The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1908-04-02
EXPRESS cos
MUST CUT RATES
ORDER AFFECTING E N
TIRE STATE HANDED
DOWN BY RAILROAD
COMMISSION-GIV-
EN- 80 DAYS TO
COMPLY.

BY a decision OF the Indiana
! Railroad Commission, which was
handed down Monday morning,
the receipts of the express COM
panieS doing an interstate buSl-
ness in Indiana will, in the reduC-
ton of express rates and charges,
be reduced by from 10 to II per
cent. aggregating total OF SlO0-
600 in the annual income of all
the companies in the state. The
express companies are given thif-
ty days in which to put the order
of the commission into effect, and
litigation in the courts may follow
in the event they see loophole
through which they can escape
the reduction.
The ruling of the commission Is
one of the most important, the
members say, that has ever been
handed down, involving, as 1t
does, every company doing bust
ness in Indiana. What action will
be taken as to putting the rule
into effect was not learned in In
dianapolis. as none OF the COM
panies has department in that
city that would have jurisdiction
in settling such matters. Tho
question will have to be taken up
! in the legal department, and there
are no legal representatives of
any company in that city.
The ruling of the commission is
the result of an investigation that
was started early last fall, when
an inquisition into the affairs and
the rates exacted by the express
companies in Indiana was begun.
The question of unfair and ex-
-essive rates arose when COM
plants reached the railroad COM
mission that there was consider
able excess charged by the ex-
press companies as compared
with the straight freight rates of
the railroad companies, and that
there was a discrimination against
some cities as compared with 9TH
ers. Hearing evidence OF various
officials followed, and this con-
sumed over thirteen hundred
pages of typewriter matter. 1t
was upon this testimony and in
vestigation that was made by
commissioner William ]. Wood
into the affairs of the companies
that the decision was based upon.
Mr.. Wood does not mince
words in submitting his decision
and in writing the opinion of the
commission he refers several
times to the unfairness of rates
THAT the companies exact. A
table which Mr.. Wood has COM
piled shows that the express rate
from indianapolis to Greenfield
per 100 pounds is 40 cents, while
first class freight rate, figures
compiled from the Big Four rates
is but rs cents. The rates to 9th
er points in Indiana are proper
tionately large by the express
route, as compared with that of
the railroad companies. according
to the commission. The rate to
Lebanon. per 100 pounds by the
express companies route, is 40
cents. while the railroad rate is
but ~ cents for the same size
package.
Mr.. Wood sets forth that as the
volume of business done by the
railroad companies throughout
the country has increased the rate
has always been reduced, where
as there has been no reduction in
the rates charged by the express
companies for a period of thirty
years.
The opinion embraces ffty-two
typewriter pages, all of which
was compiled by Commissioner
Wood. The other members, Chas.
V. McAdams and Union B. Hunt,
approved of the opinion in its en-
tirety.