The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, September 7, 1916, Page 16

PRACTICE on the part of the railroads which G. H. Bruns, manager of the Equity elevator 2 at Oriska, believes the coming Nonpartisan League legislature should correct, is the furnishing of poorly con- - structed or damaged cars which results in the loss in transit of thousands of bushels of grain every season. To do this, he proposes that a law be enacted compelling the railway com- panies to put in track scales for the use of wheat shippers, so that they will get credit for the actual amount of wheat loaded, instead of the amount delivered at the terminals, after a jolting haul of several hundred miles over rough track, with grain sifting out ‘.long the way. The continual Toss of grain in transit is a misfortune which the elevator man- agers of the state have long recognized, but which they have been unable to remedy through any devices of law at their command. Many of these manag- ers, when their shrinkage on particular cars has been heavy, have put in claims for the loss to the railway companies, but the companies refuse to make amends except in cases where the weighers at the receiving terminals have made notes of leakage. As badly leak- ing cars often show no grain dropping while standing ‘still, most of these cars .are never discovered, and the elevators .go on losing thousands of dollars worth of grain through the fault of the railways. 'SHIPPERS REPAIR CARS AT OWN EXPENSE The North Dakota law recognizes the responsibility of the railways for the furnishing of leaking cars by providing that they shall furnish properly coopered cars for all shipments of grain, flax, ‘flour or mill products, but the companies make little or no pretense of furnishing coopered cars, and this repairing has to .be done at the expense of the shippers, in addition to their losing great quanti- ties of grain by rough handling, and bad construction, which they can not remedy. ; But while the law provides' (Sec. 4707 of the Civil Code) that the railway com- panies must cooper cars properly for the kind of grain products to be shipped, ‘they are only required to do this when notified in advance by the shipper that ‘he wants this kind of a car; and in case of refusal to do so within four hours after being notified (if the car has already been furnished) the shlpper is .compelled to do this work and can reim- burse himself by a suit at law for the amount of his expense. As court costs would be so much greater than the sum to be recovered, the grain shippers have fallen into the custom of shoulder- ing the expense and inconvenience it entails and doing this work themselves, declining to add court costs and delays to their troubles. THOUSAND BUSHELS LOST IN TRANSIT BY ORISKA Mr. Bruns cited the case of his own elevator, which lost 1095 bushels of grain in transit last year, the Gardena elevator, which lost 700, and the Norma elvator, which lost 400. None of this loss was recovered, although it repre- sented a valuation in excess of $§1 a bushel, and on a large amount of the grain, as much as $1.40 d bushel. “Besides these specific cases which I know in detail,” said Mr. Brums, “I know it is .a fact, and every North Dakota shipper of wheat knows also, that losses are common.’ A good many. go through without losses, but: most of them lose from a few up to 40 bush of grain on the trip from the:-point origin - to Duluth, the Twin Chicago, or wherever else shipped. The average , loss .per would place at around seve which lost” 100 bushels,- ‘and wheat that shrunk 16 bushel shrinkages, or even much gr can not be detected except by and the cars ought to be weighed’ they are taken from the lo: in elevator. Every wheat station in the’ i S s R e R é i g g e s e e e A5y ok Another Leak 1n Elevator Manager Tells How Shlppers Loss Heavily by Using Bad Order Cars Shippers during the grain rush have to take, what they can get in the way of rolling stock. The result is the loss of many-thousands of bushels to. the farmers by leakage along the way.. The shipper can never tell whether this is real leakage or a steal by the receiving elevator. A North Dakota Equity manager proposes a remedy. What’s your idea? erte to the Leader about it. G. H. Bruns I might lose half of it on the way home, and he would have no recourse if he allowed me to take it on my own weights after delivery at my home. “The grocer does the only sensible and business-like ‘thing and weighs it before ~ turhing it over to me. That is what the wheat elevators ought to do, but we can not do it now, for there is not a track . scale in the state of North Dakota. SOME WHEAT HAULED TO CHICAGO BEFORE WEIGHING “The consequence is that we turn our wheat over to the railroad and it jolts it several hundred miles to market, with grain® leaking through cracks most of the way, losing from three to 40 bushels on the way, but generally six to seven bushels. This is a loss which no busi- ness knowing it, would tolerate. Often this -wheat is shipped without being . weighed at the first receiving terminal to another point. Much of our wheat is hauled all the way to Chicago before it is weighed, being rerouted there after it has gone to St. Paul or Supenor. The wheat industry of North Dakota is entitled to a:law from the next legisla- ture to put_a stop to this abuse, which results in. thousands: of: dollars or use- - he farmers every season. i « it; but the companies sim What -can, we We mlght lemedy would f WHEN CARS ARE SHORT SHIPPERS NOT PARTICULAR managers tried to utilize the present slow processes of the law to compel the railway "companmies to furnish proper cars, properly coopered, or tried to sue for recovery of the lost grain, they. would find themselves involved in .a tangle of costly lawsuits, which would at best do no more-than return Judg- ments for sums that would be small in comparison to the losses incurred by Plow Boy Tractor Burns kerosene—four cylinder motor. . Fully guaranteed and delivers its full rated 10 h. p. in draw bar and 20 h. p. in belt. Price $775.00 f. o. b. _Waterloo, Iowa. rain Profits htlgatxon and delays. “A sure remedy would be _.to° have elevators supplied with track scales that would give the full . weight of actual wheat put into the cars. The railway companies would then quickly see,that cars were furnished to 6 the elevators that would not shake out several dollars of profit on every haul of a few hundred miles. The passing of a law to supply this is one remedy which Mr. Bruns believes the legislature to be elected by the Nonpartisan League should and can accomplish, “There 15 not the least doubt,” said . he, “but that the Nonpartisan League will elect its leglslatnre. and I have so much faith in the propos:tlon that I think if this matter is presented with the proper data to back it up, the legis- lature will pass a law compellmg the rallway companies to put in track scales.” ‘A GOOD SCHOOL Thorough Courses, rained Teachers. Courses. Business, Shortbnnd Stenotypy, Civil Service and English. 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So here goes the price, just enough charged: to let us out but gets you one of absolutely the best aces on the market’ v as little money as it is possible to build it BTSW your inquiry and it will nials o; rmg Dakota users, state ought to be supphed with track : i How true this is is well known to Dxmensmns Of HOUBE ool it AP “What kind of business would it be almost. everyone, for a car shortage:is : Do for & grocer to let me buy $1 worth of one of the tommonest troubles of the ' : sugar, take it home and wexgh it myaelf, wheat ghippera, espeem]ly duriag 8 and ‘him -accordi ht? - general good If tor’ Number of Room