III.—Letters and documents from carriers which accepted the invitation of the Commission to make a statement concerning the circumstances and conditions of traffic which they claimed made their case exceptional.

ALLEGHENY VALLEY RAILROAD.

DEAR SIR: I have your circular of October 20 in regard to the rates to and from interstate points, and in reply would say that the Allegheny Valley Railroad is a corporation wholly within the State of Pennsylvania, and therefore the only interstate rates that we have are made by reason of our connections with other lines.

The rates in force and issued by this company are all made to conform with the provisions of the interstate-commerce act as understood by us, viz, that in no case shall a higher rate be charged for a short haul than for a long haul, and to our best knowledge there is no deviation from this rule, except one case, of which I advised you under date of May 21, 1887. The circumstances governing this case are as follows:

In November or December, last year, before the interstate-commerce bill was agitated or came under discussion, an agreement was made with Galusha A. Grow, owner of Brady's Bend Mining Company, agreeing to a rate of 85 cents per ton on 120,000 tons of coal to be shipped in cars furnished by the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada to that company for its supply purposes, same to be in effect from May 1, 1887, to May 1, 1888. Afterwards, when the interstate-commerce bill was passed and all rates were revised, it was arranged between this company and its connections and with competing roads that the rate on coal, dating from April 16, 1887, should be $1.15 per ton (reduced June 1 to $1.10 per ton) to Buffalo, and at this rate all coal has been charged since that date. Mr. Grow, in addition to the coal shipped to Buffalo for the Grand Trunk supply at 85 cents per ton, has shipped considerable coal to Buffalo for miscellaneous trade, on which he has paid $1.10 per ton, but the other mines in the neighborhood of his mine have all been charged on a basis of $1.10 per ton. There are three mines north of Mr. Grow's mine that ship coal to Buffalo, and are charged at the rate of $1.10 per ton, while we are carrying out the agreement made with Mr. Grow on the basis of 85 cents; but we have taken the position that we are morally bound to carry out the contract with Mr. Grow on the basis of 85 cents per ton, and that the charging of $1.10 per ton on other coal was not a violation of the law, the circumstances and conditions governing the making of the rate not being similar. This conclusion was reached after full consultation with Messrs. Hampton & Dalzell, attorneys for the company, and William Scott, attorney for the receivers.

No other mines are affected by this rate, as they have no contract with the Grand Trunk Railway Company.

Yours truly,

C. C. MCCAIN, Esq.,

E. H. UTLEY, General Freight and Passenger Agent.

Auditor Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, D. C.

ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY (WESTERN DIVISION).

DEAR SIR: Replying to your circular favor of the 23d, which was addressed to me at Topeka, I presume that the circular letter to which you refer was similar to the one addressed to me as vice-president of the California Southern and California Central Railroad Companies, which I have forwarded to our traffic manager, Mr. W. F. White, for information, and I am advised by Mr. White that he replied to a similar letter addressed to him in the following language:

"So far as these lines are concerned, we have been accepting our proportion of rates, which are less than intermediate rates on business between Los Angeles and San Diego on the west, and the Mississippi River and points east thereof on the east, which rates were made necessary by the competition of water carriers and foreign railroads.

"With this exception we have no knowledge of having deviated from section 4 of the act to regulate commerce," and as this statement of the facts applies as well to the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, western division, as to the California Southern and California Central Roads, I presume this is all that you require.

Yours truly,

C. C. MCCAIN, Esq.,

Auditor Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, D. C.

C. W. SMITH.

ATLANTIC COAST LINE.

DEAR SIR: Replying to your circular of October 20, 1887.

As a rule, we have be

tween points on our line no rates that are lower for a long than a short distance, the following being the exceptions:

The rates from eastern cities to Tarborough are controlled by the water lines to Norfolk, and thence by water and water and rail to Tarborough; our rates being no lower, at any time, than the rates so made by the lines referred to.

The rates to Wilmington are controlled by the ocean lines, our rates being always higher than the ocean-line rates.

