The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, August 10, 1916, Page 6

| Read the Plain Figures and Statements of Norfll. Dakota Shippers Showing How the State’s Industries ‘ Are Stunted by Unfair Rates fight, backed by débermm_' ed men, s going through.” A 1 CRACKER FACTORY MANAGER 5 - TELLS STATE’S GRIEVANUES R. J. Cone, manager of the Man« i : chester Biscuit company of Fargo, one & * of the Fargo manufacturers pressing the » suit against the. railroads, says: “We- knew Fargo was being grossly ! discriminated against by the railroads A in the matter of freight rates, but when ! we got into the matter deeper, we decided not to ask ‘anything for Fargo 2 especially. We found the whole state was in the same fix and we decided to attack the entire rate system in North Dakota. This suit, therefore, is a state- wide proposition and will benefit Fargo : no more than every other point in . North Dakota, because all reductions . Fargo will get will apply to every other city also. We are not askmg' for_ a Fargo distributive rate that will give Fargo any advantage over any other point in the state. “There is no question but that the North Dakota freight rates are much = too high. We can not see, for instance, why South Dakota should have such a f | big advantage over us in the matter of rates, when conditions down there are ? /,' practically what they are here. : 2 l “This situation has given outside industries an advantage over our own = industries; and if our industries are to develop and our cities grow it must be changed. We have on the manufactur- ers’ committee back of this suit men who .. will not be called off by special conces- ] sions for their own businesses by t}}e f railroads, as has often been the case in the past.” i . . This is the factory of the Manchester Biscuit company, one of the few important local manufacturing industries. The fafl}mre of North Dalgpta to develop a large manufacturing business is almost altogether due to a system of freight rates [ desxgped to hamper industry in this state and to favor Minnesota cities at the expense of North Dakota. The consequences " of this unjust rate system are tremendous and widespread. It prevents the building in North Dakota of such industries as [ meat packing, f!our milling, cracker making, general cereal product manufacturing and the failure of these to develop in turn . prevents diversified farming. Besides that both producers and consumers are annually mulcted by a heavy and needless tax in the shape of freight costs of hauling raw products to the east and maunfactured products back again. i . y'43.9 in Minnesota, only 45.9 in South . Dakota, only 45.1 in Nebraska and [‘only 41.8 in the case of Minnesota cities, - ilike Moorhead, that enjoy a dis- ; tributing rate. The reduction asked in - the present suit would make the rate as first class, but in Minnesota as third class, making the North Dakota rate nearly twice as high. Egg case fillers are second class in North Dakota, but Minnesota insists that they be fourth points outside North Dakota an unfair advantage over us and it prevents North Dakota from profiting from its geographical situation as a manufactur- T 205 S shippers are benefitted while North the past the railroads, by giving con- i . Cone said: : E gents. A s Dakota shippers are gouged. cessions to certain shippers who have m“tglxs. S%eMjrobgm have been taken b '+ Another instance of present rates in kicked, have headed off a real fight for ‘ i comparison with the reduction asked is AN INJUSTICE IN fair rates in North Dakota, but this (Continued on page 23) f as follows: It costs 27 cents per hun- LIVESTOCK REGULATION ] dred pounds to move sugar 150 miles in 83 g_ North Dakota. The reduction asked The railroads are permitted to have e L [ would make this rate 23 cents. In Iowa One classificatiorr covering hogs and DETAILS OF NORTH DAKOTA RATE INJUSTICE the rate for the same service is 15.3 cattle for shipment between points in 5 % i i tents; in Minnesota 21.2; in South Da- North Dakota, but other states require How North Dakota is “stung” in the matter of freight rates is g;aphlc- i kota 22.9; in Nebraska 25.8; in Minne- 2 separate classification for cattle and ally illustrated in the accompanying table, prepared by Rate Expert Gibbs of Sota, from cities enjoying a distributive 2 separate classification for hogs, be- the Fargo Commercial club. The table gives freight rates in Towa, anesot_;t}, rate, 20.2. cause hegs are easier to transport and South Dakota, Nebraska and Moorhead (Minn.) distributive rate, in compari- In car load shipments, the comparison should take a less rate per car. It son with the North Dakota rates. . 