The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-11-30
EXPERT WITNESSES
 GIVE TESTIMONY Rate Increase Hearing Con tinues in Washington ARE DISCUSSED New York City Railroad Man Makes Plea for Advanced Rates and Tells
 of Work in Advocating
 Raise
REBATES ARE DISCUSSED

Washington. November 29.-Five expert
 witnesses for the shippers testified to- day before the interstate commerce com
 mission in investigation of the proposed
 rate increases. Before adjourning until tomorrow the commission announced that
 the arguments of the eastern and the
 western increase cases, consolidated,
 would be heard here on December 9.
 Todays testimony tended to show that the proposed increases, which the roads sav will involve net additional reve- nue of s97.000,0O0 from New England to the Mississippi river, and north of the Ohio and Potomac rivers, were unjust and unfairly distributed. There was discus sion also of rebates, the high cost of living and other questions
 The only witness who did not agree to the unfairness of the rates was C. (. Mccain of New York city, chairman of the Trunk Line association, who was called to explain pamphlet which he prepared for the railroads as ah argu- ment for the increase.
 E. s. Orr of St. Louis testified that rebates were general in St Louis on the first three classes of freight in the old days-frequently amounting 10 8 or 40 per cent of the standard rates. D. o. Ives of Boston, representing shipping interests in New England. New York, Pennsyl- vania. New Jersey, Maryland and Vir- ginia declared that the rebate had been abolished effectually, but agreed yhat when the practice existed the rebates reached 8 or 4o per cent.
 The preferences that exist today are in the tariffs themselves?" asked Chair man Knapp
 Absolutely, replied the witness.
 And the instances of secret depar- lures from the published tariffs are in- frequent?'
 More than that they are accidental" replied MT. Ives. He declared that there should be no general change in class rates until the classification bad been thoroughly revised; that change in classification is the only just and feasible method of raising rates and that the three classifications in use in this country with overlapping jur- isdietions produce confusion.
 Contending that il was unjust to at tempt a blanket advance in class rates from the seaboard 10 western terri tory, he maintained that 20 per cent advance from Chicago to Illinois and Wisconsin and west of the Mississippi would not equslize a 20 per cent ad vance from the eastern seaboard to Illinois under present conditions.
 Charles c. Mccain of New York city, chairman of the Trunk Line associa- ton, was examined regarding the pub lication by the association of a pamph- let entitled. "The Diminishing Power of Railroad Earning"
 He said he had distributed 23,509 copies of this book at cost of sS003 | The purpose of the pamphlet, he said
 was to assert a need for readjust- rnent and increase of rates. It de clared that there had been since 1897 a great reduction in railway freight rates which has gone so far as to en- level of railway wages and to threaten the stability of the whole railway in- dustry and all allied industries F. F. Williamson of Cincinnati, freight commissioner for the conner cial organiza tion of that city, was re- called and examined regarding the fig ures he had studied and analysed con corning the Erie and other railroads. He had severely criticized the Erie for over pitaliza tion and the examination by counsel for the road was to bring out that the situa tion on the road wa $ far different from that in the years past, which the witness had dwelt upon. He said the Erie was handica pped with a fixed charge per mile of s45.- | 900 more than the Baltimore and Ohio ] and the latter had a surplus from the present level of rates