The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1906-05-21
Northern Pacific May Come Under
New Rate Bill.
CANNOT OPERATE ANY MINING PLANTS
SENATOR PILES MADE FIGHT TO
HELP INDUSTRIES ON THE
SOUND.

If the house agrees to the amendment
made by the United States senate, for
bidding common carriers from hauling
coal mined on their own properties to
points outside the state, the Pacific
Coast company and Northern Pacific
will be seriously affected.
It was to save the coal properties of
these two lines that United States Sem
ator S. H. Piles is understood to have
introduced his amendment exempting
lines whose principal business is not
that of a common carrier, says the
Times.
Just how this would have helped the
Northern Pacific is not clear, but 1t
would have been of some advantage to
the Pacific Coast company. That 1t
was lost is believed by railroad men to
have been due to the necessity for reg
ulating the anthracite roads. The Pa
cific Coast company can probably es-
cape the provisions of the BILL but it
will be a more expensive task to mar
ket the coal of that corporation. The
Northern Pacific is expected to be
compelled to limit it's market to this
state.
Railroad attorneys are not satisfied
the Pacific Coast tompany's steamship
fleet, operating even in connection with
the Columbia & Puget Sound, the COM
panys local railroad, would be regarded
as a common carrier under the new act
Even if the steamships are so con-
strued, there is nothing, seemingly, to
prevent the Pacific Coast company
from shipping to San Francisco over
other lines, at regular rates, or from
chartering vessels to carry it's coal
south.
Owns Seven Mines.
Unless the law is far more drastic
than Geographic descriptions indicate,
the Pacific Coast company will not
abandon the mining features of it's bus
mess. The state coal mine inspectors
last report shows the Pacific Coast
company, in seven mines owned in
King county, produced 6S7,526 tons of
coal. The Black Diamond property,
which the company purchased for ST.
100000 about a year ago, turned out
more than 100000 tons at the two
mines operated. A little more than =
month ago the company bought the
South Prairie Coal company's mines at
Burnett, which produced 5000 tons
last year. The Pacific Coast company
paid $4,000 for the property and in
tends to double its output.
fered by the Denny Renton Coal &
Clay company and the logging business
handled, the output of the company's
own mines furnished practically all the
traffic for the Columbia & Puget Sound
which the Pacific Coast company owns
and operates. Moreover, the coal prop.
critics, recent annual reports show, are
the most profitable branches of the cor
poration's business. The Pacific Coast
company will not let go of them with
out a struggle, and already railroad at
torneys have begun to find ways of
holding to the mines. The situation of
the Northern Pacific is different. The
Northern Pacific owns the Northwest
ern Improvement company, under which
name the transcontinental line operates
coal properties at Roslyn, Cle-Elum,
Melmont and Ravensdale. The output
from these mines is the largest in the
state. Raslyn alone last year produced
952.353 tons; Gle Elum, 313,9S7; Vac
vensdale, 1S4,37O, and Melmont 1886
tons.
Will Cut Off Portland.
The Northern Pacific markets this
coal at points in Montana, Idaho, Ore
gon and Washington. 1t uses the coal
along its line of road If the law is as
strict as railroad attorneys believe it
| is, the new act will forbid the Northern
Pacific, for instance, from marketing
Roslyn coal in Portland or from SELL
| ing that product in the states east of
here.
None of the interested railroad offic-
| ials believe the Northern Pacific will
give up it's coal properties blu: none of
| them is satisfied that means of salts
| flying the interstate commerce commits
sion can be easily found
| The ownership of the South Prairie
| Coal company by the Pacific Coast