5 in the case of agricultural implements, therefore costs $42 to transport a car of The first column shows the distances for which the rates are given. _The is as follows: hogs 200 miles in North Dakota, while |, five coulmns of figures, numbered 1 to 5, are the rates in the different freight { + Agricultural implements, 100 miles, it only costs $32 in South Dakota, with _ classifications.. Every kind of goods shipped comes under a given class:f_ica- ! var load lots: present North Dakota oOther states even lower. tion. Thus, among goods classified as first class are dry goods and clothing; rate, 17 cents per 100 pounds; rate . North Dakota cities do not enjoy among 8°°d§ coming. under second class is hardware; among goox'is coming asked in suit, 14 cents; rate in Iowa, 8.4; ~ through rates on goods shipped in from under the third class are cultivators and drills; among goods coming under , in Minnesota, 12.9; in South Dakota, the east and south, where the great bulk fourth clas;s are sugar and certain oiiher groceries; among goods coming under : 14.8; in Nebraska, 14.9; from cities in of the goods consumed in North Dakota fifth -classification are .agncultural implements in car load lots.. ; * Minnesota enjoying the same distribu- come from. The result is North Dakota . In every ‘case it will be seen the North Dakota rate for a given distance ‘ tive rate as Moorhead, 12.2. points must pay often twice as much is the highest of any state in the table, often pearly twice as hx_gh as the rates : freight, proportional to distance, as in other states. To figure the rate, say on cultivators and drills in less than car- 3 PRESENT SUIT IS ONLY \ cities in South Dakota and Minnesota. load lots comes in the third class. It will be seen then that the rate per 100 i ! ‘AN ENTERING WEDGE But this is an interstate proposition and ‘| pounds on goods of that kind is as follows in the various states: - Iowa, 23 i e it ey of coursé can not be reached in the suit cents; Minnesota, 35.2 cents; South Dakota, 86.9 cents; Nebraska, 37.1; North i Al the discrimination North Dakota before the state railroad commission. Dakota, 42 cents, the highest of all. The special distributive rate for Moor- b j is suffering from is not covered in this head, applying on goods shipped from Moorhead to Minnesota points, is 33.5 suit. As the Fargo manufacturers say, : 3 cents, somewhat less than the general Minnesota, rate. | the present action is only a start. Be- . o - ! sides being important in itself it is im- - What Shlppers Say 50 Miles 2 3 4.7 B A ] portant as an entering wedge. The 3 | Fowa e i o 20, 17: 13.3 10. 7. i 3 ., state is otherwise handicapped by the O. GIBBS, rate expert of the 18.2 14.6 10.9 8.7 : i " railroads. Jobbers at the head of the Fargo Commercial club, who is 23.4 18.4 13.9 11.2 { :f lakes and at the Twin Cities can ship __ ‘aiding in the preparation of the 196 161 138 104 ! freight to eastern Montana at the same big case against the railroads for lower 26. 20. 16. 12, i i) rate as Fargo and Grand Forks, so that State-wide freight rates in North 17.3 13.9 10.4 83 i fai eastern Montana buyers get no advan- Dakota, describes the case as one of the ~ : A { fed tage in trading in the two biggest North most important any state ever under- y 7 } Dakota citigs. The rate between Fargo took. 20.4 16. 12. 84 ! and International Falls, Minn., where a “In a nutshell,” says Mr. Gibbs, | Minnesotd. ... 82,2 26.8 214 16.1 12.9 i big paper mill is situated, is 92 cents, “North Dakota is paying all the traffic | South Dakota..............369 306 243 184 148 B first ‘class; per hundred pounds. Minne- - wil bear on freight, under rate schedules | Nebraska...ooooeee .33, 281 231 19.8 %2149 i apolis and St. Paul are the same dis- in effect in the days when the roads first | North Dakota........43. 37. 28. 22, 17, | tance from International Falls as Fargo, entered the state. The great growth of | Moorhead.....owviveereenr 30.6 25.5 204 153 12:2 {4 845 miles, but the two Minnesota cities the state and consequent immense in- 150 Miles } 5 ship freight from and to International crease in traffic has not resulted, as it ‘| Towa. i 89, 25.3 19.5 15.3 113 Falls at 78 cents per hundred, first class. has in other states and should here, in Minn;;ota_ 424 35'4 28:3 21'2 '» These are only samples of how inter- lower rates. i South Dakota. : 45:9 38'7 30.6 22'9 17. # state rates discriminate against North “Th, % i s S SR B 3 2 f 184 : o8 ! e result is we are paying on | Nebraska. " ... ____ 483, 36.6 30.1 25:8 19.4 Dakota cities. freight 20, 30 and even 75 per cent more - | North Dakota.............. L B8 45, 35. 21. 21 While rates discriminate = heavily than adjoining states are paying,; where | ‘Moorhead......ooweeeomereceene. . 404 33.7 26.9 20.2 16.2 against North Dakota, classifications also conditions in many instances are the < ; : hurt this state. The railroads classify same. This has held backthe develop- farm trucks in Minnesota, on order of the ment of North Dakota; it has kept our state railroad commission, as third class, industries from developing and our cities while the roads are allowed to classify. from growing and has built up great them in North Dakota as first class, and- cities outside our borders, which profit they therefore pay nearly twice the rate by favorable transportation: rates - thaf g in North" Dakota. Wagon tanks, for North Dakota “does ‘not “have: 3 for this service in North Dakota 46 instance, are classified in North Dakota class in that state, and hence Minnesota “The present rate situafio!} gives: ing, jobbing and marketing center. In Asked if the Fargo jobbers had joined