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Show JUT Iffi I jigi rVork of Commercial Club Traffic Bureau K Bears Fruit in Petition and Comprint B Presented Wednesday to B the President Kreight-rate discrimination against m , salt lake and ogden demonstrated Request Macle That Department of Justice, and Not B Interstate Commerce Commission, S Take Action. JMASIIINGTON, April 21. President Bift today took up for invest igat ion, K promised to act at once, on a com-Kin(. com-Kin(. filed with him, alleging that the fRptcrn railroads aro discriminating 9Hsinst Salt Lake City, Ogden and other Hicmiouuain c.itioH in the matter of Hight rates anil are violating the nuti- SBTbo charges wero made bv Senators "toot and ritithcrlanrt and Roprcscnta-Vvc Roprcscnta-Vvc Howell, all of Utah. They asked Bt tuo matter bo taken up by the SMpartment of juptieo ratlier than by the tferfltato commerce commission. IMtTha papers filed allege,! that Mr. 'arrimnn shows no respect for anj' law ,Kit tho federal. " Gist of Petition. KfTho papers declare the Ilarriman lines enormously profitable, and incluTle tE'petitiou from commercial bodies in lBtah, saying the discrimination has jBn carried on for manv years and 4Hft tho roads have stoadily increased pt" and eliminated competition. HJjghcr rates, it is said, aro being gMHrged for freight from Chicago. Mis-jKuri Mis-jKuri river points and Denver to the tak torritorv than for the much longer i fHinl to Pacific coast cities. These rates, ttys the petition, aro without, warrant nay competent court or commission. SB Boads Specified. fwTIi ft. roads specified are the Southern-ijHieific, Southern-ijHieific, the Unipu Pacific, tho Oregon flBKt Lino, tho Oregon Railroad & Navi-IHon- company, the Sau Pedro. Los igBtdes & Salt Lake, tho Denver & Rio IBtndc. tho Missouri Pacific, tho Colo-GRq Colo-GRq Midland, the Colorado & Southern, S Chicago. Burlington & Quiney, tho jHpicsfco Itoek Island & Pacific, and tho rfBSt-chison, Topcka & Santa Vo. lU'It in staled that on cocoa beans the jto per ear from Chicago to Utah is Mgulj while for tho sumo car all the 3pv to San Francisco the charge, j.s only jSMCiT. On u car of nails tho charge from 3icago to Utah is $140, and from Chi-Jmfeo Chi-Jmfeo to San Francisco ouly .2S0. pQn a car of printing paper the rate Chicago to Utah is $120. and to Wmp- Francisco only -$'i00. HE1 ' DIRECT APPEAL I TO THE PRESIDENT jjfr. WAS DEEI.IED BEST JJKTho letter to President Taft referred ,abovo forms a part of the action of IHe Commercial Club Traffic bureau of jMflt Lake City to obtain an adjustment Wythe freight traffic, rates in t-lio state Jfcd effect such a reduction in the rates JjMfctho present schedules as will permit tiAft merchants of this community to fjfcnpoto with the shippers of other soe-JBhs soe-JBhs of country similarly situated with 9ercnco to tho eastern shipping points. 2Bft -was felt that, inasmuch as the mat-aod mat-aod been taken up with the prosi-jnBats prosi-jnBats of railroads and high officials dKtbout npparent results, ir would be ko to present tho matter directly to jSBtaidont Taft at "Washington and have question dealt with bv the federal IBbrtH, rather llinu by the interstate -nrnurco commission. A potition. beau-MjFnlly beau-MjFnlly bound in book form and con-jjjiy con-jjjiy the names of 11500 of tho rep-75jfcntativo rep-75jfcntativo business men of Ogden, Salt jfcko City andProvo, was sent by ex-fpMfi&n ex-fpMfi&n to Senator Smoot at. Washing-iti'. Washing-iti'. on April HI, together with letters I'yBdrcsscd jointly to .Senators Smoot and SEthcrland and Jfeprcscntativo Howell, nesting thnt they undertake the do-Pory do-Pory of tho document. Tho letter was vBrncd 13' Governor William tfprv, SEitcd States District Attorney Booth. Bitted Staten Collector of Internal JPMlvcnno Cnllister and the Commercial IKib Traffic bureau through the prcsi-Bat prcsi-Bat and secretary. The letter, which' is fBMcntcd in full, follows: Jm Letter iu Tull. jm- 5?alt Lnko ftty, April 0. . 