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Show INTERSTATE MATTERS. The Commission In vetcigating Alleged Irregularities. Chicaso, July It. Justice Farlau's court rnom in the United States building , was crowded yesterday afternoon as it has not been for many a day. Prominent railway men by the score as well as represeu. tatives of many manufacturing industries in-dustries were on hand at an early hour. Their presence was due to-the to-the fact that the Interstate Commerce commission com-mission was about to commence a sweeping investigation into a large number of alleged infractions of the law for the purpose of bringing to light the manner in which it has been violated by numerous shippers being given advantages while others have been discriminated against. Amongst those recognized rec-ognized in the court room were the following: follow-ing: S. B. Knight, general traflie manager of the Wa hasta ; Milton Knight, general freight agent Wabash; S. M. Osborne of Toledo, Ohio, division di-vision freight agent Wabash; G. B. Reeves, traffic manager Chicago and Grand Trunk; I). Brown, gcntral freight agent, Graud Trunk; D. C. Cook, general freight agent, Illinois, Indiana & Iowa; General Maunger Shouts of the same line; Chairman J. W. Midgely of the Western Freight association; asso-ciation; George Blancliard, chairman Central Cen-tral Traffic association; Kichard Dale, agent Great Eastern Fast Freight line; M. L. Dougherty, Lehigh it Wabash Dispatch; W. H.' Smith, freight agent Lakawana Dispatch; XV. G. Brimsou, president and general manager man-ager Calumey Ss Blue Island road; D. S. Kcefe of the same line ; M. I). Chase, assistant assis-tant general freight agent Lake Shore road, and the following officers of the Illinois Steel works: W. It. and J. C. Stirling, II. A. Grav, J. K. Long, D. S. Mathias and W. L. Walker. The investigation which was opened yesterday yester-day is based on the wide-spread complaint of shippers ia Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and Illinois. Il-linois. Most of these shippers are dealers in grain, and the commission has been furnished fur-nished with voluminous information in sup- port or the charges. Much of this mior-niatiou mior-niatiou is directed against the roads directly, di-rectly, but the commission decided that a geueral investigation will be necessary in order that all the facts might be got at. Among those Mho are alleged to have benefited-by the discrimination and who have tiled answers denying the charges are the following extensive grain dealers: Paddock, Pad-dock, Hodge fc Co., of Toledo; Gill, Fisher A Co., of Baltimore ; Keynolds Brothers, of Toledo. The commissioners assigned to investigate the interstate commerce violations are Messrs. Veazy, McDiii, Clement and Mor rison. The following is the form of document docu-ment citing the defendants to appear: "Whereas informal compluint has been made to the Interstate Commerce -commission that, notwithstanding the fact that tLe various va-rious railrood companies engaged in transporting trans-porting passengers and property from Chicago Chi-cago to eastern seaboard points have filed with the Interstate Commerce commission tariffs and schedules of rates, fares aud charges as required by law, persons representing repre-senting said companies at Chicago aforesaid solicit transportation at rates less than the rates named in the tariffs filed with the commission com-mission and published by them as required by the act to 'regulate commerce. And wheieas it is stated in said complaint that the said carriers resort to ingenious devices whereby rates less than the established rates are given to favored shippers. And therefore there-fore the Interstate Commerce commission of its own motion has decided to investigate said informal complaints by inquiring into the business of the carriers engaged in the transportation of property from Chicago to eastern seaboard points." I, . 1 . m . |