Omaha daily bee., 1905-11-02
General Manager of sau:S Fe Refrigerator
Dispatch star'les Commission.
UNABLE TO BREAK UP THE PRACTICE
Mr.. Leads Says Any Attemps ts Do So
Weuld Cause Rate War.
SCHEDULE or AMOUNT OF DRAWBACK
Ten Dollars 10 Chicago, Fifteen to Buffalo
and Twen.y 10 New York.
RELATION OF COMPANY TO BlSPATCH
Same Psrtics Oun Refrigcr"tor
Company that Control the
90 santa re Railway
~ system.
SCHEDULE OF AMOUNT OF DRAWBACK

WASH NGTON. Nov. Admitting that
rebates are given TO shippers i'm the Cali
fornia fruit service by practically all pri-
vato car lines G. S. Leads. general man
agpr of the Santa l'c Refrigerator Dis
patch. tuliveued the inquiry being con-
ducted hcre by the Interstate Commerce
commission 10 show the relations between
railroads and companies engaged in the
business Of refrigeratlnR freight in transit.
Mr. Leads said these rebates were neces-
sary 20 his company becausc\ all his COM
pctitors were granting them. He asserted
that he could not break up the practice
without precipitating ratio war
The testimony today was confined to the
business Of the Atchson. Topeka & Santa
Fe railroad and the Santa Fc Refrigerator
Dispatch. which corporations. according to
officials Of both. who were on the stand,
are owned by the same interests.
M. Leads occupied the witness stand
the greater part Of the day and was fol-
lowed by Edward Chambers, freight traffic
manager OF the Santa Fe railroad, who
prefaced a mass OF important testimony
with the statement that the stock of both
corporations IS owned by the same inter
ests and they have the same president.
The commission this evening ordered the
taking Of the deposition of Edwin T. Earl
Of Los Angeles, Cal. November TO- At
torney Urlon. for the Armour lines
, again cndeavored 10 have date fixed
| Tor closing the inquiry. but his motion was
I denied.
Case OF santa Fe Railway.
The cases in which the hearings are
ben held are directed by the commits
sion against the Atchison, Topeka & Santa
Fe and the Southern Pacific railways and
the Armour car lines, Santa Fe Refrig-
erator Dispatch and the American Refrig-
orator Transit company. The cases were
segregated from the numerous cases
against southeastern railways on which
hearings were held recently
The principal witness today was ]. S
Leads. general manager of the Santa FC
Refrigerator Dispatch. who gave startling
Testimony concerning rebates and declared
his inability TO break up the practice. He
said thiS company operates 45s0 cars and
obtains additional equipment by inter
changing with the American Refrigerator
Transit company and the Michigan Cen
tral railway The cars operated by tho
Santa Fe Refrigerator Dispatch said Mr.
Leads, are owned by the Santa Fe railwa!
and are leased by the Dispatch, line.
Commissioner Prouty questioned the wit
ness regarding the cost of refrigeration IL
the California fruit service. and Mr. Lead
said a charge for refrigeration is justifiabl
for the reason that the receipts from
mileage are insufficient to pay earnings oil
the expenslvely constructed cars.
Mr.. Leads figured the cost of maintenance
OF cars at q cents day and the earn
ings for sixty-six miles at y of a cent
mile. making the annual earnings at sl42
maintenance sac, and net earnings s67
! year. The cars cost about tllOO each.
Admits Paying Rebates.
In response by Commissioners Clement
and Prouty, Mr., Leads admitted that h
has paid rebates to shippers of deciduou
fruits. but insisted that there had been n
discrimination In favor OF any one or NOR
shippers. He justified the payment OF re
bates, by saying that he found this to b
a practice indulged in by his competitor
The rebates, he said, amounted to SO
car TO Chicago SIS to Buffalo and Pitts
"a burg and $50 TO the Atlantic coast.
A protest was made by the attorneys fo
the Armour car lines and the Souther
Pacific company against the loose manne
Of examining the witness"
Commissioner Clement had called ate,
tion to the testimony given by Mr.. Lead
In hearings at Chicago a year ago an
asked Mr.. Leads to tell the commissio
again OF these practices" The attorney
said that II Mr.. Leads had evidence OF cor
crete cases where rebates had been give
81 would be Rn right for him 10 tell
these cases.
- Mr. Leads then told what his compan
had done and said individually he wa
powerless to break up the practice
why can't you break II up?" aske
Commissioner Prouty.
Because Il would precipitate = war tbs
mighs bring the charges below cost OF n
frigeration." said Mr.. Leads.
]. II. CAN Of Los Angeles, Cal, speci
counsel for the commission, asked NJ
Leads II IL were not fact that a SAN
Fe Refrigerator Dispatch is a part OF Il
santa Fe railway organized as matt
OF convenience"
Mr. Leads suggested that the organic
ton was matter of necessity" but
declined to commit himself as 10 the d
tailed relations between the two cqTpor
tions.
Replying to questions by r. f. Dunn
counsel for the Southern Pacific. NJ
Leads said It would be impracticable for
great railway system, having connection
forNing out beyond its terminals. 10 hand
It's own refrigeration business.
PARRY FACTION CRITIClSE