Arizona republican., 1921-11-17
SHIPPERS WILL OPEN B|G RATE
 BAT TLE TODAY
Western Representatives At Chicago Ready To Start Fight Against Pro- pose d Discriminatory Rates

CHICAGO, Nov. 16.-Shippers of nine western states united together for self protection under the banner of the Intermediate Rate association and headed by w. s. Mccarthy of Salt Lake tomorrow will begin their fight against the imposition upon them of a transcontinental rate structure they claim would be wholly destructive of their interests.
 Hearings begin tomorrow before Examiner Disque of the Interstate Commerce Commission on the appli- cation of the carriers to reduce from 20 to 50 per cent on scores of impor- tant commodities without making any reduction whatsoever on the rates on the same commodities to Utah, Idaho and the other interme- diate states.
 At conference held this afternoon by the spokesmen for the western interests tentative plans were for mulated for the campaign through out the hearings. MT. Mccarthy, J. A. Ford, secretary of Spokane, and Karl Knox Gartner, attorney for the association, arranged a schedule which calls for the appearance of important witnesses for the west at every one of the 13 hearings.
 CT Paramount importance
 The hearing tomorrow becomes of paramount importance because it is expected that the carriers will pre- sent at least the form of their case l to the examiner. Edward Chambers, vice president in official charge, and members of the standing rate com mittee of the transcontinental freight | bureau, the body making the apph- cation, will be the principal witness es, passing their plea on the conten- | tion that the proposed rates are nec- | essary to meet rates available via the Panama canal.
 | The question of water competition, dead issue during the war, becomes once more the post to which the rail- roads hitch their efforts to discrim- l mate against the commercial inter | ests of the interior. It Is an old | fight, this fight of the shippers | against paying more for short haul than the coast shippers pay for a much longer one, but there appears to be now present a more united spirit of opposition than ever before. | a greater and stronger determination to leave undone nothing which might ! preserve to the interior its geograph- ical advantages for distributing goods.
 Speaking today of the earnestness
 which the association and its 164
 component commercial organizations approach this present case, President
 Mccarthy said:
 we are in this case to stay fl
 we have to go to the United States
 supreme court and to congress We
 are not seeking to block the desires
 of the carriers for any legitimate re-
 adjustment of rates. The country
 knows no better than we out west
 know how much transportation
 charges in general need readjustmen-
 which if granted would place the
 intermountain country under (
 wholly unfair and certainly discrim.
 inatory burden.
 Short haul Costs Most eve recognize in fairness the fac
 that there is water competition nov
 striving for the tonnage the railroad
 carried across the country during tn war, but 1t Is beyond me to see wh! water competition should necessitat a lower rate on steel from Chicago t San Francisco than from Chicago t , Salt Lake. That is but one example There are scores involved, and nor ! l important than specific instances ar , the principles which, if recognized t
 the extent the carriers demand, woul , prove disastrous for years to come The great general interested mani 5 fested in the situation is demonsrat ed by the presence here of more tha1 l a score of men representing not onl : western shippers, but those of NeN 3 England and New York"
 , Among those who will attend tn g hearings here and elsewhere are MI ] Mccarthy and H. W. Prickett I Salt Lake; w. J. Galbraith, attorne 7 general: D. F. Johnson, chairman and Amos A. Betts. member Of tn 3 state corporation commission, an |. Roland Johnston of the Phoeni = chamber of commerce, representa- . Arizona. F. c. Tockie, traffic man t ager of the Fl Paso, Texas. chamoe 0 of commerce: MT. Ford and C. [ n Bergen, traffic manager of the Spo
 kane Merchants association tc
 Washington; Frank M. Hill of Fres
 no, Calif; w. F. Chandler, traftl
 manager of the Boston chamber
 commerce and president of the Na
 tional Industrial Traffic League e Frank Lyon of Washington. D. ( y representing the Luckenback an