Imperial Valley press., 1911-12-14
Freight Service Question

wouldn't buy any more, no matIEr H.
the rates should be reduced
Freight Service Question
Taking up the question of friegiaI.
service, Mr.. Edgar said he would aoG
guarantee to deliver freight to a CHS
toner in Imperial in less than a week
from the time it is ordered frorE Los
Angeles, and the average time alS-
freight from Los Angeles to Imperial
is five days.
The high freight rates, said Mr- Ed
gar tends to keep settlers away from
the valley When they come to Im-
perial they think merchants are cbarg-
ing them excessive prices, when in re-.
ality the merchants ask only Los An
geles prices plus the freight rate tn
the valley.
Taking up the item of fence WIFE
on cross examination, Mr.. Edgar said
he bought it in carload quantities from
Pittsburg and Peoria, and the rate is
$159 a hundred pounds. This rate is
made up of the rate through to Los Ars-
geles from Pittsburg, 80 cents yanxs;
the local rate back, 50 cents
The Southern Pacific called atten-
ton to the fact that the wire rate is
on interstate traffic, but the commits
sion tok cognizance of the fact that the
local state rate from Los Angeles to
Imperial is one of the elements in thai
rate. Consequently reduction OF the
state rate would also bring about a
reduction in the rate from the east
Allison Peck, manager of a dairy at
Imperial and of the Delta Creamery
Company, a cooperative association,
told the facts as to shipping butter
out of the Imperial Valley.
There is refrigerator car service
given by the Southern Pacific three
times week from the valley to a4ns
Angeles, and the shipments of butter
are limited to those. In the month OF
November the various creameries
shipped out O9,999 pounds of butter
in 13 shipments, paying rate OF sl-az
per 100 pounds, and that the same cars
also carried 1888 pounds of meat =,
Must Compete With Others \
This butter, said the witness, is sold
in Los Angeles in competition with
butter from the San Joaquin Valley.
Hanford, Tulare, Fresno and other
points-approximatel the same dis
tance. Yet the San Joaquin butter Is.
shipped in by express for s1.47 for n
case of 1856 pounds.
Mr.. Edgar pointed out that the I'M
perial Valley is charged $1.SS for the
same weight by freight as is hanIed
in from the San Joaquin Valley by ex.
press for $1.47.
Besides that the express company
delivers the butter free to the con-
signee, while the consignee of lmper-
ial Valley butter must bear the sx-
pense of delivery from the freight ae.-
pot
Chairman Eshleman interrupted the
testimony to say that the methods by
which the commission reaches its con-
clusions are being carefully scrutinized
these days, and it will not consider
questions of market competition
Fred P. Gregson, traffic manager for
the Associated Jobbers of Los Angeles,
introduced tables of comparisons OF
rates to show that the Imperial Yal
ley rates are excessive. One of these.
comparisons was the rate from Sac
ramento to Huxley, New, 226 miles
which is practically the same distance
as from Los Angeles to Calexico Yet
the average of the less than carload
eclass rates from Sacramen to Huxley
is 67% cents. compared with $l.05h
from Los Angeles to Calexico, and the
former is over the Sierras and through
80 miles of expensive snowsheds