The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1907-03-27
INTERCHANGE Of
CARS THE ONLY
REMEDY
So Says Colgate Man in Ad-
dress Before Minnesota
Farmers Exchange.
A POSITIVE PREVENTIVE
Against Centralizing Business
Question All Are In
terested In.

H. B. Borneman of, Colgate in his
address before the Minnesota Farm
ers' exchange recently sounded the
keynote for remedy for the small
grain shippers of this state. His adj
dress Is as follows:
The subject of interchangeable cars
is the one and only great remedy for
all the knotty problems that are now
before congress. 1t Is a cure and q
positive preventive for centralizing
business It will tend to prevent the
monopoly, Of any one commodity, that
our small manufacturers and dealers
are interested in. The large trusts.
and combines have an iron bound pro-
lection that is impossible to penetrate
which is the centralizing of business,
and easily forces the small business
concerns into line as the usual methods
employed by these trusts are to raise
or lower the prices, so the small I'M
fortunate has no show whatever. be-
cause he is unable to pierce the great
terminals with his wares, as the rail-
way companies will not allow their
cars to go beyond these terminals,
the only alternative left them is to
dance, when the big fellows play the
fiddle.
The business form that we have
drifted into is to buy and sell our
commodities to these large terminals,
which has resulted in poor business
system, and is causing all our present
trouble. Our legislatures and a few of
the congressman have taken 1t out of
the hides of railroad companies by
making sweeping reduction in their
passenger tariff, and unknowingly
have Disseminated in favor of the
trusts. The passenger rate is about
as important to the farmer and coun-
try merchant as dead horse. The
railway companies have always been
very liberal in granting the country
special excursion rates from one to
one and fourth fare. land hunters,
and harvesters' tickets we're on sale in
their proper seasons, and were all for
the benefit of the country. We al
ready see the harm the reduction on
passenger rates has done. The Min
nesota Farmers exchange are not
able to get their usual excursion
rates. Travelling on passenger trains
is luxury. The large wholesale and
trust centers who send out armies of
travelling men are the beneficiaries
and these very men who represent
the trusts such as the International
Harvester Co., lumber, coal, oil, fruit,
-four, furniture and elevator combina-
tons, have so schooled their travel
ing representatives when among their
customers, to apply the brakes on the
railway companies and keep the mass
L.. hon IN n
their attention in other channels and
make the battle cry railroads, which
is an easy matter as the public are ma
turally prejudiced towards railroads.
1t is surprising to see some of our
brainy men fall into the trap. Allow
me to relate some of my experiences
with combines. l have had telegraph
instruments placed in my elevator Of
flee and taken out, cars refused. Both
cases the superintendent informed me
that the elevators made a roar, but
that the railroad company had no OBJ
jections. The next elevator built was
at Bronson, Mimi, the prices were run
up thirty-three cents bushel. When
my wheat arrived at the terminals re-
inspection was called, my commission
Arm who had an elevator line connec-
ton had the goodness to allow from
one to five cents bushel. The next
business venture undertook was coal
and lumber. l rented the Kelso yards
in Hallock, MINI. A representative of
the coal companies visited my place. I
was informed I was not a regular
dealer and refused coal. For lumber
made trip to Crookston and Bemid-
il, MINI. At Bemidji pushed by case.
l wanted five cars of lumber, l was in
formed by the young man in charge
that I would have to wait until he
heard from Minneapolis. One word
led on to another, during the CONVEX
sation l was very politely told that the
line companies get their stock $500
cheaper than l could and pictured 1t
to me that l would be very foolish to
start into the lumber business. How
ever l bought two cars from the little
farmer sawmills in that neighborhOod,
and shipped to Hallock, where they
had cheap lumber for the summer,
the lumber yards reducing prices on
my account.
presume good many OF you have
had my experience. Are the railroad
companies to blame for such business
methods? 1 claim no, the centraliza-
ton of business, throughout the Unit
ed States is the cause of it. and men
with ability were shrewd enough to
see the advantage and have built up
and forced combines and trusts, and by
SO doing have brought the country in
to state of monopoly. which is caus-
ing so many Investigations.
The only remedy for this is a fed
eral law covering interchange Of cars,
compelling railroads to bill loads to
any destination in the United States,
and to replace these loaded cars with
empty ones. This will stop the short
age OF cars, as each company will have
it's original number of cars always I'M
der its own control and management.
The speed per diem Is very necessary
SO the commodity will not arrive at
its destination in damaged condi-
ton. also heavy fine should be i'm
posed ii said railroad companies fail
to supply an empty within certain
prescribed time, which will also an
swer for ia reciprocal demurrage bill.
interchange of cars will give cur COM
mission men privilege to bill our
grain to better markets. 1t will bring
every known business into competi-
ton with each other. The small man.
ufacturer and dealer can ship through
the large terminals to the small bust
ness firms in the country. All the
small cities and villages will have the
same railroad facilities that the large
terminals now enjoy. In November
when l was in Duluth | was shown