Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1907-11-24
Startling Revelations Made at Hear
ing Before the Commission.
ROADS SEND ARMY OF LAWYERS
Struggle Hard to Thwart Demand for
Fair Freight Rates.
MvANN IS THE RATE EXPERT
Not Alone the Tariffs, but the Cost
of Fuel, is Gone Into at These
Interstate Commerce
Hearings

we have started a case in which this
entire section Of the country is interested,
ana besides about twenty-five lawyers rep
resenting railroads, there were representa-
yves from the commercial bodies of St.
PAU, Minneapolis, ST. Louis, Des Molnes.
Kansas City, st. Joseph, Omaha and Sioux
City at the hearing" said John l., Web
ster who returned Saturday morning from
Kansas City, where the hearing of the ia
nous Missouri rate case was begun Thurs
day. THE hearing was held in the federal
court building in Kansas City and all the
transportation companies interested had
their lawyers or traffic representatives on
hand. so the court room was really well
filed.
"All of Thursday was taken up with the
Introduction OF our testimony and during
the afternoon f. J. McVann was on the
stand as an expert traffic man and It was
brought out that he had examined the rec
ords and was able to verify the tables, as
printed in The Bee Thursday. These
showed that st. Paul Minneapolis and St.
Louis had an advantage over Omaha, Kan
sas City and st. Joseph Of 30 cents on
first class goods and that that advantage
prevailed all the way to the Pacific coast
Not Based on Water.
I'VE showed the St. Paul rates were not
based on water competition, but were
based on rates made by the American rail-
roads. 1t was shown by the tariff sheets
of the 500 line that when changes were
made in this country the 500 line followed
with the same changes. Maps were intro
duced in evidence showing the advantages
these northern cities had to all important
points in the Pacific northwest and from
aat ho atoo
through Omaha to the northwest and
brought out proofs by tariff sheets which
showed freight could not be stopped
in Omaha. but could by st. Paul or
Minneapolis merchants or by New York
merchants st. Paul can get goods from
New York and forward them on west by
paying H.15 per hundred, whereas the
Omaha jobber must pay $40.
The New York Central and other east
ern .anes admitted in their answer they
don't make any redIced rates to Chicago
because of the cheaper rates to st. Paul
and Minneapolis, but the reduction is made
entirely by the Chicago-st. Paul lines The
difference in rates to st. Paul and Omaha
is the difference between 40 and rs cents.
Startling Fact Disclosed.
THE New York Central answer dis
closed the startling fact that goods are
carried from the Atlantic seaboard to the
Mississippi river for 81 cents, Of which the
lines to Chicago take 72 cents and frac-
ton, leaving but IA cents for the haul be-
tween Chicago and the Mississippi river.
When the goods come on to Omaha the rate
is 70 cents. or about four times as much
for about the same haul
I'VE took up the question OF the rates
from New York to st. Louis and then to
this territory showing where the st. Louis
jobbers could deliver his goods all over
this section OF the country at an advan-
tage over either Omaha. St. Joseph or
Kansas City, in a section of the country,
which practically borders on these towns.
ST. Louis has an advantage of 81 cents over
Omaha, Kansas City or st. Joseph, which
is more than the local rate from st. Louis
to Kansas City.
I'VE showed that the Missouri river
cities were, to use the expression of T. C.
Byrne, in a pocket The maps and ex-
hibits covering these rates filled over 100
typewriter pages of evidence.
Cost of Fuel.
1.-THE question of fuel cost was gone
into as we'll as the cost OF transportation
and we produced tables to show that the
coal rate on the Burlington from Chicago
to Omaha is cheaper per ton per mile than
II is on the Lake Shore and Michigan
Southern. We went into the more economic
methods OF the railroads in handling
freight at the present time because Of the
large locomotives and larger cars which
permitted OF a larger tonnage at a less ex-
pense and yet showed these rates had not
been lowered for seventeen years.
THE taking OF testimony will be resumed
Monday at Chicago and the length OF the
hearing will depend largely upon the
amount OF testimony, which the railroads
will want TO introduce to combat our
showing. When a decision will be reached
in the case is not known at this time as