The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-01-30
TRAFFIC BODY .GETSs900,000
 SHIPPERS
BureauHeaded by Bum Makes Remarkable Showing Dur- ing Six Years Existence.
 Errors in Freight
 Bills, S23O, 900

Outside and above it's free services in obtaining freight rate adjust ments, pressing suits before the Ala bama public service commission and the interstate commerce commission, quoting hundreds of thousands of rates and daily protecting the inter ests of the more than three hundred shipper members, the Birmingham Traffic bureau, during it's less than six years of existence, has collected and caused $894,865.36 to be refund ed to these shippers.
 The items in this refund were as follows:
 Paid shippers on errors in their freight bills discovered by the traf- fife bureau, $230,412.36.
 Paid shippers on loss and damage in transit ascertained by the traf- fife bureau and collected through the bureau $664, ,453.36.
 A considerable item in the saving by the traffic bureau is that o. L.. Bum, manager, is also lawyer en- titled to practice in all the courts. MT. Bum not only draws up the for nal complaints which the bureau makes in the name of shippers, but he follows them to legal tribunals with his knowledge of traffic laws combined with his expert knowledge of rates.
 seldom Loses Case
 The traffic bureau, under guidance of Manager Bum, has systema tically fefrained from bringing formal ac- tion until exhausting all other eff forts and feeling assured of it's ground Its record on formal cases filed and pressed for decision is the loss of only two of the dozens that have been brought before the state and the national rate making bodies.
 The bureau was organized in April. 1917, by Birmingham shippers and it's membership has always been re- stricted to bona fide shippers. The president is E. Wilkinson, one of the founders, a leading grain miller. o. l.. Bum has been general manager since organization. Charles E. Jones, his former chief clerk, became sec retary three years ago, and has held that position since.
 During six years the bureau has quoted 520,000 rates, which have en- abled shippers to make their routings by the most economical and feasible routes.
 The original membership was about 40. There are now more than three hundred members.
 1922 and 1921 Operations.
 Figures of the past years opera tions and 1921 are as follows: Rates quoted, 133,526 and 126, ,592 expense bills audited, 9S,521 and 9S,315; er- TOTS in freight bills discovered $60,479 and s67063; claims collected, S,545 and 5.405, involving S5S,761 and S155.c !. respectively.
 It IS noted that collections on claims were smaller in 1922 than in 1921 This is attributed to the great CT care being exercised by the car riers in handling freight and ex- press following the activity of the traffic bureaus in collecting for loss and damage in transit as well as for oyercharges.
 New Members.
 New members are coming into the bureau steadily, among them num- bers of large shippers. The follow ing have recently taken out mem berships.
 Seabrook -Awtrey Coal company, Barclift & Norris Grain company, In- terstate Flour and Grain company, Truscon Steel company, Woodstock Slag corporation, Federal Phosphor- us company, Flanklin Stiles & Franklin, Mccormack Bros. Motor company, Southern Steel and Rolling -...t pany, Pine and Cypress Manufacture ing company, R. B. Broyles Furni- ture company and Goods Roads Cast Iron Culvert company.