East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-02-26
AGAINST
Commission MEN
SHIPPERS OF STOCK PRO-
TEST AGAINST CHARGES.
Stock Yards Charges Have Recently
Advanced. Owing TO the Increased
ON Cattle Is Now S12 Per Car,
Where it Mas Formerly But SO.

An attempt to eliminate the COM
mission man in livestock sales may be
the result of an unsatisfactory confer
ence last week between western stock
raisers and the livestock exchange
members of Kansas City and st. Jo-
seph, says the Kansas City star
After several hours of discussion a
meeting at the stock yards adjourned
| leaving the opposed interests in pre-
cisely the state they were before the
discussion began-raisers protesting
against present commission rates and
members of the exchange asserting
that they are receiving less than their
due. No definite action will be taken
until the directors of the Kansas City
Livestock Exchange have had an op-
portunty to meet and discuss their
future position with the st. Joseph
contingent.
When the Advance Was Made.
Following a national gathering of
commission men in Buffalo, n. Y.
last summer a number of livestock
exchanges. including Kansas City, st.
Joseph Sioux City and South Omaha,
made a general advance I'M prices for
handling car lots of cattle, sheep and
hogs.
The reasons given for the advance
We're that car lots with up-to-date
railroad equipment, were much larger
than in years past; that the cost of
handling stock at the market points
was greater, and that prices received
by the shippers We're higher making
mission The rate for cattle had for
merly been 30 cents head, or a max
imum of SO for carload lot, in
Guiding cars Of mixed stock; for
sheep and hogs the charge was Sc a
car for single cars, and SIS for "dou-
ble- -deckers."
The advanced rate fixed a minimum
charge of SO a car for cattle, and n
maximum Of S12 for mixed cars; a
minimum of IS for sheep and hogs,
or SO for double cars. These are the
prices that provoked the indignation
of western shippers.
In response to pressure brought to
bear by growers. the newly establish
ed rates for cattle had been receded
from before last weeks meeting. On
the rates for sheep and hogs, how
ever, the commission men "stood pat"
declaring that they had lost money
in handling these at the old rates,
and that the commission business was
not in the prosperous condition it
should be, considering the amount of
stock handled through Missouri river
markets.
Say Statesmen Wouldn't Succeed.
IF the growers represented by the
committee from the American Ma
tional association think they can i'm
prove conditions by abolishing sales
representatives here, they are well
come to try" said Kansas City COM
| mission man. This is an open field.
and they are welcome to start as soon
as they are ready. The experiment
was tried several years ago and PROV
/ ed a failure"
IF there appeared to be any real
reason for an advance in commission
rates we would not object" said the
growers. "Rut, so far as we can see,
the increased charges are made only
to swell the profits for an over pro-
| duction of commission men. We es-
| innate that there are fully twice as
many members of the Kansas City
Livestock Exchange as are required
| to handle the stock in this market In
any other business, competition would
have the effect of depressing rates,
| but in this instance the idea seems
to have been to get enough money
out Of the grower and buyer to make
a living for the entire crowd"