Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-05-14
COMMERCIAL CLUB
FREIGHT BUREAU
Committee Is Meeting This After
noon to Consider Plans
For One.
PLAN TO INCREASE RATES.
It's Discussion In the East Results In
Determination Here 10 In SO
Action against II.

The sentiment that something will
have 20 he done Tor western freight
rates before salt Lake can catch un
to its future as distributing center
FOR great western area. Is taking
definite form today in q new direction.
Beginning as n sentiment among a
Few individual shippers who claimed
jhat others were not with them be-
cause they were favored with special
rates in consideration for failing to
agltate the matter, the movement for
united action in favor of better rates
on Utah freights first conferred on a
fight IN the Legislature for a railroad
commission, thon on a plan to or
ganize freight bureau IN the NJ. and
NJ association, and now it is taking
the form of a freight bureau as a de-
partment of the Commercial club.
This afternoon at the Commercial
club, the clubs committee on freight
and traffic matters is in session for
the purpose of framing up plan to
create a freight bureau as a club de-
partment. The thing has been in
formally discussed for some time and
recently has come TO general notice
on account of the announced intention
OF the railroads in the east and south
TO raise freight rates.
RATES TOO HIGH.
Western rates" declared Chairman
Samuel Weitz of the Commercial club
committee at noon today, are al
ready unjusuy high. ANY raise in
this section will be mot with vigorous
objection and there never was a time
when the people We're so united in
their determination to object. and 50
ner.
I'VE all conoede the right Of the
railroads to make fair profit. We
Will support them in this right, and
Will not oppose them. or try to beat
them down in concessions beyond what
is fair.
But anyone who has tried to do
business in Salt Lake knows that the
city is getting too large to much longer
get along with the rates of the pioneer
days We have to fight Denver. and
Denver so far has the best of us, as
have all the other cities. 1 don't like
90 be cslled upon 70 ship my goods
TO San Francisco from the EAST, and
then right back again TO Salt Lake
In order to get the cheapest rate on
them"
1T isn't pleasant to contemplate Chi
cago merchants shipping goods right
through Salt Lake clear over TO Japan
for a cheaper rate than we can get
them shipped to Salt Lake direct
TO FILE STATEMENTS.
I'm the proposed freight bureau we
will allow every merchant to fle
statement of what he wants, and we
Will be careful to urge demands only
when they seem fair and just TO both
sides Heretofore shippers could not
get together in working on tine freight
problem. But now no railroad dares to
offer a special rate TO any one shipper,
and no shipper would dare to obtain
one, 30 that all the shippers are in a
mood To come together and stay to-
gether for a uniform treatment OF all
OF them, and the best treatment Salt
Lake can get,
once we looked for the Salt Lake
Route TO help us, but 1t did not. Call
iente is today the most remote station
which Salt Lake can reach in compett-
ton TO California shippers. on the
Southern Pacific we cannot reach west
Of Illko. or on the Rio Grande east of
The immediate purpose Of bringing
together the Commercial club commit
tee is to discuss the proposed raise in
freight rates. That SIS meeting will go
further and result in permanent or
on freight matters is the
opinion of many of its members. "I
am sure a freight bureau VIII succeed
declares Chairman Weitz, 'if only we
ran get the right man at Its head-a
man who knows the railroads and the
and who viii be fair in tho
spirit of his work