The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1907-05-09
GIVE US A CHANCE
New Railroad Rates Ordered For
Benefit of Inland Towns
SAUK CENTRE IS ONE
Railroad Commissioners Take Action
Which Results in Smaller Towns
Getting Square Deal

If there's anything you want, go
after it hard
You'll never get it unless you do.
Acting ON this principle a number
of the inland towns of Minnesota,
Sank Centre included, went after the
Railroad and Warehouse Commission
recently and got concession that
helps them to live and do business at
the old stand.
The situation was this:
When the new commodity freight
law took effect recently, its opera
ton was such as to place jobhers in
the inland towns completely at the
mercy of Twin City jobbers owing to
the fact that the reduction was made
to apply. only to retail shipments,
while careload rates were left at the
former figures. This left so little
margin as to practically put jobbers
in the inland towns out of business.
Among the firms so effected was the
Sank Centre Grocery Company, con-
Germ that for some time has been do
ing "a fiourishing wholesale
business in northern Minneso'
ta Other towns similarity at
fected were st. Cloud, Breckenridge,
East Grand Forks, Crookston, Thief
River Falls, Fergus Falls and Moor
head.
When the business men interested
in these concerns found out what the
new law was going to do to them
they got together, prepared protest,
went before the Railroad and Ware
house commission and stated their
case. So strongly did they put the
matter that the commissioners, after
giving it full and careful considera-
ton ordered a reduction in the whole
sale commodity rates, thus enabling
the firms to continue business and
compete on equal terms with the Twin
City jobbers.
This matter may not be quite clear
to the mind of some, so The Herald
takes time and gives space to explain.
Twin city iobbers can, under existing
rates, ship groceries to any point in
the territory of the Sank Centre
Grocery Company, Osakis for in
stance. for a less amount than can the
latter for the reason that the local
rates from the cities to Osakis are
Il less than the combined car load rate
from the cities to Sank Centre plus
the local rate from Sank Centre to
Osakis. This, of course, places Sank
Centre at a disadvantage and if the
wholesale grocery company is to do
business it must continue at loss.
Through the means of the reduc-
ton Just ordered by the commission
and which takes effect May 30, the
carload rate is reduced sufficiently to
enable the local concern to lay down
goods at points in it's territory at the
same figures the Twin city jobbers
can. Thus things are evened up
nicely.
The Twin city jobbers fought this
reduction tooth and nail. They
wanted to do all the business in COM
modities in the entire Northwest, not
being willing to give the small job
bers like the Sank Centre concern a
chance to live and breathe. They
brought all the pressure possible to
bear upon the commission to carry
their point but the country whole
salers won out.
Secretary Troppman OF the SauK
Centre Grocery Company took time
Monday evening, to give The Herald
a detailed explanation of the situa-
ton and the operation of the exist