The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-10-08
WANT OCALA TO RALLY TO SUPPORT
Of THE OKLAWAHA VALLEY RAILROAD
PALATKA PEOPLE PROMISE RE-
DUCED RATES AND BETTER
SERVICE IF THE ROAD is AL
LOWED TO OPERATE AND
CARRY OUT PLANS MADE.

the Palatka chamber OF commerce met /
with thirty or forty Ocala business
men i'm the courthouse last night to
discuss the probability of the Okla
waha Valley railroad being junked
to pay its taxes.
Mr.. r. H. Todd, president of the
Marion County Board of Trade, pre-
sided over the meeting and first well
coined the visiting gentlemen and as
sured them that the majority of the
people of Ocala wanted the Oklawaha
Valley to continue running, if it could
DO so without any outlay of money to
Ocala citizens, and said that he wish
ed to correct the imp1 cssion that the
Palatka people seemed to have that
Ocala was striving to have the road
discontinued. Mr.. Todd said that he
realized the hardships discontinuance
of the road would work on those peo-
pie living along the route of the Ok
lawaha Valley and that he thought
Ocala merchants would jump at the
chance to use the Oklawaha Valley
for their freight should ther DAD give
them an attractive rate and good serv-
i've. Mr.. Todd asked the Palatka WIS.,
itors what plans they had in mind
when they asked for the meeting.
Mr.. Hart of Palatka made the first
talk and said that they had no plans
but that they wanted the 0cala people
to get with them and show the court
that they wanted the o. ", so that
Judge Bullock would grant receivers
certificates for the payment of taxes.
Mr.. Ernest, merchant of Palatka,
made short talk, asking the co.
operation of Ocala and then Mr..
DeMontmullen gave some details and
statistics as to how the Oklawaha
Valley was right now lining up to
place itself in position to give Ocala
a material reduction in freight rates.
He said that the o. v. promises to
give Ocala a rate based on a 50-mile
haulage from Palatka as against the
present a0-mile basis. This reduction
ia connection with water rates to Pa
latka from the north, the speaker
said, would give Ocala 1914 per cent
reduction from northern ports. He
further said that if we took advant-
age of the schooner rate that Palatka
was now securing we would be able to
further reduce our rates so that we
would get freight from New York so
to rs per cent cheaper than we now
do.
Mr.. John Dozier then took the floor
and stated that if Ocala agreed to
turn her freight through the Okla
waha Valley (as he felt sure we would
in consideration for the freight reduc-
tion) the @. v. has not the capacity
to haul the stuff for Us.
There was considerable back talk
then as to the railroad ability ano
standing of Mr.. Dozier and Mr.. De
Montmullen, but it was finally agreed
that if the o. v. got the stuff to hau
it would be able to secure the mean;
to take care of the business. Mr.
Dozier wants to interest the Southern
railroad in the O. V.
Much was said about what the O
v. is in line to do and the plans tina
were on foot when the sheriff stop
ped operations. 1t appears that th'
oklawaha Valley was about to sign
contract for terminal accommodation
of its own in Palatka, which woul'
give it docks and free the road from
the Atlantic Coast Line and it woul'
not be tiled up and unable to secur
freight from the trunk lines.
The tenor of the meeting seemed t
point to sending committees to Judg
Bullock to show him that the Okla
waha Valley would pay if he allowe
it to continue. Messrs. T. S. Tran
than and E. H. Martin, two attorney
present, told the meeting that thi
was not the proper method of proee
dure as the court was deciding on tn
evidence produced on the wltnes
stand whether the road would pay c
not. The lawyers said the only wa
to introduce their plan to the coul
was to present it in the regular wa
as evidence, but in order to shorte
matters they might have a pledg
signed by shippers in Ocala promisin
to ship by the o. Y. if the 0. V. wou
give them this rate reduction. Tn
motion was passed and commits
is to be appointed by the chair to dra
a pledge and secure signatures to
This pledge will then be introduced ;
evidence before Judge Bullock IN t