Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1913-03-19
NOTABLE VICTORY
FOR THE. |; J ] |: /:
Upsetting Of Western Classical
ton 81 Means Much.
RAILROADS LOSE BIG CASE
Chairman Thorne Of Iowa comml.s'
sion Tells How the Shippers and r
! Consumers Of the West Hene-
s3SsS fit by the Decision. n 81

DeS MO1neS, Ia, March 13.-lne peO-
pie of the United States have had
Iowa to thank for a. number OF ex'
,cellent things, and to the list must
be now added an achievement thar
means a great deal to the shippers Of
the entire west from the Mississippi
to the Pacific. Especially are those
shippers under obligations to the Iowa
state board of railroad commissioners
and its chairman. Clifford ,Thorne.
M This achievement Is the. suspension
and revision. by the interstate COM
merce commission, OF an entire freight
classification, known as Western clas-
siflcation No. 81, and on March 81 the
several hundred changes made to con-
form to the commissions order Will
go into effect. Shippers and consum-
ers alike will benefit by the revision.
Iowa Leads the Fight.
Iowa's commission was by no means
alone In the good work. but 1t took
tho initiative in the case and assumed
the chief part of the burden Of pre-
pairing and trying 1t. Sixteen western
state railroad commissions united IN
the fight. and Mr.. Thorne was the
chairman OF the committee represent
ing them. He gives much credit to
BENJAMIN L. Jacobson, who had gen
eral charge Of gathering the evidence
and preparing the specific cases for
trial, and to A. d. Beals, Iowa's rate
expert. Ut
Mr.. Thorne today had this to say OF
the big case and its outcome:
zone day during the summer of 1911
I was seated in hotel parlor in Mil
waukee. In one end OF the room there
were sixteen men in their shirtsleeves,
talking and listening occasionally to
person standing In the center Of the
room; two or three minutes were al,
lowed to the gentleman talking; he
took his seat and another person told
a short story; and 80 on, during the
course OF the whole day. Il ..;..
Powerful Group Of Men.
'''This small group Of men exercised
more power than any other similar
group, perhaps, in the United States.
Some nine hundred railroads. large
and small, interested In traf1c be-
tween the Mississippi river and the Pa
cific coast, have organized what they
call q western classification commit
tee Of about eighty-five members.
These eighty-f1ve men have selected a
subcommittee Of sixteen men. This
subcommittee. which is dominated by
one or two individuals, determines the
freight ratings on over 1000 articles,
lSn,,}33~,h;ot, oE mn nnn vaoplo have to
pay traffic between about 10000
towns, located between the Mississip.
pi river and the Pacific coast. This
| II one OF the three important classic.
cation committees in America, the
other two being the official. covering
the northeastern potion OF the Unit
ed States, and the Southern. Il
| For the first time in the history Of
| American railroads an entire classid
cation OF one of these three great
freight classification committees has
been suspended by the federal govern.
ment. And the committee have de.
scribed has been making revision oil
its former work, in accordance with
the decision which was rendered by
the interstate commerce commission
recently, known as the decision in the
case of Western classification No. 81.
The railroads have Just submitted to
the commission q list OF several hun.
bred changes in this classification ia
conform to the commissions order, and
these win 60 into effect March 81
The opinion In this case, next to the
| one rendered in the express case "A
perhaps the longest ever written by
the interstate commerce commission
The case Is Of national importance
Many Of its features are unique, and
of profound concern to the consumers
Of the country.
sixteen States United.
Many shippers and shippers or