Weekly journal-miner., 1909-05-19
RAILROAD RATES TO
 UNDERGO BIG CHANGE
CFrom Sundays Daiiyy

ries and middle west distibuting points, | and that very soon. The Times pub fishes the following special dispatch from its correspondent in the issue of May l3:
 ''The most radical change in the history of western railroads in the method of rate-making will soon be made, if plan prepared by the trans continental railroads should be ap- proved by the Interstae Commerce commission.
 "A committee of traffic executive | officials of western roads is in Wash | ington, and will appear before the com mission tomorrow and present to that body comprehensive plan for reduc i tion in rates from the middle west to the interior Pacific coast points in line with the decison of the commission in the Spokane rate case.
 "The committee is headed by J. C. l Stubbs, traffic director for the Harri- 1 man lines, and the proposed reductions from 95 to 50 per cent. This plan was worked out by the Hill and Hartman lines, and approved by the other rail roads which are interested in less degree than these roads. If the plan goes through, it will be q severe blow to the Pacific coast cities, will increase the business of the middle west in the intermediate points, and will result in building up iobbing centers at Salt Lake, Denver, Reno and other inland points.
 ct is understood that the schedule of rates in some respects, goes even further than the commission went in the Spokane rate decision, for it is the purpose to accord to the inland points the rates which apply to the Pacific coast on all the commodities on which there is not a severe competition by the water routes from the seaboard.
 "The Pacific coast cities have been able, by reason of water competition, to do a big jobbing business far into the interior, and the new adjustment, while it does not deprive them alto gether of the benefits they had derived from water competition, will greatly restrict their jobbing territory.'
 The meaning of the above, if a few words of the report be reliable, is that the rates from the east to Phoenix, for illustration, will be as they are at present, with a considerable modified ton of the rate from the coast back to Phoenix, which is now added to the rate from the east to the coast. to make the Phoenix rate. It is this rate that the inland coast cities have been rebclling against for years, from Spo- kane to Tucson. and while the inius- tice of it, from one viewpoint, has been admitted. for various other reasons the railroads have been able to make strong defense of the practice, chief
 ly in support of the codst jobbing cen ters which they have built up.
 It is construed by many observing people that, while the move above an nounced may not he immediately made, the railroads are directing their ener- gies to that end as rapidly as possible, and not for any philanthropic reason, but merely as a matter of business. They foresee that on the completion of the Panama canal, their water cOmpe- tition will be greatly increased and on many commodities the railroads will be unable to compete. That would mean sudden and a heavy decline in their business with the coast jobbers, who, naturally, will patronize the steam ships. if the rates are better. The rail roads, therefore. desire to foster and develop as much as possible in the in terim between now and the completion of the canal, the jobbing business of inc interior trade centers like Tucson,
 Phoenix. Prescott. Reno, Salt Lake,
 Denver. Spokane, etc. This can only ne uoHt bN HliNAHS ld'Se 'iiH' "I4- f'N
 them on a parity with coast jobbers.
 The coast jobbers naturally will de
 plore this move as much as the inland
 centers will appreciate it, and even now
 are uniting all their strength in trying
 to defeat the Spokane eases. They
 desire to postpone any action of this
 kind just as long as they can, if pos
 sibIe. until the completion of the canal, when they will again have rate ad-
 vantage. But the railroads having pro- teeted their coast trade all these years,
 now find a personal interest in policy that will make less disastrous to them ] the blow that must follow the finishing of the canal. The railroads do not pro- pose to go out of business, and would like to favor their old friends, the I. .ooos4 ioLknrS l11t they must protect