The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1905-09-15
FREIGHT RATE QUESTION
COMMERCIAL CLUB COMMITTEE
IN OMAHA YESTERDAY.
PLEASED WITH CONFERENCE
While no Definite Promises Were
Made, Railroad Officials Gave the
Committee the Impression that Nor.
folks Request Would be Granted.
From Tuesdays Dallvl

last night, feeling that they had ac-
complished a good deal toward solving
the freight rate question for Norfolk.
At Omaha they held conferences with
General Manager Bidwell, General So
licitor White and General Freight
Agent Kuhn, of the Chicago & North
ern, and while these officials did not
absolutely promise the relief asked
for they admitted that the time has
come when it should be recognized
that Norfolk is geographically situated
to become a wholesale town, and the
officials left the impression with the
committee that something will be done
If possible.
The committee asked for a. dstrib-
uting rate that will place wholesale
houses in Norfolk on an equal basis
with similar houses in other towns.
The matter of an in-rate was not dis
cussed, but the request was for rate
out of Norfolk that, added to the rate
to this city, would be equivalent to
the total of the through and local rates
by way of any Of the other wholesale
tary to this city are now supplied.
The representations of the committee
were listened to attentively, and the
matter was referred to General Freight
Agent Kuhn for investigation. If he
finds the plan feasible, it will be re-
ported to the vice president of the road
in Chicago, for final action. Mr.. Kuhn
promised to get to work at once on
a new tariff sheet out of Norfolk, and
If it can be made to meet Norfolk's
needs, the committee were given the
impression that he would cheerfully
recommend it's adoption. Mr.. Kuhn
promised to take the matter up with
other roads entering the city and see
if an agreement can not be reached
whereby Norfolk can enter the
wholesale field on an equivalent basis
with other jobbing centers. Both
Grand Island and Hastings, one on the
Union Pacific and the other on the
Burlington, have such rates and their
schedules will cut figure with the
proposed Norfolk rate.
The conference was a purely bust
ness affair, without social features of
any kind. The committee was not in
vited out to lunch, there were no boxes
of cigars on tap, and the committee
paid their own way to and from Oma-
ha. 1t was not a social meeting in any
sense of the word, but one in which
business only had a part. This was
just as it should be, and the sensible
action on the part of the railroad Off
cials by not attempting to place the
committee under personal obligations,
precludes every possibility of a charge
that the committee had been infiu-
enced by a railroad pass or a banquet.
The committee went for specific pur-
pose paid their own expenses and the
officials listened to the representations
"a purely business transaction on both
sides.
The effort to secure a distributing
rate has the backing practically of the
whole of Norfolk. The matter came
up at a meeting of the Commercial
club held August 10, at which time
the president, w. M. Robertson, was
authorized to select committee of
five, of which himself and D. Mathew
son, the secretary, should be two. AS
the other three members of the COM
mittee, c. S. Bridge, H. c. Sattler and
G. d. jenkins were named. At that
time it was not known just what would
be asked of the railroads, but it wis
assumed that an in-rate would be the
ai, lxr
had been given to the distributing rate
proposition. After several meetings
of the committee in which an attempt
was made to agree upon a plan of ac-
tion the committee failed to reach a
conclusion as to definite plan of ac-
ton, and the matter was referred back
to the directors of the Commercial
club for instructions. By this time
people had begun to study the ques-
tion, and gradually they came to the
conclusion that an in-rate was not
what was wanted. When it was
learned that if Norfolk received a re-
duced in-rate all the other towns east,
northeast and south would have to
have the same or better rate, under
the provisions OF the interstate COM
merce law, then it was found that Nor
folk would in reality reap no especial
advantage from such change, as any
of the towns would be in just as good
position to start Wholesale houses as
Norfolk. The matter of distributing
rate, which had been suggested by
The News as the thing wanted, was
then thoroughly canvassed, and prac-
tically all the representative business
men in the city agreed that it would
do for Norfolk in the establishment of
wholesale houses what the other could
not do.
At a fully attended meeting of the
directors of the Commercial club held
at the Office of the secretary on the
evening of August 2S, after a full dis