The rates to Fayetteville are controlled by the ocean lines to Wilmington, in connection with the rates of the lines on the Cape Fear River, our rates being higher than the rates of the water lines.

The rates to Charleston are controlled by the ocean lines, our rates being higher than the rates of the ocean lines.

The rates to Columbia are controlled by the ocean lines to Charleston, and the rates from Charleston to Columbia authorized by the South Carolina Railway Commission; our rates being the same as by that line.

The rates to Wadesborough are controlled by the ocean rates to Wilmington, plus the rates of the Carolina Central road from Wilmington to Wadesborough.

The rates to Goldsboro are controlled by the ocean lines working via New Berne, N. C., and the Atlantic and North Carolina Railroad thence to Goldsborough.

While Goldsborough at present is not one of the points to which lower rates are made for the long than the short distance, it is mentioned here because it is likely to become one at any moment, as the competition created by the lines via New Berne seriously threatens the maintenance of our rates to Goldsborough, which are all much higher than the rates in use by the line via New Berne.

Wherever the rates are lower from eastern cities for long distances than short, they are also lower from Richmond and Wilmington.

Wilmington, by long usage, which is regarded as equitable, has used the same rates as Charleston; the Charleston rates being fixed, in most part, by the line leading directly through Augusta, to wit, the South Carolina Railway, the rates from Richmond being always the same as the rates from Norfolk or Portsmouth; these two points, in the territory we reach, having relatively the same commercial position as well as equality of distance.

The above seems to embrace all points on the system of the Atlantic Coast Line, its branches and leased lines, where the rates are less for a long than a short distance, in the same direction-the shorter being within the longer.

There are, of course, many points beyond our termini to which we have lower rates for long distances than intermediate points; such as Savannah, Jacksonville, Augusta, At

lanta, Montgomery, Mobile, etc. These rates are made by other lines for causes which we do not control, and in the making of which rates we can not necessarily have a voice. We either adopt them as our rates, or withdraw from competition in case we find the rates unremunerative.

We have endeavored to so adjust our rates as to conform strictly to the requirements of the law, as we understand it, and in accordance with decisions rendered by your Commission from time to time. We find occasionally errors in our rates, which we correct whenever they appear, or when our attention is called to them.

DEAR SIR: In reply to your circular-letter of the 20th ultimo, I beg to say:

(1) That between points upon the railroads owned or operated by this company, under lease or otherwise, there is no interstate rate for passengers or freight greater for the shorter than for the longer distance.

(2) The "joint tariff" rates on interstate passengers and freight made by this company, and in combination with other roads, are in no case greater for the shorter than for the longer distance.

This company, upon freight destined to points south of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad and the Ohio River, or to interior points on the Pacific roads, does name its regular rates from the point of shipment to the point of junction with the connecting lines, and the connecting lines name their rates from point of junction to destination, and the combined rate thus fixed is in some instances greater than the joint through rate to more distant points beyond, the lines lying south of the Ohio River and the Pacific roads claiming the right to thus name this greater rate, but this company itself in no case participates in the addition.

Very respectfully,

Mr. C. C. MCCAIN,

Auditor Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, D. C.

S. SPENCER,
Vice-President.

BATESVILLE AND BRINKLEY RAILROAD COMPANY.

DEAR SIR: Replying to your circular dated October 20. Newport and Jacksonport on this line and White River are accorded lower rates in competition with steamboats from Memphis, Tenn., than intermediate stations. Below please find rates as requested.

1 2 3 4 A B

C D E

ט

Newport and Jacksonport...

All other stations......

The passenger business is strictly on a mileage basis.
Yours, respectfully,

C. C. MCCAIN,

JOHN F. FLYNN, General Freight and Ticket Agent.

Auditor Interstate Commerce Commission, Washington, D. C.

BENTON TRANSPORTATION COMPANY.-MISSOURI RIVER STEAMERS. DEAR SIR: Respectfully replying to your communication of the 20th, I beg to state there are no points upon the line of this company to or from which interstate rates for freight or passengers are higher than rates to or from more distant points in the same direction on our line on the Upper Missouri River, or the country tributary thereto,