The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-05-25

yOilu tile law III dllOWlIlS IIle
 railroads to assign cars?"
 Coal operators along the Southern
 railway in Alabama and those of other
 states, who likewise complain of dis
 crimination in favor of .collieries pro-
 ducing fuel for the railroads. will
 thrash this out at the annual meeting
 of the National Coal Operators Asso-
 cIation that will hold it's annual ses-
 sion in Atlantic City Tuesday, Wednes-
 day and Thursday of this week.
 Among those in attendance is A. w.
 Vogtle, traffic manager of the Corona
 Coal Company.
 Forney Johnston of Birmingham. le-
 gal representative of the complaining
 c"a; operators, is also present and will
 rrobably carry the plea that the oper-
 ators enter before the interstate com
 merce commission. This plea is that
 tbe act returning the railroads to pri-
 vate owners specifically provides
 against assigning" cars. but, on the
 contrary, specically provides for equal
 car distribution.
 Statement of the position of the coal
 operators along the Southern has been
 prepared by traffic manager Vogtle.
 In this paper he alleges a net total of
 work at all the mines of the company from April 22 to May 15 of only AS per cent, the 52 per cent deficiency being caused, 1t is alleged, by failure of the
 Southern to supply cars, while the fuel mines of the Southern were enabled, by an adequate supply of cars, to keep in continuous operation.
 The discriminat tion is also exercised it is charged, to force down prices charged for coal by holding forth the inducement of full car supply if mines form contracts agreeable to the railroads.
 MT. Vogtle's statement, which will be read before the national organization, will present in detail the state of oper- atons at the Corona mines incident to this alleged discrimination. For instance, between April 22 and May 15, there were no cars at Mine No 10 on five days, none at Mine No. Il on nine days, none at Mine No. 12 on nine days, and none at Mine No 6 on six days.
 MT. Vogtle's statement reads: HISTORY OF CASE There Is no improvement in the coal ear situation the Southern railway. Our Corona division mines. on account of car shortage,
 have been able to operate but 4s% per cent In the period from Aprti 22 (the effective date of the "as- signed" car order) to May 13, in cIusfve).
 The injunction secured by this com pany on April 2, which required the Southern railway to divide coal cars m an equal basis, without preference to its coal mining subsidiary. the Rail- way Fuel Company. or other mines loading railway fuel coal, was with drawn on April with the understand ing that the equal distribution required by the injunction would be continued voluntarily by the Southern railway ex- actly as if the injunction were in force; and further, that if, at future date,
 any change should be decided in this policy by the Southern railway, we would be given advance notice so that we could again sue out an injunction and be restored to the same status we occupied prior to the withdrawal of the lirJunctions.
 On April Is. the interstate commerce commission. on the application of the Ar erican Railroad Association, which represents the railroads of the country
 declared an emergency to exist in the coal car supply and authorized the car riers to use the "assigned" car basis for securing railroad fuel coal where necessary.