The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1909-11-12
STEAMER LINE
IS IN TROUBLE
freight Billed IN its Care Handled
by Florida East Coast Railroad
REPLEVIN SUITS BEGUN
Statement of the Unfair Condition That
Has Prevailed for Some Time Is Made
F.. by Attorney for Steamship Line

The report of the probable entry at
Sewall Point of the Cook Steamship
company, ana the building of an cleo
ttic railway south from Fort Pierce, is
not all hot air as some people imagine,
and developments VII shortly begin.
! The determination Of the Cook people
Els demonstrated by the following artI-
Gle from the Miami Metropolis, OF 10Th:
"Replevin suits were begun today by
Attorney Frederic II. Rand, Jr., acting
for the Cook Steamship Company to re"
cover goods from the Florida East Coast
! Railway, consigned To l.. +. Edwards.
1.-The shipment, which is large one,
was routed by the Coos Steamship Com
l'pany, but'reached Miami by way Of the
Florida East Coast railway. having been
diverted by that line at Jacksonville,
"This suit is the first of a series That
will be entered by the steamer company
against the railroad company for the dl
version of freghts consigned to Miami
merchants. The attorney of the steam
/ err line has been authorized to enter suit
in every case of diverted freight with
out cost to The cOnsgnee, and rs fast as
r the goods arrive in Miami they will be
repisviiied and delivered to the consign-
ees without cost to them. An acton of
this kind will force the railroad COM
pany to give up the freight without col
iecting any freight charges ifit is shown
that the shipments were routed by the
Cook line and reached destination by
way of the railroad.
1.-THE Cook Steamship Co. have been
fighting against this unfair condition
since the line was established. The
agent at Jacksonville and the owners
very soon discovered that they were up
against combine between the Florida
East Coast Railway Company and the
/ rail and water connection at Jacksonville
: 1t mattered not if the bill of lading
and the waybill and the goods them
selves showed routing orders to be de-
lvered to the Cook line at Jacksonville
the goods would reach Miami by the
way of the railroad. and the merchants
would paw the freight and take them
out. 1t began to look as If the, steamer
line would be unable to do any business
because of this diversion of freight, but
a decisive course has been outlined and
it is going to be followed to the letter.
"lhe Cook Company has today ISSUED
a public statement of the condition and
they ask only that the business men
give them their moral support. 1t il
plainly a case of stealing the goods at
Jacksonville on the part of the railroad
company for the purpose of forcing its
competitor out of business. 1t IS
matter of great Importance to the PEG.
pie of Miami that they stand behind
| the steamer company IN making TINS
! fight against the railroad. The steam
err company is going to bear all the eX-
pense of it, and all that they want the
people to do is to continue to have their
Shipments plainly routed in the care of
the Cook Steamship Company at Jack
sonville and see if the railroad company
will continue to take possession OF the
goods to which they have no right
attorney Rand stated that he had
made visit to the freight warehouse
of the railroad company and found 1t
filled with goods that were marked To
reach Miami by the Cook Steamer line.
Every single piece of the freight that
is diverted in this manner is going 10
be replevined from this date forward.
if it amounts to one piece or half nun
dred, and just so many suits in replevin
will he entered against the railroad
company. Under such procedure il
will he possible for the Cook company
to force the railroad company to give
the goods up, for they can show n"
right of possession.
'Ihe Cook company urges its patrons
and the public generally to take thu,
course, and it will undertake to deliver
the goods to the rightful consignees,
This is a fight for the establishment sf
competition against burdensome trans,
portation rates to which the people of
Miami and this section have been sub
iected long enough, and everyone, who
can should lend hand to its successful
conclusion.
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