The Cairo bulletin., 1907-07-29
COMPLAINTS ARE .
WORRYING ROADS
THOUSANDS OF NEW CHARGES
FILED WITH COMMERCE
CoMMISS IoN.
new PRECEDENT SET
BY Decision in yellow Pine Rebate
Cases Over Thirty Roads
Interested South of the
Ohio.

ted States supreme court in he "yel
low pine lumber cases has been any
4 thing but what railroads and lumber
men erpected, and where the end will
be no one can guess In that case
the court ruled that the advance on
: lumber from the districts mentioned
was unreasonable and that the in
tefstate commerce commission had
{ the dsht TO order a reduction Of the
! rate and refund Of the overcharge
| > cents per hundred pounds, to The
shippers. The case went through tho
: courts and was decided against the
railroads ana an order made requiring
the railroads to refud something like
$3,000,080 to the shippers The rail.
roads and shippers then began work
ing ont the problem Of settlement
No sooner had the facts in the case
Preached The public than other ship
pers all over the south began fling
claims for oyercharges with the inter
state commerce commission, and now
there are several thousand eases
pending before that body
Those cases are as varied in nature
as they are numerous, ana il means
that no final settlement win be reach
ed for several years. if ever
Practically every line cf trade ana
industry in the South is a party in
some form to the new complaints.
Shoe dealers, dry goods men. cotton
| shippers cantaloupe and watermelon
,shippers, peach growers, store manu-
lacturers, hardwood manufacturers
and practically all other lines are in
the same game When or where It
win end Is the question the railroads
are considering.
Over Thirty Roads Interested.
All Of The thirty Or more railroads
Iof the southeast, or at least all those |
who are members Of the Southeast
drn Freight Association, ATE inter
ested. The Nashville, Chattanooga
and So Louis railroad is one of tho |
reads most affected The peach ship |
pers over this line have filed com. |
plants asking for refunds. The shoe
dealers at Rmoe, Atlanta and Other /
places have done likewise The mel
on shippers are also in the game
and where it will end The manage
ment does not venture to guess.
Over in Virginia one coal company
has claims aggregating hundreds az
thousands of dollars against one of
he roads and the others have about
the same deal on hand The marble
shippers at Knoxville, Tenn and in
North Carolina have a similar com
plant and want the cash as soon as
they can get il. At Memphis the |
hardwood mill men are in the same :
game and asking for a refund similar
10 that granted the yellow pine ship
oers So il gees throughout the
south, and with every railroad do
ns business in this section.
Every day new complaints arrive.
md the interstate commerce commits
sion are about as tired as the rail-
Dads are. The commission can only
De annoyed, however. for no expense
S attached to their part Of It except
What can be charged to the govern
nent. 1t is quite different with the
ailroads and has set them wondering
What heir legal status is, after ALL
In past years the railroads of the
outh could at least estimate their
ssets and liabilities. Now they can
My estimate the assets. for the liza
ility mater has passed them and
one into the doubtful column. II is
aid that no railroad in The entire
outh could pay the claims now pend
rs against Il without eoinc into the
larl,ct and Borrowing money on new
onds. Were they all TO go nj once ..
he market could not accommodate
lcm. and bankruptcy would follow
" a number Of lines. Naturally the
lilr0ads will fight each case 10 the !
nish and hope to defeat esch one of
rem. Even at his, however the cost
i'll be enormous and the time taken
p with this matter will greatly hin
er the operation of the roads sol
Numerous caucuses on the question ~
ave been held al central points nj
IrC ghout the country. but the law 30
srs have found no way to get out Of rr
hearing in each case ma
Lumber Cases a Precedent. 40
The lumber case was a precedent. CT.
Id the result IS the same as in all fra
ses of a perecednt. Every shipper III,
ants money from the railroads if nc III,
"a eel b. aud he is prcssing his mr..
aims wit hthe commission with vim u.s.
be- interstate commerce conjunction "a
Not attending 70 hearings just nos fsi
q members being on their vacation- et
hen they return To their Washing an
% offices about September ]. they cd
m find themselves completely lNi,
-amped. tr
Since fhe lasf congress. when tho the
.ersiate commerce commission law teI
is amended hy the provisions Of the ;n
.pbmrn bin. there has been decid- ma
change Ia This division of the gov ths
nment anyway. but a greater
nuDe ca1rssz 70 no rr1ff5no. The com