Fitzgerald enterprise. (Fitzgerald, Ga.) 1895-1912, 1907-11-30
RAILROAD CLAIMS.

railroad companies is right.
Since we have been publishing the Enterprise
we tested the theory in the courts. The amount
involved was small, SO cents, but it cost us about
hundred dollars and years delay before we got
second and final verdict which demonstrated our
theory that when a consignor of freight offers the
full and proper amount of freight it is the duty OF
the railroad company to deliver the goods.
In letter to attorney Jas B. Cummings OF
the Georgia Railroad last week Chairman McLen'
don of the Railroad Commission says on the sub
ject of claims
Railroads are quasi public highways, owned
and operated by private companies, are created 10
perform and expected to perform public service
in the transportation of freights and passengers
for reasonable hire. In Georgia there are now
pending something like 5000 claims for overcharg-
es made by roads in this state. These 0vercharg-
es arise in a very simple manner A. 3. receive
carload of goods less than carload ana is tOlo
that the freight charges are so much. The sum
demanded by the agent of the company Is In OK
cess of the tariff rates, and plain, papable error
has been made. The receiver of the goods know
this the agent of the railroad company acknoW-
leges it, and whether it be five, ten twenty dol
lars Overcharge, the consgnee is told that he must
matter how this overcharge may have arisen, the
receiver of the goods is compelled to put up money
to which the carrier has no rightful claim, and
then turn in and make fight to recover that
which he feels has been extorted from him.
GAS have said, my information is that there
are now something like 5000 claims of this char
acted pending before the railroads OfGeOrga-and
l have good reasons to believe that if in all the in
stances of overcharge the claims filed, there
would be three times this number at least This
is the situation in Georgia"
Every sensible business man whether he is in a
railroad Office not will admit that it is all wrong.
The freight tariffs should pe 50 simpfed that the
errors will not be made and if they that the re-
ceiving agent ascertain the true rate and make
settlement for the correct amount.
But the most peculiar feature of the case is
the fact that most of the errors are 0vercharges
undercharge is rare. In view of the fact that the
men who make the errors own no interest in the
railroads it discovers peculiar trait of human
nature.
Pull for Fitzgerald or Pull Out
About this time every year business is little
dull This year the symptom is regarded as = re-
suit of the money stringency and is taken more
ordinarily be the case. Dust out your bug house
and 90 to work. If the work does not come to you
60 to it, go after it, There is plenty to do; atho
the average laborer with the improved methods
and devices of the present time accomplishes more
in a day than he could have accomplished in
week hundred years ago, or in month thou
sand years ago, or i'll q year centuries ago. There
is to do. Instead of the of ages ago, or
the huts of thousand years ago or the cheap
houses of hundred years ago we live in palaces
now. The common laborer of today lives in the
luxury of the rich of even a century ago. Palace
cars and palace ships not the only luxuries but
fair samples of the worlds, great wealth.
There is no turning back; the world has come
to know the word sumptuous and while wild set
of fnanccrs may occasionally ''shake confidence"
but it is only the fool who reckons that prosperity
is at an end.
GET BUSY AT SOMETHING USEFUL.
Pull for Fitzgerald Pull Gut
"a INCH PISTOLS.
From The Georgian
Alabama has decided, and that upon special
call of the legislature, which required larger
vote than otherwise would have been necessary, to
prohibit the manufacture and sale of liquor after
next year. Birmingham and number of other
places put the law into effect January /, 1908.
They are a little more radical in Alabama than
were and are tieing Interstate even little tighter
than we did on the liquor proposition. Then, too,
they have passed law prohibiting the carrying of
pistol under % inches long. Shades ofSocrates'-
fhav will Ia frvnC to StoO dishonesty next