The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1915-10-01
C.&E.I. BLAMED
FOR COAL RATE
BOOST IN CAPE
Cooperating RaiiroadIncreas-
ed Tariff and Frisco Con-
Cured in New Schedule.
C. L. HARRISON TELLS
HOW TO HALT SCHEME
Asks Rehearing Before Interstate
Commerce Commission. and
Mayor Wires Body.


Preliminary plans were made on the
part of the city yesterday for the fight
against the Frisco's arbrogation of its
contract with the city and the advance
of 10 cent on the coal rate from the
Marion, III. district to the Cape.
Detailed information concerning how
the advance was obtained by the rail-
roads was secured yesterday by c. L.
Harrison, chairman of the Traffic
Committee of the Commercial Club,
and the fight against the rate increase
was outlined by him.
In allowing the advance from go to
IS cents ton on coal from the Illinois
district into the Cape, the Frisco
breaks its contract with the city giving
the road the right to use the city's wa
ter front and streets on the main line.
On getting details of the rate ad-
vance, Mayor Rage wired a second re-
quest to the Interstate Commerce
Commission for rehearing in this
particular case. Pending the receipt of
the commissions reply, arrangements
were made with |. X. Kelso, the attor-
ncy who drew the contract between the
railroad and the city, to present the
city's case to the receivers for the
Frisco.
A conference between kelso and
probably representatives Of business
interests of the Cape with the Frisco
receivers will be arranged as soon as
possible.
The city through its representatives
Will give notice to the Frisco that
nothing can compensate the city for
the loss Of the so cent coal rate.
As part of the contract, it is pro-
vided that if any of the rates fixed in
the contract are altered under author
ity Of law, proper compensation must
be arranged for the city by board of
arbitration.
The city's position is that there is
no compensation possible for this case.
The city wishes to make it imperative
that the so cent coal rate shall be re-
turned.
The history of the rate advance as
outlined by Harrison in brief, is as fol-
lows:
The rate of so cents on coal from
Marion fields to the Cape was fixed
in the contract with the city at a time
when the Frisco and the c. & f. /.
were operated virtually as one road.
1t was possible for the Frisco to fix
the rate at that time.
The coal rate technically is a Joint
rate to be participated in by the c. &
F.. l. and the Frisco. The rate, how
ever, is made by the line on which the
shipment originates. In this particular
case, the c. &. F.. l. published the tar
iff under which the Cape Girardeau
so cent coal rate appeared.
The Frisco filed a concurrence with
the rate published by the c. & F.. I.
In making the physical haul, the
coal is brought by the c. & f. |. down
the eastern side of the river, brought
over the Mississippi at Thebes and
transferred to the Frisco at Chaffee.
There the Frisco takes the car and
hauls it into the Cape.
In reality the part of the work per-
formed by the Frisco is very small, in
the coal traffic.
Subsequent to the time that the
Frisco made its contract with the city
of Cape Girardeau, the Frisco and c.
& f. |. have been separated. A year
ago the C. & F. |. along with several
other Illinois coal roads determined
that the rates were too low.
They made a petition to the Inter
state Commerce Commission for adj
vances through the publication of sup
pIements to the existing tariffs and
the issue of new tariffs.
Several score rates were affected in
these new tariffs published by the coal
roads of Illinois, among them being
the Cape Girardeau rate on coal over
the c. & f. l.
The adjustment of all the coal rates
was brought to hearing in Chicago
last February. The proper notifica
ton of the hearing may have been for
warded to the city officials, but the
of the hearing was not re-
allied by the city officials who may |
have received it.
The city was not on hand with rep |
resentative to present protest to the
advance proposed by the c. & E. |.
The commission took the matter of the |