The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-04-11
ORDERS PULLMAN RATES CUT
TPPER BERTHs Ia ne ABOI =
81 PER CENT. CHElPER.
IRieSrtaGe Sn,nsrce SsamIaaIeA Decides
mat tire Company Do Slahlas Tee
Much PrSnt CSmpaay Pretty sure
10 Pight tue caae IN the GsaFis.


MAsHINGToS. April 10 After an In.
quiry extending Tor more than n year
the Interstate Commerce Commission
has reached the cOnclusion by q Divided
vote that Pullman car rates are TOO high
and has ordered the Pullman Company
and the Great Northern Railway Com
panv. which Operates it's own sleeping
cars. "a reduce the rates from Chicago
TO ~. Paul and 81. Paul To Seattle and
other Western points On upper berths
the commission orders a reduction ~
approximately rs per cent
This 10 considered one of the mos'
important decisions ever handed down
by the commission. and Will" II vas
reS ched on a specific complaint Nv 0eOrge
= LOTUS. a commission merchant Of
S,. Paul. against the Pullman Company.
and hTee other carriers. the inquiry
was undertaken with the idea " looking
into the entire Pullman cur rate situation.
Tho commission gathered comprehensive
statistics with reference to the earnings
and Capitalization Of the Pullman Com
uany, and ns decision in this case will
stand precedent in other prOoeedings
The decision OG tho commission means.
80 u ~ said. that the Pullman Company
will either voluntarily rsaiuc. it, rates
throughout the United states "r hGh,
the dcci-ion in the courts u IL expected
/ ,h.s n. ,sosnnanv vaM aIlnf,N The lattaF
course For long time after the enact
men' or the Hepburn Ac' the Pullman
COMPANY IN the case Of several minor
complaints denied the jurisdiction % the
commission. and Il 10 probable that th.
company before the last day of June
when the decision becomes effective will
take the matter into the courts
II the company. however decides Ia
appeal TO the courts on . question q
Jurisdiction an interesting situation will
- presented The Great Northern Rail
wsv COMPANY included in the pr~-en,
order Of the commission. operates -
own sleeping cars. and there il no doubt
81 its being subject 90 the Jurisdiction
Of the commission The New York. New
Haven and Hartford Railroad Company
also operates sleeping cars between New
York aud Boston. and the Chicago.
| Milwaukee and ~ Paul 10 another road
that owns it. own sls~p'Og cars IL ~
therefore the opinion % officials here
that the Pullman Company will ind IL
difiicult 10 maintain . dght IN the eouEts-
~ IN pointed Osrt that the New York. New
Haven and Hartford Railroad COMPANY
nov charges only 81 "a Tor an upper b~rth
from New York to Boston. a. compared
| With 81 for lower
Ia the event that the Pullman Company
does not take the matter into the courts
IL ~ believed here that IL will make the
reductions general on all lines 80 ~ TAI
AVOID defending the many complaints
that would bs fled AMI which would
undoubtedly II. sustained by Nh" q I'm
MISSION
The opinion 81 the comm 'ss,on vas
written by Comm lssion~r Lane. and
neither the opinion nor the report die
CLOSED the exhaustive character ~ the
Investigation made Nv the commission.
but ~. record shows thai the Pullman
COmIany's operating contracts. its
general system 81 chaTgc-. Its expenses
% maintenance and operation. it, gross
I and net s-arnin - were sIh sA~ts.,t 70 care
fu inquiry The attorneys for the Pull
risan Company arglcl that while the
company's profits had hesn very large
: ia the early days Of its existence the
period % hlg profits was gone and that
pr-ssnt returns upon it, invest n'"nts are
/ no more than reasonable
! This lei the commission 10 make
careful examination INTO tho financial
condition 81 the Pullman Company Ia
response 20 the commissions demand the
| Pullman Company submitted a table
showing i's annual dividends for the last
I ten wears This table shows that in 1889
the dividends were o. Tee $50 that they
Increased IN ISs' TO $3.50 20 end re-
mainet AZ abou' that amuunt until 1874
Ia 1910 the dividends were 81 go SIS and
IN Ies 81 90 SSs The total dividends
I PAID ia the ten years was $50 0s4.22A
This annual dividend sore per
cent on the capital stock does not
-ayr the r"nu,is-i,In. -r~prs-ent bv any
means the annual net profits 10 the Pull
man Company The Company'- annual
-iarement- 10 stock holders for the wears
Isss 20 1913 inclusive which were flied
J IN the record show that 'hs amount car
RED annually 20 surplus does not fall far
/ short ~ the annual dividends. and ~
! frequent intervals this accumulated sur
plus has been dist rihuts.I mOng the stock
! holders m The shape of y spes1a' cash or
stock dividend
-For instance ~ 1860 n special cash
dividend ~ 20 per cent ~ ~ 'sOI vas
declared os.t oG the accumulated surplus.
in 1893 a special ssock divId~Dd OF 50 per
cent: tsIs go O0OI vas declared. IN 1901
a special stock dividend Of "a per cent
's76 OiS ,ss VAS declar~d. II thus sp-
pssr- that during 'he~" eleven years som"