Arizona republican., 1911-02-24
THE |. C. C. DECISION
The Argument That the
Money Was Needed for
the Betterment of Lines
Did Not Appeal to the
Commission.

Washington. D. G, Feb 2S.-Both in
the eastern and western rate cases
The Interstate commerce commission
announced today that the railways
were not entitled to any increase IN
rates. The commission disapproVed
the proposed advances and ordered
the carriers. by March 10, to with
draw the proposed rates, leaving the
old rates i'm effect.
Proposed advances in class freight
rates in official classification terri
tory. aggregating among all the ran
WAYS in the territory approximately
So 100000 a year, were dlsapproVeu
by the commission.
In the case involving the increases
by the railways in western trunk line
territory, the commission also declined
to approve the proposed advances IN
commodity rates.
The carriers in both cases are re-
auired to cancel on, or before March
10. their advanced tariffs and restore
their former rates. which are the
rates now in effect.
II this requirement be not complied
with the commission will issue for
NAL order suspending the proposed
advances and putting into effect the
existing rates for at least two years
In the case of the railOad COM
mission of Texas. against the Atch-
ison. Topeka * Santa Fe railroad ana
other carriers. known popularity as the
southwestern rate case, the commits
sion declined to disturb the commo-
dity rates. or the first class rates
complained of.
The defendants are ordered, how
ever. to reduce the second class rates.
which were increased from Ia TO
%. to 125. In the remaining classes
the defendants are required to restore
the rates i'm effect before the in
creased rates were published
In brief. this is the disposition made
bv the interstate commerce commits
sion of the most important cases ever
brought TO its attention. The decision
surprised railroad officials and other
experts who had followed closely the
proceedings, the majority of whom
believed the commission would grant
some increase TO the western lines II
not to the eastern. The commission
comedies that i'm the cases of some
of the roads an increased revenue is
needed.
In what is known as the eastern
case the commission was embarrassed
by the admitted fact that several OF
the lines in the territory were paying
good dividends upon existing rates.
while other carriers in the same ter
ritory were barely able to make both
ends meta few of them scarcely
that
In the western case the carriers en-
tered a powerful plea for increased
revenue in order that they might have
additional money To put into improve
nents and betterments which would
enable them To handle with greater
facility the constantly increasing traf-
fir of the country.
The same argument was advanced
in support Of the proposed advances
i'm Official classification territory. but
Commissioner Prouty. who wrote the
opinion in an eastern case says:
This argument does not appeal to
ms. We doubt the practical difficulty
suggested that of obtaining by loan
sufficient money to finance the roads
and were it true. it is not apparent
that the general public should stand
responsible for the mistakes which
have been made in financing these
railroad systems"
Both the eastern and western cases
were brought to public attention in
the spring of 1910.
Just prior to the enactment of the
existing interstate commerce law.
which. in part became effective June
IS 1910 the railways OF this official
classification territory-forty-o I'm
all-and those of the western trunk
lines association territory filed with
the interstate commission tariffs max
ing general increases in their freight
rates
The tariffs filed by the eastern
lines increased the first class rate
between New York and Chicago
points fifteen cents a hundred pounds
from - to 80 cents: and made pro-
portionate advances on the other five
classes. Some advances also were
made on commodity rates: but the
great bulk of the commodity tonnage
81 freight was not disturbed. The
proposed advances affected approx
imately the same amount of tonnage
as was affected by the decreases pro-
posed by the western lines. but the
class rates were not affected i'm any
way. Commodities alone were in
creased. the average advance on about
1Sa different articles heing suhstan
TALLY sixteen per cent. the increase
ybrying from about four per cent in