Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1906-01-17

Armour Whipping the Railroads.
From "The Railroads on Trial." BY
Ray Stannard Baker In McClure's.)
Armour owned all the ears II
which his product was shipped. When
the railroad hauled them II paid
rental called a mileage charge Il
Armour for the use of them, after
ward collecting the full freight rate
This Il as plausible and proper al
sunshine-provided. OF course, we ad
NIT the right Of private individuals
to own railroad rolling stock. This
rental varies In amount, being one
cent a mile for every mile the car
travels In certain parts Of the coun'
try, three-Quarters Of q cent In 9TH
er parts.
Now, II Is plain that the farther the
car runs every day the more It will
earn. II It runs 300 miles It may earn
$500 a day, II so miles. only so cents.
The primary advantage Of owning a
private car, then, 10 the mileage It
makes.
Armour says. with all the PLAUSIBLE
ity Of utter fairness to his small
competitors:
"You have as much right to own
private cars as I have. Go ahead
and get them. The railroads will
pay you the same mileage as they
pay me-"
Every word Of which Is truthful
and yet conceals the worst sort Of
a lie. \
Armour's small competitor a own
private cars, but he cannot make
them run. For that depends upon
having great influence with the rail-
roads. Armour can and does make
his cars rum Nothing. indeed. Is
more impressive IN all the methods
Of the beef trust than Armour's sys.
TEN Of keeping account Of his Ti-
vate cars. At the head .of, the Ar
mour car lines fs George B. Rob-
bins. the president OF the corporation.
He works in closest touch with O. +.
Frisby. traffic manager OF Armour &
Co. The head OFFICE II In the Home
insurance building at Chicago where
q large force Of clerks IS employed.
There are connections will all the
railroad offices by both telephone and
telegraph.
Let us say that Amour delivers 81
cars Of beef-a train.load-to the rail.
roads at l o'clock today. The num-
Der Of every car Is entered with the
date Of starting. on a huge tally
sheet at the central office. Say the
train Is bound eastward by the Grand
Trunk. At Elsdon, ILL.,. the first juno
ton point, an Armour man Is at
hand to report the train. At Port HUI
ron there IS another Armour man.
He fills out a blank postal card re-
porting the arrival there. the time
taken in re-icing. whether cars are
out Of repair, and SO On. Other Ar
mour men stand ready at the Niagara
frontier and at every other icing sta
ton thr ugh to New York city, each
reporting by postal card. II part Of
the train goes toy Pittsburg. OF to
Montreal, there alao are the Ar
mour men ready to report instantly.
For Armour has Over 70 regular
branch houses In The United States
besides numerous local agents, trav.
cling agents and the like. Armour
is always ON the spot.
Every morning aigreat pile OF these
cards appears on the desks at the
central office In Chicago. Each card
Is checked up. II a train has lost
time, II an Armour a - sidc-trachet
anywhere, a telegram Is at once dis
patched: what is the matter" 1t
Ii a message whic1 requires and re.
prompt reply Armour Is new
or 70 be put on or Fided with. More
than one railroad dkent, who did not
use proper respect, has summarily
lost his head. And the offenses are
multiplied. some ine morning Arm ur
his entire business to the n.
val line which will hurry his cars.
Hurry, hurry. 10 bis insistent de.
and no railroad dares dispute
him.