The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-11-22
HILL GOES ON STAND
GREAT NORTHERN PRESIDENT BE-
 FORE COMMISSION.
Thinks Railroads Should Control Un- loading of Grain and Have Own
 EievatOrs-DenieS Owning Grain Stock.

Minneapolis, Minn., Nov, 21--James J. Hill, president of the Great Northern,
 and head of the Hill system" the l Great Northern, Northern Pacific and
 Burlington Roads, was the firt witness | today when Commissioners Lane and Prounty of the Interstate Commerce Commission began their inquiry into
 the relations which exist between the | railroad companies and the grain com panies in the Northwest. Mir. Hill proved to be a willing wit ness. His answers were given to all questions without hesitation. On the specific subject of grain elevators. MT
 Hill testified:
 "Yes, 1t is our rule to permit any one | to erect elevators at stations of oul
 road on the right of way. We make our contracts, however mot transfer rable as we have found instances where
 such applications were not made in good faith. and afterwards sold at a | good figure. We have found trouble l in keeping elevators from combining
 and sometimes in tracing down appli- different applicants to really represent one interest. When we have found ob- | jeetionable elevator combines, we have sometimes built elevators of our own and placed some man in charge. In such instances, the combines have tried to freeze our man out.
 T think 1t is a great detriment to | business that we cannot control the
 unloading of grain." said Mir. Hill. T l think 1t Is the best thing for a rail- road to have It's own terminal eleva- tors. unload into them and include the | harge for so doing the freght rate" MT. Hill thought the present legal
 method of handling grain is wrong and | that the farmer Is too much the victim ! AL ceiving elevator should devote itself Ing in grain should be a separate bus mess.
 Mir. Hill told how he happened to build a Buffalo terminal elevator, the
 largest in the world, costing sl,200, 900. He said;
 Along our line and up to Buffalo we were able to keep good track of grain , we shipped because 1t went in our own cars and in ships manned by our own crews and owned by us But in one single instance. there was reported to me a shipload, which, when weighed at Buffalo was 2.50O bushels short
 Soon after that, we built the elevator at Buffalo At that t.e the stock
 of the Buffalo elevator pool was sell ing at 500. They charged one and one
 fourth cents for unloading and one- fuorth cent for shoveling We includ- ed in addition, insurance and charged
 for everything but one-half of cent i per bushel, a saving to the grain ship
 pers of cent a bushei. Where we handled 1OO.O0O,O0O bush
 els a year this meant a saving of $1.- 000, ,000. We don't own the elevator now but the elevator charge, however
 is still kept down to one-half cent per
 bushel."
 MT. Hill. do you own any elevator
 stock whatever?"
 No sir; do not. waiN to say that
 no man in the Great Northern road can own any stock in anything along the i line of the road. If he does, he must
 leave my employ, even if he were my | own son."
 Do you favor federal inspection ot
 graln?" asked one of the commission , CTS.
 ' "Decidedly. do," replied Mir. Hill
 though the change would not affect
 us."