Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-08-02
Iowa Railway Commission Fixes
Minimum Charge For Haul
on One Line
FoREsTALLs PLAN OF ROADS
Roads Planned to Advance Rates to
40 Cent Basis-shippers Aroused and
Additional Order is Secured-In-
equaities Are Alleged in Interstate
Shipments.
Special to Tunes Republican.

Des Moines, Aug. 2.--To head off the
possibility of the railroads making
minimum rate of forty cents for ship
ment of small package of freight over
one line while limited to forty cents
for shipment over more than one line
by the joint rate order Of the state
commission, an additional order was
promulgated yesterday fixing twenty
five cents as the minimum on a single
line shipment.
1t was thought necessary to make
the new order because a copy of
tariff sheet sent to the board by one
of the roads disclosed the fact that it
proposed to make the minimum single
shipment charge forty cents, which
would have been an increase Of 1if-
teen cents above the charge that has
been made hitherto.
For years the interstate rate for a
minimum shipment was twenty-five
cents, irrespective of the number of
roads over which it was carried. When
the joint rate subject was preached
in Iowa and local manufacturers sug-
gested the equity of a similar charge
in this state, the roads pushed their
minimum interstate charge to forty
cents. When the railroad commission
made its joint rate order it fixed the
forty cent rate. Heretofore the roads
had charged the local shipper for a
shipment within the state twenty five
cents on each road over which it
passed
For instance, a small shipment would
be sent from Shenandoah to north-
ern Iowa point requiring it to traverse
three roads. The charge would be
seventy-dve cents, or twenty-five
cents for each road. AT the same time
shipment from st. Louis passing
thru Shenandoah to the same destina-
ton would be carried for twenty five
cents the whole distance, being an
interstate shipment.
Inequities Of this kind aroused the
shippers in Iowa to make such Wig
orous appeal to the railroad commits
sion under the joint, rate law. But
when the forty cent rate for joint
minimum shipments was authorized,
the roads Immediately showed the sin
gle line charge to forty cents from
twenty five. Hence the supplementary
order issued by the board yesterday.
Joint rates equal to 80 per cent, Of
the distance tariffs on two lines be-
came effective in Iowa yesterday. All
have been made to place
the new rates in effect.
Henceforth the, minimum car
load shipment in Iowa will be 10000
pounds instead of $4,000 pounds, which
has been the standard since 1884. The
board issued an order Some time ago
providing that the minimum charge for
a shipment over two roads will be 40
cents, and the joint rates equal so per
cent of the distance tariffs No trans
fer charge shall be made for carload
lots at junction points nor on local
when the same depot is
used by the connecting and originating
line If there is an actual transfer
from one depot to another of local
the actual charge may bel
billed to the shipper.
The commissioners have decided
that carload lots can only be shipped
over routes where there is trackage
For instance the Chicago
Great Western and Burlington could
not be required to absorb transfer
charges on carload at Alton Junction
where there is no means Of transfer.
However. the board has ordered many
switching tracks to connect with two
roads at junction points and will make
additional connections where the bus
mess requires 1t.