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Show " RATE READ JUSTMBirr ' IS BEIBGCiSIDERED Intermountain States Want Opportunity to Compete With Coast Cities. EXPECT HARD CONTEST San Francisco Jobbers, Aided by Railroads, Will Put Up Hard Fight A concerted movement to bring about a general readjustment of freight Tahes is planned by traffic organizations anil public utilities commissions of the inter- mountain stntes as a result of the rate hearing which closed hero last Wednesday. Wednes-day. Tentative plans for tho attack were outlined at meetings Wednesday and Thursday afternoon at tho Commercial Com-mercial club of representatives of the traffic service bureau of Utah and members mem-bers of the public utilities commissions of Idaho, Nevada and Ari.oua, who had been in attendance at the rato hearing. hear-ing. The chief object of the movement, of course, is to bring about a reduction reduc-tion in freight rates to and from the intermountain country, but under any circumstances it is the purpose to bring about a readjustment of rates so that the intermountain Btatcs will be enabled en-abled to compete with other producing produc-ing districts on the markets of tho country. One of the first things to We taken up by the intermountain representatives represent-atives is a petition to congress asking that the fourth section ot the interstate inter-state commerce act be amended so as to prohi bit the railroads from na ruing a higher rate for a loug haul than a short haul under all circumstances. Under Un-der the present arrangement the interstate inter-state commerce commission is empowered empow-ered to authorize a higher rate for a short haul than for a long haul under certain conditions, but it is declared by the intermountain shippers and traffic, representatives that the privilege has been abused. Want Equal Opportunity. With the fourth section of the inter-1 state commerce act amended, it would bo unlawful for railroads to charge intermountain in-termountain shippers $800 a car on heavy hardware from tho Atlantic seaboard, sea-board, while the same car could travel all the wav to the Pacific coast from the Atlantic seaboard for $500, as is permitted under the present arrangement. arrange-ment. The same readjustment would apply to eastbound shipments from the inter- mountain region. In the case of sugar, 1 for instance, California sugar may be I transported to Chicago, a distance of some 2300 miles, at a rate of 48 cents '. a hundred, while the Utah and Idaho producers are compelled to pay 50 cents a hundred on sugar to Missouri river points, a distance of approximately 1100 miles. Members of the public utilities commissions com-missions of Idaho, Nevada and Arizona left Thursday night for San Francisco i to attend tue rate hearing continued ! f rom Salt Lake City, and representatives represent-atives of the traffic service bureau of Utah loft for San Francisco last night. It is probable that the programme to be carried out with reference to the movement move-ment for a general freight rate readjustment read-justment will be discussed further at San Francisco. Anticipate Hard Fight. The intermountain representatives anticipate an-ticipate a hard fight at the San Francisco Fran-cisco hearing, also at the Portland hearing, hear-ing, which will follow. The Pacific coast ports now enjov lowen transcontinental transcon-tinental freight rates in many instances than do the intermountain states, and thereby are enabled to compete with, intermountain jobbers in the greater part of the intermountain territory, what the intermountain shippers desire is the lowering of the rates to the intermountain in-termountain country to the same basis as the Pacific coast rates, which would practically prohibit Pacific coast jobbers job-bers from entering the intermountain territory. To this the coast shippers are expected to enter a violent protest, which, coupled with the protests of tho railroads for a readjustment, intermountain intermoun-tain shippers believe will be difficult to overcome. |