'plr Thlfi bureau, orKttnlz.fd uiuIt th CBvh of this 8tat for Hie pur post r.f 4Btktn oven- r4onable effort toward BHirlntr for Ita people thlr fair conunr-m conunr-m rlRlUs im i-n Joyed by tlioeo of tti pes and ptutrs ovcrywliere east of Xhfl jmcky niouiitnlnc. iMth lifK-onttngr and Jfcfound rcspcft procnt for your hltih MHwldenitJon, tliroiiKb our delegation In Bw?re88 tit-- iiccompHiivlnp petition In gfjBiitlon tlKrcto. and hcnrlnfr the Flcna- of more than 3000 cltlzeila. bnnkerf. ,ifCRs!onal men, 1iulnc9s compHules and flHnnien hit orauizinlons of tli three 5nclpnl cltlm of th Htato ORrini, Snlt co Cltv and Provo. Including the un-IHcIal un-IHcIal flgn.i'ures of the Kovernor. prlu-Ml prlu-Ml tutc, county and city offlvlnl. ''hrough tlile tnt'' weiu constructed the Hklnal Pacltlr rullrouds. nd under tho Ecflecnt protection nml nsnlitnnc of federal Kovonumni. which alone tholr building poHHlhle. The pov-Hncnt pov-Hncnt 6ureP never contemplated that tbelr operation they would over be jBde Instrumental in keeping the people. K.gny portion of the country through Hnch thev pass In a. condition of excop-mk&l excop-mk&l and commercial servitude, under mr pretext -whatever. No state in the c'n hn been no uiifiilllnciy patient and nnlsKlvo beneath tlm unvarvliiR oppres- of the nillwny trnnsportntion lines decree ecptal to that of 1'tnh. )Jetl-H )Jetl-H to inn carrivrs have brought no Kf, nor atjsunmccs that any would he Kliowcr, iKiundleH In Its arnbltton for KtU7olule (iiinli)iitiun if inllnnv tran-Mlto tran-Mlto affair;, loud oni uuccsiiru: Its rperlous attempts to arouse nubile i sympathy in its perslstont appeal for chajiKen in the federal lawn, wnicn. if mode, would but add Increased slrenKth to Its already nationally nu-naelnj; Inllu-ence. Inllu-ence. In every possible way. not conllict-JiiK conllict-JiiK with Its own peifish Interests, relentlessly relent-lessly presses Its iron hand ntrolnst the reasonable commercial rights of thrc people, until an Intolerable condition ex-lata ex-lata aL-nlnst wlilrh no ordinary protest or resistance can be mode effeptunf. In the efforts made by thix bureau for the proper regulation of carrlors within tin- stat- through the Iegln!auirc reccntlv adjourned, every attempted action was brushed jiKldo and , rendered fruitless through the unconslng activities of number? num-ber? of lobbyists, hired and directed by tho representatives of tills tame power. In tho Interstate commerce relations oi our people, it 8 prayed that the irresistible irre-sistible strength of the government may be employed In duly bringing about :u fair, complete and tinnl adjustment of the' grievances complained of. and to that end your considerate attention Is resperrtfullv myvei-y earnestly invoked. Very respect"- OtlARLKP A. Ql'iarjiV. President. W. is. McCARTIIV. Secretory. The Honontble William II. Taft. President of the. United States, Washington, D. C. I I , TRAFFIC BUREAU'S LENGTHY PETITION TO THE PRESIDENT Following is tho petition fretting forth the desires of ihe Commercial Club Traffic bureau on behalf of the business busi-ness jucu and shippers of Salt Lake To thc President of the United States: i our pctltlonere, oltlscus. otislnc people peo-ple and commercial organizations of tho cltlcH of Ogdon, .alt Jjike Cltv and Provo, Pro-vo, in tliu state of Utnlw hninblv following follow-ing their privilege under the Constitution, Constitu-tion, most respectfully represent that the city of. Ogden. having a present population popula-tion of about 30,000; the cltv of Salt Lake, having n present population of about 100.000. and tho rlty of Provo, having hav-ing a. present population of about 10.000 people the pnld cities being situated within an extreme distance of hut elghtv mllef, on the same line, and with largely large-ly Identleul commercial Interest and In all constituting the most populous! and commercially Important cenli r of tho vast portion of the l.'nitcd state p. which they aro situated, are now and for manv year have been mibjected to tho oppressive, op-pressive, unluf-t. grossly discriminative and unlawful practices of the railway companies whose direct llneH of railway, together with the. various other lines connecting con-necting theiowtih to form through lines, constitute tho principal common carrier service of tho .said cities and state to and fiom the Paclilc coast on the west and thu territory of the United States lying beyond the p.ocky mountains on the cast, to the great detriment of llio peace, happiness and prosperity of the people and the proper commercial progress and industrial development of tho said cities as well as of tho state Itself. That the paid oppressive, unjust, grossly gross-ly discriminative and unlawful practices of such railway companies consist of and are as follows: That con inuy to tho laws of the United States vastly higher rates of charges for the transportation of freight arc almost generally assessed against and collected from the people of tho .said cities to and from Chicago. .Mississippi rivor. .Missouri river and Denver frclgtil transportation rate tcrrllorlt-n on the cost, und tlm cities of the Pnclile const r. ih- west, for the much shorter linul. thnn