The Bismarck tribune., 1929-04-03
RAIL RATE TOCSIN ]
SOUNDED; BISMARCK
URGED into BATTLE
fargo Expert Shows What He
Charges Are Inequalities
His City Is Fighting
$4,000 CASE UNDER WAY
Rotarians Told Of jim Hills VI
! sion Of Developing Twin
Cities, at Luncheon
$4,000 CASE UNDER WAY


Rotary luncheon, at noon. Frank
Murphy told Of his travels through
the South with touch Of VIII ROC
ersism to the recital that kept tne
diners laughing in frequent outoursts.
Neil williams, traffic expert OF the
Fargo Chamber Of Commerce. woke
Bismarck to tho possibilities OF oet.
ter railroad rates, in an abbreviated
talk on the subject Of the Fargo rates
case. His revelations amazed the ous-
incss men Of the club and It Is nkely
to align local businessmen behind the
Red river city's fight.
williams is here with H. g. Car
penter, secretary of the Fargo Cnam-
ber Of Commerce, to participate m
the meeting OF the state commercial
secretaries at the Association OF Com
merce rooms tomorrow, and there ne
will have more to say In length and
detail on the subject Of the rates
case. What he is trying to convey 70
the remainder Of North Dakota Is
that Fargo Is not entirely fighting
for itself, but that other cities IN the
state are bound to profit by the new
overhead rates from Chicago and the
Twin Cities that win result II Fargo
wins its contention for what 1t says
would be equitable rates for itself.
For it has set rates for other North
Dakota cities. based In proportion, on
its own contentious.
Due 70 Hills Twin City Policy
williams said the rate situation u
the legacy Of Tim Hills vision Of de-
yclopinR the Twin cities by transtu-
sion Of the vitalities Of their trading
territories. He had to combat the
advantages Of Chicago ana ne olo
this, in part, by putting boat lines on
the lakes. 50 as to get the benel't
Of eastern trunk line cooperation
favoring Minneapolis and st. Paul
The lines were sold, but the old
policy Of making Dakota and Mon
tana feeder territory for the Twir
cities has been kept up at the expense
of Fargo and Bismarck and the Other
cities to the west. Williams asserted
Worse vet. he said the Great North
crn and 500 Line have followed IN tn'
steps set by Hill.
He said Fargo is spending $l7,O0l
q year on rate agitation and $30.OO'
on the single Fargo rate case befor'
the Interstate Commerce commission
Taking up an example, he said BIS
marck gets a rate of $l.52 per hun
:. dred to Minneapolis on first clas
freight, while Fargo gets $1O3-
spread of 40 cents from Fargo to BIS
nlarck. But in the case of Chicag
shipments the rate Is $2.43H to Bis
marck, while to Fargo 1t Is $l.6o, $
the spread from Fargo to Bismarc
In this case is 1874 cents. Why {
cents in the instance Of Minneapoll
and 78k over the same identics
mileage in the case Of Chicago ship
ments? he asked.
One of the arguments William
used on the Interstate Commert
commission was that maintenance
cut in half In this territory durin
the four winter months. He said tt
roadbed freezes solid and the roas
operate on an equivalent OF concret
Murphy Tells Of Floods, Cyclones
Frank Murphy also spoke Of u
Dakota winters. He said the .Soutl
erners always shiycr at mention
the state. Arkansas weather h
worse drawbacks. he thought. He nj
seen the exodus from the river bo
toms as the White river rose. II
houses are built on stilts, yet tn
wore the signs Of the previous ycal
flood UP to the gills.
While he was in an Arkansas tov
an old "burrlscad" darkcy came
the drugstore and asked Tor
almanac. He said he had got no
the year before, SO he had to ia
any kind of weather that Cal
along After seeing the effects
: twister storms in the timber a
towns, said Murphy, he didn't wone
that the darkey wanted advance
formation thereafter.
Murphy gave an interesting
I scription of Muscle Shoals poy
plant, one Of the eight generati
units Of which is furnishing power
the Alabama Power and Light co
pany at two mills per watt. while
company, he drily observed, proba
is selling It at 10 cents.
The Mammoth cave and New
leans were other points visited by
Murphys, in addition to those m
toned recently in The Tribune.
Guests at the luncheon inclu'
Christ Kjelstrup. Underwood: Neil
Williams, Fargo: Fred J. Tray
Devils Lake; Roy Baird, Dtckins
w. p. Chestnut, Fargo: H. G. b
brother Of George, Of Dedham, Ma
and II. p. Goddard.
A roll call was taken Of the Rot
ianS who plan to attend the dist
conference at Minot, April l5-l6
Miss Margaret Condron spoke n
half nf the coming amateur lEn1nl