The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1921-11-08
PLAN TO ALTER WHOLE
. STATES FREIGHT RATES
MILEAGE BASIS" SCALE IN
STEAD OF BASIC POINT"
SCHEDULES PROPOSED.
BEFORE THE RAIL COMMISSION
Would Mean Increased Rates for the
Larger Cities and Reduced Tariffs
For the Small intermediate Points.
Shippers Make Vigorous Protest.

Shippers Make Vigorous Protest.
ATLANTA, Ga.-Georgia intrastate
freight rates will be construed hereaf-
ter on the mileage system instead OF
the basing point system, if the railroad
commission approves the scale sub
mitted by the carriers and opened for
hearing.
All freight rates have heretofore
been constructed on the basing point
system. That is to say, a rate would
be made from the middle west to Gin
cinnati or some other Ohio river cross
ing, and rate would be made from
Ohio river crossings to Atlanta Ma
con, Savannah Augusta and other large
distributing centers in Georgia. All re-
lated rates would be controlled by the
measure of these basing point rates.
Cities have had rates made according
to their commercial importance, the
theory being that the larger their trait
fic the lower their rates to which they
are entitled Water competition, both
actual and potential, has also been d
factor. A rate, for example, from the
middle west to Savannah would be
made to compete with routing Of
the shipment through the Great Lakes
and the canal to New York and thence
to Savannah by boat.
Act Ends Practice.
The transportation act of 1920 pro-
vides that potential water competition
shall not be considered factor in the
making of interstate rates by the in
terstate commerce commission. This
imeans that cities having rates reduced
by the theory of water competition,
rather than by the fact, will not en-
ioy that advantage any longer
Generally speaking, rates to inter
mediate points of minor importance
located between basing points have
been paying higher raasss than the bas-
ing points Thus a. rate from the ONO
river to Atlanta would be lower than
rate from the Ohio river to Carriers
vile. Or rate from the Ohio river to
Macon would be lower than a rate
from the Ohio river to GAINESVILLE.
The discrepancies began to be COM
planned of years ago by intermediate
points, with the results that congress
finally passed an amendment to the
act to regulate commerce, whereby 1t
was provided that the rate from any
given point on given line should not
be higher than the rate from the same
origin to a destination on the same
line farther removed.
Working on Rates.
For the past two or three years the
carriers have been engaged in working
out a revision of freight rates, both
interstate and interstate, on the mile
age scale. The long and short haul
amendment above referred to, as 1t IS
commonly known, virtually amounted
to the abolition OF the baslng point
system of rate construction. 1t meant
that every shipping point would pay a
rate according to its distanceStrom the
origin of its shipments, regardless OF
how much or how little traffic 1t re-
ceived or produced.
This is what the carriers are now
proposing in Georgia. They are pro
posing a mileage scale in place OF the
old basing point scale. 1t will mean
that large centerS OF commerce Will
have their rates raised in many in
stances, while the smaller points hay
ing very little traffic will have their
rates lowered in many instances.
OF course the bulk OF the traffic
moves between the basing points, and
that was why their rates were made
the basis of other rates in the early
stages of freight rate evolution, years
ago. To lose the advantage which they
have always enjoyed will adversely al
feet their interests.
Shippers Oppose Change.
Shippers of all the large centers are
represented before the commission IN
opposition to the scale OF rates propos-
ed by the carriers.