The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-04-04
General Reduction of Rates
 is Proposed. AN ALL-DAY SESSION President Conner Conducted Rigid Investigation. Body Went Further Than Question of Freight Rates on Fertilizers and New Chairman Criticised His
 Predecessors. .f

! The largest numDeT Ot rdiirodu rep-. l resentatives that has ever appeared be- 1 fore the Alabama Railroad Commis-
 sion yesterday met with that body in
 the hall of the House of Representa- l tives and gave lengthy testimony on the proposition of the Commission to | readjust the railroad freight rates on | fertilizers.
 | The hearing had been set upon mo- l tion of President B. B. Conner at the l last regular meeting of the Commis-
 sion.
 The Commission held two sessions yesterday and adjourned in the after
 noon to meet again this morning at 10 | o'clock.
 On account of the fair representa- tion of every railroad in the State, 1t | was decided to take up first the mat
 ter of fertilizer rates and immediate
 ly thereafter to consider revision of
 the general tariffs of the State. This l was voted unanimously upon motion | made by Associate Commissioner W. T.
 Sanders and amended by President 1 Conner.
 Testimony was yesterday heard in
 morning and afternoon session from
 the Southern Railway, the Alabama | Great Southern Railroad, the Mobile
 and Ohio Railroad and the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway.
 These companies were represented by
 delegations of nigh officers. The pleas
 of all of them were that the fertilizer
 rates should not be changed on ac-
 count of their claims that there are
 not sufficient returns on the traffic in
 this State to warrant any reductions
 Old Commissioners Criticized. /
 President Conner conducted search
 ing examination of every witness that
 confronted the Commission, asking of
 the representatives of every road If
 they did not think the theory n good
 one that by offering a minimum tar
 If on fertilizers 1t would insure an
 increased tonnage.
 The President of the Commission
 made insinuations at the inactivity of
 past members of the Alabama Commits | sion, making the charge that a few years ago when the Southern Railway
 made q general revision of it's tariffs | and protests were raised against their
 going into effect by other Commissions l that the Commissioners of Alabama
 were making a trip through the West l in a private car.
 1 President Milton H. Smith of the | Louisville and Nashville Railroad is a prominent visitor in attendance on the meeting. Others of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad present are c. R. l Compton, General Freight Traffic Man ager; Counsel George w. Jones of Montgomery.
 Representatives of the other roads | are as follows:
 Southern Railway--J. M Culp, Vice. Washington; G. G. Thompson, Division Freight Agent. Birmingham. | Alabama Great Southern-L. Sexin, General Freight Agent, Birmingham. Frisco System-General Freight Agent Powe, Memphis; General Agent Lightner, Birmingham.
 Central of Georgia-W. A. Winburn, Vice President Savannah; c. T. Airy, General Freight Agent, Savannah. Mobile and Ohio-E. l.. Russell. Vice. President; R. V. Taylor. General Man ager; Haiden Miller, Freight Traffic Manager, Mobile; c. P. Jackson, Gen eral Agent Birmingham; R. II. Jones. Commercial Agent. Montgomery.
 Western of Alabama Railway-A. R. Smith, General Freight Agent; R. F. Lutz, General Agent, Montgomery. Seaboard Air Line-C. R. Capps, Gen. eral Freight Agent Portsmouth. Va: l.. F. Chalenor, 40 sistant General Freight Agent, Savannah; R. E. Steiner, General Attorney, Montgomery. Atlantic Coast Line-H. M. Emerson, Traffic Manager, Wilmington, N. C.; airrh Savannah.
 Appeal 10 Railroad Men. After reading his address to the railroad men President Conner said that the object of the meeting was to get from the railroads in Alabama the best
 possible reduction in fertilizer freight
 rates in the State. He appealed to
 them to consider the investment 1t
 would be in the future returns of tom
 mage. He pointed out Colonel P. l.. Russell, Vice-President of the Mobile
 and Ohio Railroad Company as having the lowest fertilizer rates offered by
 any road in Alabama.
 Mir. Russell admitted this but said the rates were made for a particular
 section and not for the entire line. President Conner told of the fair | ness of the railroads to the Birming- | ham district where cheap rates were given to the owners of iron furnaces | on limestone used in the manufacture | of pig iron. This was done, he said, because 1t was known that a larger tonnage would be insured. The ques- | ton was asked by the President as to ! why the same policy should not be pursued with reference to the farms of Alabama
 Then in brief language the Presi- dent stated the basis upon which all | evidence would be taken from the va rious representatives of the railroads present This was the best possible | reduction in fertilizer rates and for the l railroads to show why the Mobile and 1 Ohio Railroad rates on fertilizer for l twenty five miles should not be adopt | ed in Alabama and the Mississippi | rates for distances of from twenty-five | to 125 miles.
 General Rates Discussed. | Associate Commissioner Sanders at l this juncture made a motion that while l the general traffic managers of the va | rious railroads fin Alabamt are In | Montgomery in attendance on the | meeting that in conjunction with the | fertilizer rates the general freight
 rates fin the State be considered. | President Conner was SppOsed to the
 motion in this form but after a few
 minutes discussion moved an amend
 ment which finally was passed to the
 effect that the whole question of gem
 eral freight rates be taken up as soon
 as the fertilizer rates were settled.
 The President said that his opposi | xrraa haEa6