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Show RAILROADS ARE DOING THE BEST THEY KNOW HOW CHICAGO, Feb. 15. The freight congestion con-gestion or car shortage situation, which the "gentlemen's agreement" made by representatives of thirty leading railroads at Washington today is designed to relieve, re-lieve, is said by shippers, railroad men and traffic experts of commercial organizations organi-zations to be more serious at present than ever before. At first it was strictly war munitions which blocked other traffic, but gradually, gradual-ly, as eastern yards became congested, an instance cited bv an expert on traffic, there are 30.000,000 bushels of grain in Chicago elevators and 7,000,000 bushels in railroad cars which cannot be moved because be-cause it would merely intensify the congestion con-gestion east of here. And north, south and west of this -gateway instructions are out holding back shipments of everything except perishable goods, livestock and fuel. Unusually cold weather and heavy snowstorms did their part In increasing the evils nf the situation. From New York to Chicago railroad yards are jammed with cars, thousands ! of them loaded, "all dressed up and no place to go," as an official of the St. I Paul road put it, and these imprison ! many empties. j Among shippers ,the opinion was ex-; ex-; pressed that the railroads are doing the i best they can. As to the efficacy of the "gentleman's agreement," there was a general opinion that it would relieve matters In the west for a time, but not permanently. Only more railroad equipment equip-ment of every kind, Including increased terminal facilities, could do that, it was stated. Among the embargoes today were that of the Texas & Pacific on export grain to New Orleans and Galveston; that of the Missouri, Kansas & Texas on everything every-thing ex-ept perishable freight to points east of Illinois, and similar measures by the Burlington and the Santa Fe. These embargoes of tiie western roads do not reflect conditions local to the roads, but are a reflex of the conditions east. Any eastbound f reign t which can be hauled east to Chicago will be accepted by western west-ern roads. |