The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-02-09
AUTHORITY IN
CARSH0RTAGE
IS ADVOCATED
State Railroad Commission
Wants Legislature To
MemOrialize Congress
REVIEW>,OF SITUATION
Tell of Car Shortage in North
DakOta-CriticiZe the
|. C.. G..


Action by the national congress
to clearly place within the state
railroad commissions authority to
regulate the distribution cf freight
cars is asked by the North Dakota
railroad commission, in report
made today reviewing the car
shortage and situation of the fall
of 1922. The report, which was
sent members nf the legislature,
has appended proposed concur
rent resolution on the situation for
action by the state assembly now
in session.
The commission declares it is i'm
practicable for the Interstate Com
merce Commission to attempt to
supervise the distribution of cars
as between individual shippers
throughout the United States and
says there should be some govern
mental authority within reasonable
reach to which an appeal can be
made to require equitable distri-
button of cars, the authority pro-
posed being the state railroad
commissions.
Amendment of the Interstate
Act in such way that the regula-
tory authorities cf the states may
make reasonable orders and regu-
lations not in conflict with the
federal law" requiring that cars
within the respective borders of
such states to be equitably dis
tributed to shippers desiring the
same, without regard to whether
they are desired for use in ship
ments that are interstate or in
trastate and further to eliminate
any chance Of conflict of the state
commissions and the Interstate
Commerce Commission through
C,aTiticatiOn of the transportation
acts.
Position Attacked
The position taken by the In
terstate Commerce Commission
last fall in declining to permit the
state commission to regulate dis
trihution of cars in North Dakota
il criticized in the report.
eve confess that the attitude
of the Interstate Commerce Com
mission on the matter is incom-
prehensible," says the commissions
report. eve have tried very hard
to follow their logic that the dis
tr.bution by local authorities of
cars between shippers at stations
is an interference with interstate
commerce, but we cannot reach
theft conclusion. when a state
commission makes rules for dis
tribution of cars as we did, based
upon the law of 1917, touching
those cars only that are available
for use within the State, it does
not appear that such control of
distribution affects, even remote
ly, interstate commerce"
The report says the car shortage
felt last fall when time came to
move the states huge grain crop,
and action was sought with other
states, railroads and federal au-
thorities to prevent the crisis, The
shortage, however, came on and,
the report says, "the 1922 situa-
ton was made much worse by rea-
son of the coal strike, and the
strike of the railway shopcrafts. y
AS the railroad strike continued
the report says, "few cars were
repaired and the power equipment
suffered because of the shortage
of skilled mechanics" At a con-
ference held in St. Paul, it con-
tinues, a representative of Wash
burn, Crosby Milling Company
stated that they were repairing, al
their own expense, 25 to 80 per-
cent of the cars they received, and
that other milling company repre-
sentatives made similar state
ments.
Method of Distribution
Regarding the method of distri.
buting cars between elevators ir
North Dakota i'm the fall of 1922
of which the commission com.
plains, the report says:
Briefly stated, cars were tc
be distributed according to the
ability of the elevator to load anc
ship promptly. AS soon as al
elevators at station became
blocked, each elevator was given s
car in turn, irrespective of the fact
that normally, one elevator com
pany might ship IS percent of tn.
grain at that station.
Feeling that the farmers o1
the Northwest were being discrim
mated against, he'report says, th'
North Dakota commission contin
ued it's fight for an equitable dis
tributiop of grain cars. The figh,
was carried to the floor of>the con
ventipn of The National Associa
tion of Railway Commissions, re-
Gently held in Detroit. AS re-
suit a national committee, consist
ing of nine members, selected from
various parts of the United States
was appointed to confer will
Washington authorities and insti
tute an investigation for the pur
pose of placing before the prope7
authorities all of the information
possible, and with further viev
Of preventing a recurrence. Franl
Milhollan. chairman of the Nortl
Dakota Commission, was appoint
- 4.