Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-20
DENIAL BY THE B. & D.
Reply to Statement Recently
Made in the Senate.
RED ROCK co.'s TREATMENT
Claims That There Has Not Been Un-
fairness Shown.
THE CONTROVERSY DETAILED
Pure Food Bill Taken Up-Mr. Hey
burn Answers Published Charges
House Quickly Adjourns.
THE CONTROVERSY DETAILED

The reply of the Baltimore and Ohio
| railroad to the statements recently made in
| the Senate on behalf of the Red Rock
| Fuel Company of West Virginia was pre-
sented In the Senate at the beginning OF
today's session by Mr. Rayner In present-
ing the matter Mr. Rayner was very care
ful TO say that he did so by request adding
| that he assumed no responsibility in the
matter. The document was signed by Hugh
| S. Bond, jr., second vice president of the
| Baltimore and Ohio
The statement was Of considerable length
Mr.. Bond says that when the fuel COM
! pany purchased its mines. which are in
| Cpshur county, w Va, II knew that the
! Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company had
| Informed its predecessors that that COM
pany could not afford railroad facilities
until 1t could enlarge it's equipment but
| that the fuel company Immediately notified
| the railroad company that the Red Rock
| Company would at once locate ccal tipple
| 1910 feet from the railroad and construct
| a single track therefrom TO the road and
| demanded that the Baltimore and Ohio
| permit II to make a physical connection
| with the new track and furnish cars at
| the tipple for the shipment OF coal. He
went on TO say that the Baltimore and
ONO road al that point, formerly the
| West Virginia and Pittsburg is a single
! track road and that the proposed point OF
connection is approximately midway be-
| no coal IS hauled over the line between
| weston and Buchannon, with which the
| Red Rock Company seeks connection. and
| no rates for coal in carloads have ever
Deen made or published from or over that
| line. He adds:
| The Controversy Detailed
| Where there is a coal field sufficiently
developed to require special service the
Baltimore and Ohio furnishes special coal
switching service to place empty cars at
| the coal Hpples and to take away loaded
| cars. Where such special service exists
the railroad company can switch cars to a
! tipple located away from the company's
| track, even as far as 4,039 feet although
such a distance would be unusual. with
| out such special switching service the rail-
| road company cannot switch to and from
| a tipple so located. To attempt Il In con-
| nection with regular trains would involve
| leaving the train on the main track while
| the locomotive and crew were gone mile
away To perform the service demanded by
| the Red Rock Company, therefore. would
| require a spec al switching serv ce FOR TWEEN
| ty miles each way. The answer Of the rail-
| road company to the demand of the Red
| Rock Company was the same that had been
given 20 their predecessors In title as they
| well knew, namely: That until the railroad
| company could enlarge its equipment II
/ could not provide special service to develop
| a new coal territory, hut must stop al the
! discharge Of its legal oblig ltions as a car
| rier They were told at the same time that
4
make large addt ons to its equipment.
Thereupon the Red Rock Company filed Its
| complaint before the interstate commerce
| commission"
Mr. Bond says further that the Red Rock
| lands are not in the Fairmont district but
in an undeveloped region and part of a vast
area OF virgin coal lands adjacent 10 the
Baltimore and Ohio lines. He takes excep-
tion to the assumption of the interstate
commerce commission concerning the
switching service at Falrmont. and says
] 49,, -l,r.,a
service of twenty miles each way or any
thing like it." He asserts that the COM
mission begs the question.
Denial of Discrimination Charge
Mr. Bond further says: "The Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad Company is not stock
holder in any coal company. large or small
located in the vicinity OF or on its lines or
railway in the Fairmont district 1t has
for many years owned a majority of the
stock of the Consolidation Coal Company,
Maryland corporation. In 1903 the Con-
solidation Coal Company acquired a bare
majority of the stock Of the Fairmont Coat
Company. The commission finds that the
alleged stockholding Of the Baltimore and
Ohio in the Farmont company is the rea-
son the Red Rock companys demands have
not been complied with This finding is alb
solutely untrue, is based purely upon as
sumption, and is not only unwarranted by
the facts In the case, but these facts and
the evidence taken by the Red Rock COM
pany upon it's own behalf completely mega
tive the commissions conclusion"
Mr. Bond declares that the Fairmont
company has received no better treatment
than the Red Rock company, ard adds:
1.-The Baltimore and Ohio company has al
ways recognized that its duty. well
its interests, requires the development OF
the uraI resources of West Virginia as
rd, Z as possible The coal production
has doubled IN FIVE years largely because
of its efforts The vast area of undeye!.
oped coal lands In West Virginia cannot all
be developed Immediately without reference
to the situation or to the railroad COM
pany's facilities and equipment. The Bal
timore and Ohio has endeavored to apply
common sense business principles to the
handling of situation forced upon IL by
circumstances largely unforeseen and be-
yond its control"
He instances the rapid development of the
coal interests and says that ii has out
stripped the -ailroad facilities. 1t Ia the
policy of the railroad company, he says, In
granting new switch connections. to place
them only in case where the similarity of
conditions entails legal obligations so TO
do and he adds that this rule pursued
In dealing vita the Red Rock company,
with others.
from residents OF Oklahoma praying for
prohibition in the proposed state of Okla
homa. The most voluminous contained the
names of 500 voters. and Mr.. Gallinger
said that II was 26i feet long. One of the
others contained the names of 600 women,
and another those of 5000 children. rho
fourth was signed by Indians only
Pure Food Bill Taken Up.
The pure food bill was then taken up and
Mr. Hepburn and Mr.. McCumber prssented
a number of letters and petitions indorsing
the bill as worthy OF the Senates support
number of these Endorsements were ifo,n
medical societies.
Mr.. Hepburn made reply to the newspaper
charges that the effect of the passage of
the bill would be to give control of much
of the food products of the country 10 one
man, the chief OF the bureau OF chemistry
of the Department of Agriculture. He said
that the only authority granted to that Of