The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-03-07
 DENY SUSPENSION OF RATE ADVANCES Interstate Commerce Com mission Is Obstinate DECISION TO STAND
Railroads Requesting Permission to Suspend Proposed Tariffs Ad-
 vancing Rates Flatly Turned Down

Washington. March 6.--Denia1 of the request of the railways of official class iication territory that they be per
 mitted voluntarily to- suspend proposed advances In class freight rates from
 made by the interstate commerce com
 mission today.
 In the decisions announced in the great rate cases 10 days ago, the com
 mission directed that the proposed tar | ifs advancing rates be annulled on or before March 10. If this decision wers not followed the commission announced
 that on that date it would issue an order cancelling the rates and putting into effect for at least two years the existing rates.
 After conference in New York city last Friday an arrangement was made for conference in this city between
 eastern railroad officials and the mem bers of the commission.
 Participating in the conference today were President W. c. Brown and Gen eral Solicitor Clyde Brown of the New
 York Central President James McCrea and General Counsel F. I. Gowen ot the Pennsylvania President Daniel
 Willard and General Counsel Hugh G.
 Bond of the Baltimore and Ohio; Pres
 ldent Frederick Underwood and General
 Counsel George Brownell of the Erie.
 and Walker D. Hines, representing the
 Delaware. Lackawanna and Western. Railroads Want More Time It was suggested to the commission that the carriers in official classifi-
 cation territory be permitted to sus-
 pend voluntarily the tariffs proposing
 advances from March Is until November
 next in order that they might have
 opportunity to ascertain the general
 results of this fiscal years business.
 Their contention was that this years
 business might show a falling off of the revenues of 1910. which would af- ford them an opportunity again to ask the commission to consider an advance in rates, perhaps some time late next
 autumn. when they would be enabled to
 make better showing in support of the request than they made in the re- cent cases.
 They desired also to ascertain wheth- CT the record made in the recent cases would be available in any future pro- ceedings they might institute Denial of the request for further postponement of the tariffs was made
 in the following letter to President Brown of the New York Central, writ
 ten by Commissioner Prouty on behalf of the commission.
 The committee of which you are
 chairman requests that defendant car
 riers in the eastern rate advance case
 No. S400 be allowed to postpone their
 tariffs of advanced rates until Novem- Der l next instead of cancellng the
 same as now required by the com mission.
 Deny Request
 After considering the questions ad- ducsd in support of this request those members of the commission who are in Washington are unanimously of the opinion that it must be denied and that we. must adhere to the report which clearly states the attitude of this body With respect to the suggestion that
 in any future proceedings the present
 record will not be available if these
 tariffs are cancelled. it is proper to
 observe that this proceeding was in-
 stituted by the commission itself and
 that the record Is entirely subject to
 it's control either with respect to fur
 ther proceedings upon the same record
 or with respect to new proceedings
 involving the same issues" TomorIo ow at the New York Central
 offices in New York a general meet
 ing of eastern railway officials will be held at which the participants in to-
 days conference win make their re- port. It is probable that a decision
 will be reached to cancel the proposed advances In accordance with the di- rcctions of the commission and ins the light of developments let the future take care of itself