The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-11-05
RAILROAD NEWS.
A Movement on Foot for Pooling
Passenger Traffic.
Plans Made to Divide East Bound
Immigrant Business.
THINKS U. S. WILLING.
Not Much Official objection Elk.
pected on the Project.
Other Items of Interest in Rail-
way Circles.

| "A plan Tor pooling the east bound
second class passenger traffic moving
from Chicago and the west on through
railroad and steamship Storage tick
cts is now being worked out by the
passenger officials of the roads in the
Central Passenger association. If the
details of the plan for regulating com
petition are approved at a meeting of
the association in New York on Nov.
10 and IL the east bound steamship
business, consisting principally of for
eign residents of this country return
ing to their homes in Europe, will be
divided among the various lines which
are the largest participants in the
business according to a prearranged
percentage plan.
While the details of the plan have
not yet been definitely determined,
and the success of the entire arrange
ment is dependent upon it's being as
scented to by the Interstate commerce
commission, it has been practically de-
cided that four of the differential
lines, the Erie, Grand Trunk, Nickel
Plate. and the Wabash. will each re-
ceive one-Sixth of the business and the
other three differential roads, the Bal
timore and Ohio, Michigan Central,
and the Pennsylvania Panhandle
route. will divide the other two-sixths.
Passengers who express no prefer
ence as to the road over which they
travel, and it is stated that most of
the emigrants are willing to be guided
by the agent will thus be routed so as
to give each road it's share of business.
Attorneys for the roads and the
steamships are now going over the
plan to remove any rough corners"
before it is submitted to the interstate
commerce commission. One or two of
the roads have declared the plan to be
Illegal. but it is believed by the ma
jority that as the commission already
has assented to a similar arrangement
on the west bound business 1t will
give it's approval in order to remove
the effects of what is termed demon
alizing competition between the roads
for the traffic controlled by foreign
born subagents of the steamship COM
panies.
Another feature of the plan is the
payment of 10 per cent commission on
the railroad tickets bought by or for
emigrants in connection with steam
ship companies instead of to the agent
as formerly. This practice of paying
commissions direct to the agents has
in the past sometimes led almost to
state of chaos, according to passenger
officials, because the agent who had
rounded up a group of his own country
men desiring to return to Europe was
in a position to swing the business to
the road offering him the largest com
mission. An order of the interstate
commerce commission declaring it il
legal to return any part of the commits
sion to the passenger removed some
but not all of the evil features of the
practice.
According to the plan now being
formulated, the agent of the steamship
company will in many cases have an
office in the railroad ticket office or
will also be an employe of the railroad
and sell a combination railroad and
steamship ticket. If the management
of the steamship company desires to
return any of the commission to the
agent it may do so without affecting
the routing of the traffic.
Another feature of the plan is to
make the railroad proportion of the
through rate 81 lower than the regular
domestic rate. Whether this will be
done by lowering the present second
class rate from Chicago to New York
from SIG to SIS or whether the regular
rate is to be raised to ST. and the SIS
rate made the rate on. steamship bust
ness has not vet been decided.
The plan has received the considera-
ton of the executive officials of the
roads and has been thrashed out be-
fore the traffic officials and the attor-
neys. 1t is now confidently stated that
it will be finally adopted, although
some of the details may have to be
changed