Arizona republican., 1915-03-31
TH0RNE TELLS
 0F OPPOSITION
Chairman of Iowa Railroad Commission, ill Behalf of Protesting Shippers, Tells Why Freight, Rate h. creases Are Opposed
ASSOCIATED PRESS DISPATCH

i ThOrne, chairman of the Iowa railroad
 commission, in behalf of the protesting l shippers in the western railroad freight | rate hearing outlined before Interstate Commerce Commissioner w. Mh Dan- iels today the opposition of the ship pers to the freigh. rate increases pro- posed by Al western railroad systems The railroads are seeking to have present rates increased on certain commodities, which, they assert, at present do not yield them a fair profit. The total increases. if grant ed, according to the railroads, would i increase their revenue $10,000OOO year.
 The railroads have been presenting their side of the case since March 4. MT. Thorne's statement at the hear
 ing today was the beginning of the | shippers case. He said
 During the past four weeks this commission has heard the testimony offered by the officials of western
 railroads, in favor of an increase in
 their transportation charges, aggre- gatng millions of dollars annually. we VIII HoW plcscIlt tO you tHe evidence in behalf of the producers, shippers and consumers of this west
 ern part of the nation.
 | Our object is not to make a gen. | eral onslaught upon the credit of | these western railroads The result of our efforts will be rather to help establish the soundness and strength of their credit.
 As indicating conditions in the ter ritory involved, only the testimony of
 the presidents of the Chicago Great Western Railroad, the Missouri Pa
 cific Railway and the Missouri, Kan
 sas x Texas Railway was introduced
 Nothing further need be paid. This commission and the public knows whether they represent typical lines
 or weddings This procedure is in
 marked contrast to that pursued by
 the eastern railroads. where the chief
 executives of the representative lines | testified
 We will show you that three l fourths of the traffic in this territory is being handled by companies that
 are earning, above all operating ex- l ptASCS, dii tdAcS dIlu all lHltTeSl OH
 bonds and debt, from six to sixteen per cent on all their capital stock
 outstanding in the hands of the pub lie
 1 Heretofore the railroads have been
 far better equipped than the ship pers in cases involving rates; but in the present case the commissions of sixteen western states, in compliance
 with state laws, have secured the services of an eminent corps of eX-
 pert accountants and statisticians, and
 are looking after the interests of the
 public.
 Joined with the commissions are
 the representatives of upwards of
 100000 manufacturers. merchants,
 grain dealers live stock dealers and other producers and consumers scat tered throughout the territory. Never before has there been such an extensive organization on. behalf of the public in any case. Tn the gathering of this material, every courtesy possible has been ex- tended to us by all the railway com panies, with only one exception. We will demonstrate to you some mistakes in the figures offered by 1 the railroads. We do not call them misrepresentations, for all of us are liable to err at times. Some of these errors are small and of little impor- tance; while others are basic and fundamental.
 Tt is not necessary for us to par ade glaring, sensational incidents of high finance or questionable acts. It is a cold blooded business proposi- tion. The famous Gould printing press scandal, where they made Erie ] stock over night, an incident that will probably be famous for all times, only involving some $23,000,000. "The present movement for in creased freight and passenger rates
 involved several times that sum of
 money. not just at one time. but every year, now and in the future,
 for this and future generations to pay.
 The impression has been given
 that railroads have not been able to
 maintain their properties during re-
 cent years, that they have been com
 pelled to retrench so severely that
 the public has been injured, as well
 as the rsilroad properties This is
 true as to some railroads, but we
 will show you it is absolutely untrue as to western railroads as a whole. As in all business, there are tenn
 porary periods of depression when
 the railroads as whole, including
 both the strong and the weak lines, are comnelled to retrench in their