Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-04-02

| to sacks out of Houlton because the
rates were so high that he could do it
better with teams
! The rate on potato sacks from Houl-
! ton to New Limerick, six miles, is ii
cents per hundred; from Houlton to
! Mars Hill, % miles, q cents per hun
bred. The rate on the same thing from
| Chicago to Boston is only So cents,
| and that is not less than carload lots.
/ do not assume to say whether that
rate from HoultOn to New Limerick IS
reasonable rate do say that it
seems unreasonable to the people who
have to use ii, and that it is fair for
us. as members Of this Legislature, to
say to them, you shall have 4 proper,
convenient and sufficient means to
have the question Of the reasonable
ness Of that rate determined.
Fertiizer-and that is one of the
most important things to Aroostook
county, because very much of it is used
| in that county, saw a letter froll
another large potato buyer and shipper,
a man interested in agriculture in all
its phases in Aroostook, and he gave
the following charges which seemed to
him unreasonable: Fertilizer carload,
rebilled from Maple Grove TO Fair
| mount, two miles, $500. There the
charge for shipping from one station
to the other. two miles. was $500
Carload reblled from Fort Fairfield
to Caribou. "a miles, $500. That is
"a miles distant. Now, he thinks that
| that rate is unreasonable, and the
average man to whom it is mentioned
may think it is unreasonable. | do not
| know whether it is or not, but Som--
| body ought to have a right to deter
| mine.
Another very important thing in our
| section is the hauling OF straw, and my
| attention was called to it the othcr
day BY an instance which | am going
to read A shipment of straw was
made in less than carload lots from
Ashland to Eagle Lake, less than 30
| miles; the rate of freight was $4.5o
| per ton When you come to consider,
that in Aroostook county the average
| price of straw on board the car is fro"l
S. to Sc per ton. You Will admit th.t,,
! to the average man who ships straw
at the rate. $4 so d ton might We'll seem
unreasonable. This man writes: +
do not want to do anything to injure
the B. & A. Railroad, but | notice that
the proposition is to vote giving US
chance to have these rates determined,
| and it seems to me We ought to nave
that chance"
| am not going to confine what
have to say to Aroostook county. 1
| probably may. in a way. know more
about Aroostools county, but | want to
call attention to an instance in WASH
ington county, taking the case OF the
| rate on sugar The rate on sugar from
| Portland to MachiaS, Washington
county. $50 miles. is 10 cents; from
| Calais do not know just how many
miles it is from there, but | think
| Calais is about "A miles beyond Ma
| chias-from Portland to Calais, it IS
only ] cents: that is the rate Is )
cents less on sugar from Portland 70
| Calais. IA miles further, than it is from
| Portland to Machias. | do not know
what the reason for that is. ! do not
assume to know. do not ask you to
know, but | say to a person who lives
in Machias it seems unreasonable.
The rate from Bangor to Machlas. 80
| miles, is III cents on sugar. The rate
from Bangor to Calais, a. miles fur
| ther is 8 cents-2 cents less.
Now, what is the rate from Bangor
to Calais? / have shown that it is .
cents less from the further point, vary
ing in one instance cents, What Is
the rate from calais to Machias. which
is a. miles different? The rate from
| Calais to Machias is IS cents more
than the rate from Portland to Calais
and more than the rate from Bangor
to Machias, and more than the rate
from Boston to Machas. which is only
| Is cents, and more than any of the
rates that | have named. except that
from Portland to Machias. which is ~
cents. The rate on sugar from Bangor
to Woodland, which is if | am correct
" informed 12 miles beyond Calais. -
| 10 cents q hundred. The rate from
Calais to Woodland, which is that IL
miles on the end of the road, is 10
cents-more than the whole rate from
Bangor to Woodland.
Now these rates do not sound rea-
sonable. | do not know but what they
are reasonable. do not want to deny
the people of Washington county n
reasonable and proper way of finding
out whether those rates are reasonable
or not.
| l WANT To call your ottc0ttDn To an
other class OF rates. | have been
| speaking largely Of local rates. | want
| t. call your attention to Interstate
rates for moment. And ] want To
| say at the outset that at present it
| IS the policy of the railroads in our
| section OF the country to divide their
| rates Tor tn" purpose, as | understand
| 1t. of getting away from the proVi-
! Slons of tn" Interstate COntImerce Act.
| TheS" Interstate rates make u through
! rate from Boston to caribou and a
| rate from Boston tC Northern Maine
| Junction, and another from Boston to
caribou. | think the purpose of di-
! NIdlnS the rate is to keep it from be
| ing under TIE iurisdict ION of the Inter-
! state Commerce Commission. 1t has
| been put mp to me as an argument
| against this bil--that if this bill goes
through. it will be necessary for the
! railroad to change some of these rates
| ana To make through rate unt!er the
| lnterStat" Commerce Commission. I dc
| rot think that is a very good a-gu-
| ment, because they would be better nm
| ger the interstate rates than they are
1 M. nd.