Meade County news. [volume] (Meade, Kan.) 1900-1918, 1906-12-20
JOB FOR THE ARMY
COMMERCE COMMISSION GOES
TO MINNEAPOLIS MONDAY.
SITUATION GETS MORE ACCUTE
Railroads Blame Blizzard for Failure
to Supply Fuel-BurIington Offers
to Help Other Roads The Great
Northern Gets Busy.

Northern Gets Busy.
Washington, Dec. II. That the
army be employed to compel and as
sist the railroads to drop everything
else and haul coal to prevent suffer
ing in the fuel famine district of the
Northwest is suggested in a mes
sage from ]. P Whittemore, of Gales
burg, N. D.. received by Senator Nc
Cumber today.
The telegram. which has been for
warded by the senator to President
the army, follows:
THE United States army could
not be better employed than in COM
polling and assisting these railroads
to drop everything and haul us coal.
Half the Northwest will be freezing
in week, and the whole of it in
two weeks
Senator Hansbrough, of North Da-
kota, consulted the commission to-
day and declared that the situation
regarding coal in his state is most
deplorable, and that the public
schools are closing on account of
lack of fuel. 1t is said at the COM
missions offices that for a number
of years at this season there had
been complaints of lack of cars.
but that the situation was never so
acute as now.
Blizzard Is Blamed.
The telegram sent yesterday by
the interstate commerce commits
sion to the presidents of various
railroad systems calling their atten-
ton to complaints of car shortage
and failure to transport the necessi-
ties of life, brought replies today.
President Pennington, of the
Minneapolis, st. Paul & Salt Ste.
Marie, telegraphed:
There is no blockade of freight
or shortage of cars on our lines
west of Minneapolis except what is
due to bad billiards. in the last few
days"
President Harris, of the Burling-
ton, telegraphed from Chicago:
1--WE will endeavor to comply and
furnish prompt and satisfactory SER
vice and will be much pleased to
have any suggestions you will kind
ly make. There has been no gen.
eral protracted shortage of cars or
congestion of traffic on the Burling-
ton, though it is true that every
year there is some car shortage and
some congestion due to the fact that
shippers, especially of coal, have
little or no provision in the way of
shortage and always decline to anti
cipate their orders, consequently
there is a general demand for coal at
the first real cold weather"
"a" Guarantees Relief.
I'VE have been able to transport
coal for all our customers with rea-
sonable promptness and to do some
thing in the way OF furnishing cars
and transporting coal for other rail
roads. If there is any specific COM
plant on the Burlington road at
present it has not been made known
to the officers of this company, and
if the commission has received any
complaint as to our failure to trans
port coal on the Burlington We will
be obliged if You will give us the
details and We will guarantee prompt
relief"
The Chicago & Northwestern
Railway Company is not failing at
this time, nor has it at any time
failed to furnish cars and to move
them with reasonable promptness,
both for fuel and other commodities,
and if there is suffering for lack of
any commodity at stations tribu-
tary to its lines, let me assure you
that it is not due to failure on the
part of this company TO discharge
its full duty in this respect | have
during the last three weeks been in
frequent communication with the
governor of South Dakota ON this
subject. The reports this morning
indicate good supply of fuel at sta
lions on the line of this company,
especially in Minnesota and South
Dakota"
Fargo, N. D., Dec. 1.-THE Forum
prints the following on the fuel
shortage in North Dakota:
That the fuel famine will quickly
become serious matter in this
state if the branch roads are tied up
by snow blockades is evident. The
supplies of coal. wood and oil are
very low in most of the towns. A
great deal of inconvenience and dis
comfort and positive suffering, even,
is possible.
There are many views as to the
responsibility for present condi-
lions. The railroads are blamed for
not shipping in fuel. The dealers
are blamed both by the roads and
their patrons for not ordering
earlier. The patrons are blamed by
the dealers for not buying earlier
and being more forehanded."
The Forum was in touch with
many towns of the state and found
that the fuel supply in some is en-
tirely exhausted. A few towns seem
to have sufficient to withstand a
long siege of cold and billiards..
Maddox, n. D., Dec. 1.-THE fol-
lowing message has been sent by the
Commercial Club to President FL
lott of the Northern Pacific railway