El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-05-29

There is no Jim Crow law 70 separate
the whites from the blacks in the Pan
anna trains but the same result is
achieved by the division Of the pas
senger fares into first and second class.
The second class coaches have longi-
tudinal seats instead of the ordinary
cross seats, and the negroes pack into
them like sardines in a box. The
cheaper fare enables them to indulge
their remarkable propensity for rail-
way travel as, a recreation
Negroes Travel Much
The negroes of the canal zone, and
Of the two large cities Of Panama and
Colon in the neighboring republic, are
the most enthusiastic travellers in the
world They ride on the trains until
their money gives out, and then they
go to work to save up enough for an
other season Of trans-isthmian jour
neys. Immediately after pay day the
Panama passenger trains are the long
est to be found anywhere.
The first class fare across the 18TH
mus is $40 or nearly cents mile,
which is about twice as high as the
ordinary passenger rate in the United
States, but which is less than half OF
the fare charged by the same railroad
before the American government took
S12O. The baggage regulations are not
as liberal as in the United States 1t
may be mentioned, parenthetically. that
with the exception of few English
railways the American roads are more
generous in this respect than any 9TH
ers in the world. Two Missourians at
Colon, with their wives, planned to
make a social visit to the Tivoli hotel
on the Pacific end. Although they
had ample wardrobes they gave up all
hope of sartorial conquests when they
found that the tickets for. themselves
would cost only $3.50 for the four. but
| that their trunks and hat boxes would
cost $24 excess baggage They went
without luggage.
Moves Heavy Tonnage
The activities OF the Panama rail-
road are by no means confined to pas
senger traffic. 1t moves more than
10000 900 tons Of commercial freight an
nually, not to mention the 100000
tons Of freight hauled on account OF
the canal construction work That
the trans-isthmian trade between the
Atlantic and Pacific coasts OF the
United States is already increasing is
proved by the fact that additional ter
minal facilities have been made nee
essary at both ends Of the railway.
On account Of the activity Of the
transcontinental railways and Of the
Tehuantepec railroad, the freight traf-
fic by way OF Panama reached such a
low stage IN 1908 that extraordinary
measures were taken to revive it. The
through rate from coast to coast by
way Of Panama was fixed at IS a net
ton eastbound and SO net ton west
bound, the steamship company plying
between Pacific ports and Panama to
get half and the Panama railroad to
get half, the steamship company to
pay so cents a ton wharfage and 10
cents a ton cranage, when cranes were
used. in addition This contract con-
tinued for almost a year, when the
steamship company served notice that
it could no longer do business on that
: basis.
Thereupon the secretary Of war
agreed to take 80 percent OF the
through rate, leaving 20 percent to
the steamship company, the Panama
railroad 10 bear all cost of wharfage
and cranage- In other words. the
! steamship company got 20 cents OF
each dollar of the through freight, net,
for loading the freight at the Pacific
port, carrying it to the isthmus and
unloading 1t on the wharf at Balboa;
while the government line received 80
cents of each dollar OF freight paid
for loading the freight on the cars al
Balboa. hauling it across the isthmus,