arc assessed and collected for much grnti-r service or tho much longer haul, performed on the sumo linos and in tho same directions between the cities of the Paclilc coast on tho west. atl Denver. Missouri rher. Mississippi Missis-sippi river and Chicago freight transportation transpor-tation mte territories on the east; the ulterior haul being included within the longer, and the assesment and collection of charges being upon like property. Is Without Warrant. That this long continued oppressive and dlscilmluutho method of freight ttnnsportallon rate making Is without the warrant of any competent court or commllou. but i wholly tho despotic act of corporate gtccd. and under the arbitrary ar-bitrary power of concentrated great wealth apparently holding lUelf above the. law to lntrfe.rc with or govern, and ex-erctfil ex-erctfil against low abiding communities relatlvnly powerless to resist. T!wt the sold mil way companies unlawfully un-lawfully conspiring together establish uniform uni-form and steadily Inerensing freight transportation rates of charges, together with oppressive regulations In respect thereto, with the effect that competition llween the various lines Is wholly eliminated elim-inated and thn said cities held in a state of commercial lwndage ami distress". That tbp most Important, dominating in power and nrrognntly controlling in Influence In-fluence of tin? great railway companies directly concerned In the freight tra:in-portatlon tra:in-portatlon service of the sold cities" aro of enormous nnd steadily increasing capitalization. capi-talization. Immense earnings, lavish and growing In the amount of dividend disbursements dis-bursements ami wllli continually extending extend-ing power in the transportation affairs of tho country at large until no power less mighty than that of the federal government gov-ernment ltlf t-evms in any degree capable ca-pable of successfully dealing therewith in any effort to reasonably regulato or control within the law. That tho said cities, with numerous xmall cltle situated within tho same district, dis-trict, through mnny years of patient endeavor, en-deavor, nnd In spite of their unjustly retarded re-tarded growth through the uninterrupted uninterrupt-ed and orbit rary methods of said railway rail-way companies, at this time together constitute a unit of population and commercial com-mercial mngnltude too great to bo longer treated as of minor importance iu the country, and ar Justly (TutUlcd to a consideration con-sideration reasonably commensurate therowlth. That It is believed to bo but junl that the sold cltle may be encouraged and protected in their proper commercial ambition.", am-bition.", only Involving tho gtiarnnten of their lawful rights In Interstate com merco lelatlons, without belnjf subjected Contton,'d on Paso 'Xwa. TAFT TAKES UP QUESTION OF SALT LAKE'S RIGHTS Continued From Pago One. to the srrcat expense, trouble, delay, dis-' couragement and posnlblo failure almost certain to attend thoir unaldod efforts In tlio prosecution of their proper claims for justice and the enforcement of t lie laws against the said powerful railway companies in an ordinary way or through ordinary channels. Always Fortified. That the said railway companies, always al-ways completely fortified with ample, the best and most experienced legal counsel obtainable, regularly employed in their exclusive service, and with other essentially essen-tially unlimited nnd powerful influences to cause hindrance, delay and discouragement discourage-ment always at their command, fully realize re-alize the not uncommon disabilities of individuals and communities in those respects, aud avail themselves thereof in tho establishment and continuance of their harsh and unlawful methods. That the following described freight transportation tariff schedules and classifications, clas-sifications, copies of which, with further Issues aud amendments thereof, arc Hied with the Interstate Commerce commission commis-sion and therefrom obtainable, arc respectfully re-spectfully submitted in partial support of tho grievances complained of; there probably prob-ably lining additional tarilT schedules of ltkt: character and application existing nnd Hied with the said commission, but tho descriptions of which are not at this time to your petitioners available: .Joint Freight Tariff Transmlssourl No. 20-E.- Interstate Commorce commission No. 207, effective March 2.". 11)08; supplement supple-ment thereto No. -I. effective .Tune 1, 1U0S: supplement thereto No. 12, effective April 1. 