Los Angeles herald., 1909-05-20
ASSIST
WITH FIGURES IN
RAILWAY CASE
COMPANIES SUBMIT DATA TO
INTERSTATE COMMISSION
MAINTENANCE COST EXPLAINED
FROM DOCUMENTS
Los Angeles Real Estate Dealer Testi-
flies Regarding the Value of Prop
erty Along Lines Now Being
Investigated

The closing chapter of the Interstate
commerce commissions investigation
of the Los Angeles switching case is
now being written into the record by
the hearing which begun yesterday
morning in the state supreme court
before Special Examiner j. d. Leder-
man, representing the commission.
This case, which is viewed as one Of
national Importance, was opened in
the fact that If the commission rules
was here a few months ago The inves-
tigation draws it's national color from
the fact that if the Commission rules
in favor of the ra ilroads they can APP
ply the system to every large city in
the country. AT present only San
Francisco and Los Angeles pay the
switching charges complained of in
the case at bar. Should the railroads
adopt the system in all the other large
cities in the United States the revenue
to the railroads would amount to
$250,000,000 annually. Chicago, Pitts
burg Philadelphia, Cincinnati and the
manufacturing cities of New York
enormous tribute to the railroads.
The complaint made by the Los Ange-
les Associated Jobbers is that they
pay a switching charge of $3.50 per
car where the freight is delivered ON
an industrial track or spur.
Expert Gives Data
The testimony adduced yesterday
was along technical lines, except for
the evidence of a real estate expert
who was introduced by the complain
ants. The Associated Jobbers were
represented by Edward G. Kuster and
Joseph P. Loeb. The railroads were
represented by e. w. Camp for the
Santa Fe, A. S. Halsted for the Salt
Lake and w. H. Durbow for the
Southern Pacific. Seth Mann, counsel
for the San Francisco Jobbers and
Shippers and J. w. Chapman, traffic
manager for the Pacific Hardware
and Steel Co., also were present. F.
p. Gregson, traffic manager for the
Los Angeles Associated Jobbers, was
on hand and advised with counsel fire.
quently.
The trend of the evidence yesterday
was to draw from the railroads re-
sponses to questions propounded by
the compliments attorney in order to
expedite matters and save the time
that would be required in placing wit
nesses, both railroad officials and job
bers, on the stand and getting the
facts in that way. The railroads filed
responses and long statements, some
of them in tabulated form, and they
were incorporated into the record as
evidence. These statements comprise
many typewriter pages. The state
ments submitted by the Southern Pa
cifc were more complete than the
others. Mr.. Camp for the Santa Fe,
answered nearly all the questions
orally.
Realty Along Roads
r. M. Allen of w. H. Allen & Son,
real estate dealer and Lee A. McCon-
nell. real estate dealer, on behalf of
the Associated Jobbers, spent more
than month investigating the value
of real estate along the lines of the
three railroads and in the industrial
district.
Mr.. Allen was placed on the stand
Yesterday afternoon. His report was
offered, but the railroads objected to
it as evidence and thereupon Mr.. Kus-
ter and Mr.. Loeb said they would in
troduce each and every item men
toned in the report by way of inter-
rogatory. After several hours of this
testimony, the railroad attorneys
agreed to allow the report to be filed
in evidence subject to the objection
made.
The testimony of these experts has
a bearing on the cost of maintaining
the service to the railroads, especially
with reference to the difference IN the
cost of team tracks and Industrial
tracks Without the industrial tracks,
il is asserted, the railroads could not
transact the business and make deliv-
ery of freight, and 1T is contended
that to acquire the ground occupied
by the Industrial tracks and make
them team tracks, would cost the rail-
roads an enormous sum OF money.
These matters will be explained by
the real estate experts.
Special Examiner Lederman ad-
iourned the hearing until 10 o'clock
this morning.