The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1917-02-16
THE CAR SHORTAGE

The railroad companies have been
taking a census of the car shortage
and it reveals some very interesting
facts. Some of the railroad COM
panies have been working faithfully
to reduce the percentage of idle cars,
while others have not pushed the
matter very much. 1t has been found
that freight cars spend as much time
loading and unloading as they do in
carrying freight. 1t is estimated that
if all shippers would load and unload
cars as quickly as possible the effec-
tveness of freight cars in transport
ing goods would be almost doubled.
When the European war opened
there were in the United States vast
numbers of idle freight cars. The
effect of the war has been to put all
of these cars into use and to make
a demand for a far greater number
than there are in existence. The rail-
road companies have been buying all
the cars they could get and have
orders placed ahead for large num-
bers of them, which the manufactur-
ers are unable to deliver as soon as
they are wanted.
The railroad companies are not to
blame for the great shortage more
than the people. 1t is believed that
had there been no war in Europe
there would have been no car famine
The increased volume of business has
filled all the warehouses, elevators
and yards of every kind and the aver
age business man handling large
quantities Of goods by rail finds it
impossible to unload his cars prompt
,ly when they arrive, owing to lack Of
warehouse room. He is forced to use
the freight car for temporary stor-
age facilities and to pay the demur-
rage or rental of the car standing on
the tracks. Warehouses cannot be
built in day any more than freight
cars and terminal facilities can be
built by the railroads and everybody
has contributed in some degree to
the car famine.
One of the means by which the
railroad companies have increased
the effectiveness of the freight cars
in carrying capacity has been by in
creasing the demurrage charges to
force shippers to load and unload
cars quickly to avoid the rental on
the cars. Those roads that permit
a low rate of demurrage find a great
number of their cars being used for
storage purposes when they should
be earning many times as much car
rying goods
The Coal Famine
An inquiry into the causes of the
coal famine in the nter-mountain
country was completed at Salt Lake
City last week and the blame was
laid at the doors of the railroads, the
coal dealers, the public and the
weather clerk. The mines were prac-
tically exonorated in the matter. The
dealers did not lay in a large enough
supply. the railroads did not move
the shipments fast enough, the pub
lie did not store coal as they should
and when the shortage came those
who had storage facilities and money
with which to pay became. greedy
and bought in considerable Quanti-
ties. That made 1t harder for their
poorer neighbors to get any at all.
The extremely cold weather and the
heavy snow fall served to retard the
of coal and the long con-
tinued cold weather called for in
creased consumption. The findings
IF the commission were that these
Jour lements-the railroads, the |
lealers, the public and the weather.
ire the greatest contributing causes
If the coal famine.
The losses occasioned by the famine
appear in several forms. The coal
hat could have been stored last sum-
ner at IS or Sc ton was sold dur
ng the famine at So or SO a ton,
md to this was added the expense of
delivering it in small quantities at
! higher rate for delivery charges.
n great numbers of homes the loss
rom frozen water pipes and the re-
ultant damages from water flowing
n the houses, damaged furniture and
arpets, ETC., makes a greater loss
han either Of the causes already
In many cases the schools
7ere closed or seriously interrupted
nd the losses from ill health and
rom freezing various things in the
ONES and offices adds considerable
0 the total. In Pocatello the city
let with heavy losses following the
reezing of pipes in the buildings
here there were no fires, water was
onfined in the pipes without NOV
lg and the mains frozn and hurst