1000. Transcontinental Freight Bureau Westbound West-bound Tariff No. I-H. effective January 1, 190n. Interstate Commerce commission commis-sion No. SG5. of R. H. Countiss, agent; supplement thereto No. 1. effective February Feb-ruary 1. J 900; supplement thereto No. a, effective March In, lfl0!. Transcontinental Freight Bureau East-bound East-bound Tariff No. S-F. Interstate Com-merco Com-merco commission No. SC7, effective January Jan-uary 1, 1903: supplement thereto No. 1, effective February 1. 3909; supplement thereto No. 2, effective February 25, 1909. Transcontinental Freight Bureau Westbound West-bound Tariff No. 4-D. Interstate Commerce Com-merce commission No. S6G. of R. H. Coun-tlss. Coun-tlss. agent, effective January 1, 1909; supplement thereto No. 1. effective February Feb-ruary 1, 1909; supplement thereto No. 2, effective February S. 1909- Transcontinental Freight Bureau Fast-bound Fast-bound Tariff No. 2-E. Interstate Commerce Com-merce commission No. S6S, elective January Jan-uary 1, 1909; supplement thereto No. 1, effective February 1. 1909. Transcontinental Frolght Bureau Jvost-bound Jvost-bound Proportional Tariff No. S. R. 9S8. Interstate Commerce commission No. 8!. effoctlve January 25, 1909; supplement thereto No. 2, effective February , 1909. Southern Pacific Company Joint and Proportional Freight Tariff No. .197. Interstate In-terstate Commerce commission No. oln;, effective April 1, 1909. San Pedro. JLoa Angeles & .Salt Lake Railroad Company Local and Joint Freight Tariff. S. !- R. No. 211. Interstate Inter-state Commerce commission rso. As.., el-fectlvo el-fectlvo October 17, 190S; supplement thereto No. 1. effective December S. 1908; supplement thereto No. 3, effective February Feb-ruary IS, 1909. Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company Joint 'Tariff No. 215-p. S. Interstate Commerce commission No. ISC', effective December S, 190S; supplement thereto No. 1, effective February 2::. 1909. Colorado-Utah Freight Bureau Joint Freight Tariff No. 1-B. Interstate Commerce Com-merce commission No. 10, effective March T, IOC'S: supplement thereto No. G, effective ef-fective November lf. 1908; supplement thereto No. 9, effective January 28. 1909. The Western Classification No. -15. Interstate In-terstate Commerce commission No. 3. effective ef-fective November 1. 190S; supplement thereto No. 7, effective February 2H, 1909. Roads Complained Of. That the principal railway companies forming and operating the lines of common com-mon carriers complained of arc the iol-lowlng: iol-lowlng: The Southern Pacific company; The Union Pacific company: The Oregon Short Lino Railroad com- PUThe Oregon Railroad & Navigation company: , , , The San Pedro, Los Angeles & Salt Luke Railroad company; The Denver & Rio Grande Railroad company; The Missouri Pacific Railway company; The Colorado Midland Railway com- POTh Colorado & Southern Railway com- PSThe Chicago. Burlington & Quincy Railroad company: The Chicago. Rock Island & Pacific Railway company; Tho Atchison. Topeka & Santa Fa Railway company. ,,.,, Wherefore, your petitioners, faithfully believing that through no other course, nor with necessary and equal expedition, can a complete, .lust and final determination determina-tion of the important Issues involved bo reached, humbly pray that the department depart-ment of justice may be charged to take early cognizance of tho long-standing violations vi-olations of the laws of the United Stales and of the Just rights of your petitioners by tho said railway companies, and by proper action compel them to forthwith and whollv desist therefrom; nnd that their obedience to all tho requirements of the law, particularly within the territory- through which tho Interests and rights of vour petitioners arc concerned, shall be fully accomplished, to tho effect that all existing freight transportation rates in any manner or form contrary to lav or tho just and' reasonable rights of vour petitioners, shall at once bo dlscou-tlnufld; dlscou-tlnufld; and, further, that no exceptions to tho first terms of the fourth section of the act to regulate commerce, or contrary con-trary to such Just and reasonable rights, shall thereafter be made operative in or through thn said- territory by the said railway companies In any Instance, upon anv commodity, or to and from any lo-calltv. lo-calltv. until after a full hearing as to tho reasonable necessity and right therefor by, and an order being obtained from a competent court or commission authorizing authoriz-ing tho sainc to be. done. And, as in duty bound, your petitioners will ever pray. Salt Lake City, Utah. April 1, 1909. |