The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1907-04-30
Wholesalers ARE
hit BY new
RATELAW
Claim Made That Companies
Will Have to Have Repre-
sentatives Here.

Peculiar conditions in the trade of
the wholesale houses shipping goods
into North Dakota have resulted from
the passage of the interstate COM
merce act, says the Fargo Forum.
Wholesalers from the twin cities and
elsewhere, who do a large business
In the state and ship goods in car
load lots are accustomed to send their
goods to Fargo as central point,
over one road and from here they
are transferred to the various roads
which will carry them to their des-
tination. Before the passage of the
interstate commerce act it was pos
sible to make. up carload and ship
it as far as Fargo. where the railroad
employees would frequently open 1T
and see that that part of the freight
bound for points on either of the other
two railroads. running into this city
was transferred to the line which
would carry it to its proper destina-
ticn.
But the interstate commerce act,
under penalty Of fine of $1,000 for
every offense. forbids an employe of
railroad to touch goods in car loads
as the distribution of goods for the
merchant by the railroad employees is
regarded in the light of rebate. In
consequence 1t is necessary fer the
representative OF the, firm shipping
the goods to be present in person
when the car arrives and employ men
ITO assist him in transferring the
goods to the stations of the other
railroads.
In speaking of this matter ]. F.
Wcolf, the North Dakota representa-
tive of Mcdonald Bros, Minneapolis,
dealers in crockery and glassware,
stated that he had a car containing
1000 dozen fruit jars arrive in Fargo
the other day bound for various North
Dakota points and that he was obliged
personally to mark each one of 1000
boxes and superintend the transfer of
q portion OF them. AS Mcdonald
Bros. ship large quantities of goods
into North Dakota Mr.. Woolf expects
to be obliged to do this frequently.
with the larger goods like stone
ware it is not necessary to do this"
said Mr.. Woolf, "for the car contain
ing the goods can be placed on the
sidetrack at each station and the mer-
chant to whom the goods are billed
can come and pick out his share of
them. but with small goods this is
impossible for it, would require too
much time and would result in hold
ing the car so long that the demur-
rage incurred would be such as to
make it cheaper for the representa-
tive of the company to attend to the
matter himself. hiring such assistance
as he needs"
Trade is generally very good
throughout the state. In fact it is far
ahead of last year in all lines accord
ing to Mr.. Woolf's experience.
1.-THE merchants" he said, "are pay
ing little attention to the talk about
the late spring being dangerous to the
crops. They have heard that before
and knowing that North Dakota al
ways gets a good crop, they are
stocking up well iii the expectation
Of doing a bigger business than ever
this year."
AS an illustration of the sales
which have been made to North Da-
kQta in one line of goods and by one
firm Mr.. Woolf stated that he recent
ly shipped an entire carload of stone
ware to Neville, Pekin, Tolna and
Warwick. Another carload was di-
vided between the towns OF Aneta and
Cotton, while the contents of third
carload of the same goods was dis
| tributed among. the towns of Page,
Ayr. Colgate. Hope, Finley and Bla-
bon.
Another good point about the
| North Dakota trade" said Mr.. WOolf
10 k0tn
for many years and is an enthusiastic
North Dakotan, rs that you simply
cannot sell cheap goods. would
rather travel through North Dakota
than anywhere else and want to
keep this territory as long as l am
on the road"
Mr.. Woolf is not the only travelling
representative of twin city house
who has been put to some inconven-
fence through the operation of the in
terstate commerce law. Not long ago
a house which carries oil stoves ship
ped car load of them to Fargo over
the Great Northern. Some of the
stoves were bound for points on the
Milwaukee and Northern Pacific. It
was necessary that these should be
transferred here and, as the railroad
people could not do it a representa-
tive of the company had to be sent
here for that purpose.
These conditions point to the adj
vantage which wholesale houses doing
business in Fargo and shipping goods
throughout the state have over their
competitors from other states. Being
located here they can make direct
shipments to almost all points in the
state and it is not necessary for them
to transfer their goods from one road
to the other. Consequently the field
for the establishment here of whole
sale houses handling goods of all
kinds is an excellent one, while those
carrying line of goods not supplied
by any of the houses already estab-
lished here would have particular
ly good chance.