So for short hauls
and "a for long hauls. It handles each
car on an average Of six times for one
switching charge.
THE fact is our rates are entirely too
/ low said Mr.. Rider. We should in
/ crease them. When they were fixed on
/ a car basis several years ago the aver
age freight car only had a tonnage Of
| about fifteen tons. Now it has from
twenty-five to fifty tons. We are haul
ing hfty-ton cars today for the same
money we hauled ffteen-ton cars ten
years ago. And all the time the cost of
transportation has been increasing.
Labor is 20 per cent higher; material
/ costs 40 per cent more and engines so
per cent more. Our records show that
| we lose on an average of II cents on
/ each car handled"
Superintendent Murphy, of the Kan
sas City Southern, said his switching
/ company, the old Union Terminal, had
only showed earning one year since It
/ was built. It paid a profit in 1903 of Is
| cents a car. It lost money on switching
/ in all other years.
Mr. Koontz of the Santa Fe and sew
eral others. testified the average SWITCH
ing fee throughout the state is about 50
per car, and that in many instances
this fee is absorbed" by the shipping
line into the freight charges. and that
the shipper does not pay directly for
any switching fee. In some cases, how
ever, where two roads handle the car
in course of switching. or where the disc
lance for switching is long. the SWITCH
ing fee is as high as IS per car.
It's folly to suffer from that horrible
plague Of the night, itching piles Doan's
| Ointment cures quickly and permanentiv
At any drug store Sc cents