The Topeka state journal., 1905-11-27
WHERE THE WEST GETS IT.


one of the things that was brought
out in the salt rate hearing last week
is that the west is grossly disseminated
against in favor of the east. Western
Industries are made to pay exorbitant
freight rates on their products in order
to keep them out of territory that
rightly belongs to them, and this ter
ritory is arbitrarily given to eastern
competitors by means OF low rates.
Then again the west is made to pay
high rates on certain lines of goods in
order that the east may get the same
goods at low rate. In other words
the west has to pay part of the casts
freight rates, in addition to its own.
Here is the way it works in the salt
industry, as brought out in the hear
ing before the Kansas railroad COM
mission last week: The chief cOmpeti-
tor of Kansas salt in the middle west
is that from Michigan, yet eastern roads
make such low rates on Michigan salt
as to give it the Missouri and Nebras-
ka markets, although these are right
at Kansas door. On the other hand
they compel western roads to keep the
rates on Kansas salt extremely high
by threatening to divert traffic West
ern roads permit eastern lines to die
tate these rates to them and thus give
the advantage to the eastern indus
tries in whose traffic the reads are in
terested. In some instances the rates
on Kansas salt are three times those on
Michigan salt. The eastern roads con-
troll these rates through the traffic as
sociations by threatenfn~ to divert
traffic to some other direction unless
they are allowed to dictate rates.
z. S. Moore, an Ellsworth salt man,
checked this matter up to the railroad
men. why don't you western roads
treat us fairly?" he asked in conclud-
ing his testimony before the railroad
board why do you let these eastern
roads drag you into a deal to haul
their salt clear out here into our terri
tory for less money for the long haul
than you can make handling our salt
for a short haul? What's the use in
your helping those eastern roads tear
down Kansas enterprise? We are
only asking for a square deal; all we
want is to get into this territory which
lies close to us. and which by all laws
OF ordinary rate making we ought to
have It will help you and help US"
The railroads haul hides and leather
from the western prairies to Massa-
chusetts and then haul Massachusetts
made shoes back to the west at rates
which allow them to compete with west
ern shoe manufacturers. As a. result
outside of a few favored centers like St.
Louis there is almost no shoe industry
in the west. The eastern railroads do
not wish such industries built up in the
west for that would deprive them of
two hauls, one of hides eastward and the
other Of shoes westward. As rates now
stand ~
cent Of the shoes for the entire country.
If western manufacturers could get the
same freight rates comparatively that
eastern factories have the west would
make a large part Of the country's
shoes.
Here IS an instance where the middle
west has to help pay the casts freight
rates on a product which is shipped into
both: California supplies most of the
oranges for the entire country. The
railroads have established an arbitrary
fiat rate of $1.25 a hundred on oranges
all over the country. It costs just as
much to ship a car load of oranges
from California to Topeka as it does to
Boston or Portland Maine. The rate
amounts to 1925 for a minimum car, ex-
elusive of refrigeration which is addi-
tional in warm weather
This rate is All the traffic will sAand"
That is, the orange growers cannot af-
ford to pay more than that without los
ing money. The railroads claim that it
is worth more than that to haul oranges
to the Atlantic seaboard, but that rate
has to be made in order to get the fruit
there in competition with imported
oranges So. to make IN the loss on
Atlantic shipments, the west is made to
pay just as much which eQualizes mat
ters SO far as the railroads are con-