The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-01-23
LUPTON'S LOGIC IS
FULL OF FLAWS
Railroad Freight Official Fails to
Give Good Reason for
Switching Tolls

In an effort to convince Interstate
Commerce Commissioner Lane that the
$3.50 per car shipping rate charged by
the railroads on San Francisco freight
over and above that to other Pacific
coast points was warranted by reason
OF the increased cost of delivery here,
G. W Lupton, local Santa Fe freight
agent, who occupied the stand part of
the morning and the entire afternoon
session yesterday, went into exhaustive
detail as TO the cost of operating the
switch engines on this side of the
bay. Although splendid witness for
the railroad company, having a mar
velous memory for detail and having
prepared an apparently and dovetailed
and plausible schedule of operating
costs, Attorney Seth Mann for the
shippers found flaws in the railroad
reasoning as expounded by Lupton.
The witness detailed the operations
Of the cars after being brought over
from Point Richmond on the car barges,
and read his prepared estimate of cost
Of every detail from the wages of engi-
neers to the cost of Illuminating oil,
sand for the track. depreciation and in
terest on rolling stock.
CHARGES ARBITRARY
Attorney Mann questioned the esti-
mate of Lupton, and the commissioners
believed that many of the charges were
arbitrary and represented simply the
opinion of the witness. The railroad
attorneys insisted that the expert wit
ness testimony was based on actual
knowledge
Attorney Mann found that many Of
the figures used by Lupton in his es-
- ol,< he fif1O O.
and other departments, and that items
charged to cost of operating were in
many instances the result OF the COM
pany's anxiety to please a particular
shipper who had an industrial track.
Baker & Hamilton was one Of these
firms who. because Of insistence on
rush delivery" caused extra expense
to the road, which was afterward
charged to the smaller shippers who
were obliged 10 use the team track.
Mann said that in figuring the cost
of operating. Baker & Hamilton's in
sistence" had not been taken into con-
sideration. There We're many other
items which the shippers attorney said
should have been segregated.
SOURCE OF FRICTION
A c. Rulofson, president of the Pa
cific Coast 5obbers and manufacturers
association, who was on the stand at
the morning session. 6dlQ NidI the SS-OO
rate was an endless source of friction
in dealing with eastern manufacturers,
and that he never could find out why
the charge was made. The fat rate
quoted in the east to the manufactur-
ers who usually prepaid freight rates
did not include the $3.50 switching rate,
and when this rate was charged here
and the bill sent to the manufacturer
81 took endless correspondence to set
lie the matter AS a consequence, the
I. o. b. quotations on goods to San
francisco were higher than to other
points on the coast, thus reducing the
local jobbers' profits.
GRAY TRANSFER RATE
William Burman, Santa Fe freight
clerk testified that the delivering line
on shipments from the east retained
cents per ton, which was taken
ont Of the rate before the division
among other roads which participated
a. The haul. This was called a bay
transfer rate, and the railroad attor-
neve tried to prove that it was for the
transbav trip, but Attorney Mann
l,ro,faht out the testimony that it was
ESQ charged to Oakland, Los Angeles
and other points were no transbay trip
was made.
Among the witnesses examined were
HAYDEN, industrial agent of the
santa Re; John II. Burnham of the
BELT line and f. w. Hoover of the
Southern Pacific.
The case will be resumed this morn