Evening star., 1920-05-20
ACTION TO RELIEVE
/. T|E-UP OF FREIGHT
MAY COME TODAY
|. c. c. Besieged by In
duStries for Aid to Prevent
Closing Down of Plants.
DRASTIC STEPS HELD
AS BEING NECESSARY

AS BEING NECESSARY
Delegations Here, Letters and Tele-
grams Pour In and Conferences
Are Frequent.
Besieged with demands by individ-
ual industries for preferential treat
ment in the allotment of cars to stavc
Off possible closing down of fac
tories through inability to move their
products or receive raw material. the
Interstate Commerce Commission to-
day prepared for final and direct ac-
ton in relieving the freight con-
gestion.
kilograms. letters and delegations
were received. Conferences were held
one after the other. The commission
ers found themselves swamped with
applications for hearings beginning
early this morning and which will
last through late afternoon. 1t was
unofficially stated that an order by
the commission may be expected this
Drastic Steps Held Necessary.
! These demands by industries which
threaten to disrupt the plan adopted by
the railroad managers and the COM
mission of rushing strings of emp
ties toward the congested centers
have gradually increased, until today
it was predicted that drastic steps will
be necessary. These steps. it is stated,
probably will take the form of en-
bargoes. priority shipments Of fuel
| and food, or perhaps a curtailment OF
passenger traffic.
| The situation is not one which can
be remedied Immediately. however,
officials said. The cure will take time.
as is shown by the statement of an
official this morning who spoke OF
| kilograms from mayors of several
cities reporting their local situations.
Labor seems to be the chief difficulty.
This is not due wholly to the strike
Of railroad switchmen. Since the
strike many men have returned to the
railroads employ. then left again TO
seek employment in higher paid in.
duetrieS. There are terminals where
cars are waiting to be unloaded. ready
for immediate use upon their release.
But there is no one to unload them.
The cars remain idle. -
Delegations See Chairman Clark.
1 <AOIAA0T UO1CS8N1Ou ulCuf86As
representing the public utilities Of
that state, conferred with Chairman
Clark of the commission this MORN
ing. They asked immediate attention
to the shipment of fuel for that state.
II these shipments are not rushed
through, it was stated, power plants
| may be forced to close.
Following the Michigan delegation
came one from Ohio. Their COM
plants also were based upon a grow
ing shortage of coal, which threatens
close power plants.
Decrease in Car Building.
An interesting sidelight on the sit
uation today is seen in report is
sued by the Department of Labor
through the bureau of labf statistics.
This report shows that u car build
ing and repair industry Is suffered
the greatest decrease in Employment
| of thirteen industries col .idered dur
ing the month of April The loss is
placed at 5.S per cent. With the ex-
ception OF one other-the tobacco in
| dustry - employment and pay rolls
| showed a marked increase.
The recommendation of the Ameri-
| can Railway Association yesterday
| for the immediate transfer of 10000
box cars from the Atlantic seaboard
/ 10000 coal cars from west to east
was under consideration by the COM
mission today. Marked optimism re-
| garding the situation was shown by
the-railroad officials. They reported
| the conditions compared most favor
ably with those which existed in the
middle of April, although stating at
| the same time it would take some
| time to bring the tangled condition
| back to normal
l .
in all cities to the best of their abil-
| ity in unloading cars, it was said,
and little weight was given to the
theory that large quantities of ma
terial are being deliberately held up
en- route with a view to waiting for
| higher prices.
Complaints ON Car Shortage.
While the railroad executives were
pressing for new cars and locome-
tiyes Senate and House leaders decid-
ed definitely against other appropria-
tions to enable the roads to buy addi-
| tional equipment Leaders said Con-
press would content itself at this time
by extending from five to fifteen years
the period in which the roads might
| repay loans made under the trans
portation act.
At the conference called yesterday
by Director Barnes of the grain cor
poration complaints about the car sup
ply in the producing sections
of the middle west was the principal
topic of the discussion. There were
assertions that even when cars were
supplied less than 20 per cent of
them were it for loading" Presi-
dents of several railroads answered
these charges with the statement that
the task of restoring equipment to a
seryiceable basis was one almost be-
yond human comprehension. and that
the rail lines were doing. their utmost
in repairing and making cars ready
to meet the forthcoming heavy grain
movement
Says Reads Cant Furnish Cars.
Mr.. Barnes said that wheat ship
ments after June / should be given
priority, since adequate and imnie-
diate movement of the grain under
Law stable credit for the growers. But
Hale Holden, president of the Bur-
Iinpton and "a member of the execu.
tiyes' committee, said the roads could
not possibly furnish 100 per cent car
supply. because much of the rolling
stock had not been kept in condition
during the war.
Seriousness of the freight situation
was pictured from a new angle in pe-
tition presented to the Interstate Com
merce Commission by the Natienat
Moderation of Construction Industries,
which includes associations of brick.
lumber, cement, glass and heating !,
plant manufacturers. The federation
recited that in normal times its mem
hers furnished one-third of the tom
mage of the railroads and it's finished
products approximate in value nearly
three billion dollars annually.