and in car X Y Z 510," or whatever the facts may be. In some cases shippers secure the waybill reference and other information from the originating carrier, and forward the information to the second carrier, instead of depending upon the originating carrier to do it. Shippers who do this, work upon the assumption that they can get better service than if the matter is left to those who have a large volume of tracers to get out for many shippers.

While waybill references and other identifying marks may be necessary in connection with less-than-carload shipments, this is not generally the case with carload shipments, as the car number is all the identification that is necessary. It is true that some carload shipments have to be transferred, but carriers are required to pass on to each other such information as may be necessary to connect the car that reaches destination with the particular car that left the point of origin carrying the same shipment. In view of the fact that the car number is a specific identifying mark, it is practicable for the shipper to trace carload shipments with any of the carriers over whose route the shipment has passed, may have passed, or should have passed. In other words, it is a comparatively simple matter for carriers to tell by reference to their car records whether or not a car has passed a certain point.

The railroads have recently begun the practice of having what are known as "passing records" sent to points of origin and other points, where shippers may secure information as to present location of their cars without having to ask that a tracer be started to locate an individual car.

4. When to Trace. As has already been pointed out, the function of a tracer is to locate property that is missing or delayed, and not to expedite freight that is moving along as it should. This means that a tracer should not be started until there has been a reasonable time for the shipment to reach destination, and, until there has been definite information from the destination to the effect that the shipment has not reached there. In general it may be stated that a tracer should not be started until more time has elapsed than is ordinarily

required for a shipment to reach its destination For example, if it generally requires 6 days for traffic to get to a certain point, it would not be out of reason to allow 8 days before starting a tracer. With the increasingly regular schedules in the delivery of freight, it is proper to assume that any considerable delay may be taken as indicating that something has gone wrong; for instance, that the shipment has perhaps been loaded on the wrong car. In some cases it is required that, in asking for a tracer, written advice from destination be submitted to show non-delivery.

It is unfortunately true that the abuse of tracers in the past has tended to make it more difficult to get prompt service when real need arises. The shipper who traces in good faith and does not find the carriers as sympathetic as he thinks they should be, must bear this in mind. Perhaps the man who is handling his tracers has recently found that some shipper has been using the tracer service to get written advice from the carrier, as a proof of delivery, to use this proof in compelling a customer to pay his bills.

That the carriers are not trying to put unreasonable obstacles in the way of legitimate tracing is shown by the fact that the American Railway Express no longer requires a written statement from the consignee that the shipment has not been delivered, although that requirement was originally put in force to prevent some of the abuses previously referred to.

The shipper who files requests for tracers only when they are actually necessary, and who accompanies his request with complete information regarding the circumstances of the case, will find that he gets the service that he wants, and to which he is entitled.

5. The result of sending out a tracer will be either to locate the missing article, or, after due search, to establish its definite loss. In the case of this latter issue, the logical sequel to the sending out of the tracer is the filing of a claim to cover the loss. The filing of such claims for losses, as well as other types of claims, is taken up in the remaining articles of this Section.

FREIGHT CLAIMS

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

6. Importance of Freight Claims.-There is no phase of traffic work that directly affects more shippers and receivers of freight than the handling of claims for loss, damage, and overcharge on property transported. This statement should not be understood as implying that more money is involved than in the actual payment of transportation charges, but it is a fact that many of those who pay for transportation services do also have to put in claims. While the importance of claims cannot be accurately reckoned in dollars and cents, since indirect losses are never compensated, it is nevertheless some index of their significance, that claims against the railroads for loss and damage in this country amounted to over one hundred million dollars in the year 1920, and one-half of this amount, according to some competent authorities, represents loss and damage that need never have occurred. Large as it is, the amount named does not fully reflect the financial losses incurred, as it is now recognized that the carrier's check in payment of a claim will not compensate for the loss of dissatisfied customers. If goods are continually received in bad order, or not received at all, the customer is very apt to look around to see if he can buy from some one who will see that he gets his goods promptly and safely.

Another loss for which claim money makes very imperfect restitution is that of rare articles, such as it may be difficult or impossible to replace. The inadequacy of a check in payment for lost or damaged goods was brought home during the World War, when it was a common experience that nothing could be found with which to replace a machine or other article that arrived in a condition unfit for operation. While con

ditions were very unusual during the war, there is never a time when this same situation may not arise, particularly in connection with export shipments. That claims do not fully represent losses from straying and damage in transportation is shown in the case of eggs. Railroads and express companies are paying out millions of dollars yearly for claims on eggs, and the price of eggs is higher than it would be if hundreds of dozens were not destroyed before reaching the market. Fortunately shippers and carriers are today fully awake to the fact that claims are a very serious matter, and that many of them arise from preventable causes.

7. Competence Required in Handling Claims. While everything possible should be done to reduce the number of claims to a minimum, it is not to be expected that the time will ever come when there will be no claims at all, and it is therefore important to have a clear understanding of the methods and documents used in filing and collecting claims. It is an unfortunate fact that the management of many concerns fails to realize the error of entrusting the handling of claims to incompetent persons. The effect of having claims in incompetent hands will manifest itself in three ways: (a) Claims without merit will be filed; (b) claims of merit will not be filed, through ignorance of the fact that they are collectible; (c) valid claims will be held up or declined by the carriers.

While the losses caused by the filing of claims without merit will not be obviously reflected in dollars and cents, they will nevertheless work injury. In the first place, it must be realized that the preparation and investigation of claims cost money, which means that both the party who files the claim, and also the carrier, have spent money unnecessarily when claims without merit are filed. It is only natural to expect that the claimant who causes avoidable expense and work will feel it in the general treatment accorded his claims by the carriers. A more tangible injury that may result from the filing of claims without merit, is that the man who files them is thus revealed to the claim department of the carrier as a man who

does not know his business, and he will have to suffer the natural results of this exposure. It is not revealing any secret to say that the man who files claims is informally classified in the carrier's claim department according to his record (a) in displaying ability as a claim man, by filing claims that have real justification; (b) in displaying honesty and fairness in his dealings relative to claims. In what has just been said it is not intended to imply that a claim man should expect to collect every claim that he files, but rather that he should not file claims that a competent claim man knows cannot be collected, or that can be collected only by false statements or other dishonest methods.

8. Failures From Incompetence.-The points where an incompetent claim man may be expected to fail in connection with good claims may be enumerated as follows:

1. Valid claims are not filed, because it is not known that carriers can be held liable for certain loss, damage, or overcharge that has occurred.

2. Claims that are otherwise valid are not collected, because they are not filed soon enough. The carriers specify on bills of lading, and elsewhere, that claims must be filed within a specified time. This provision is one that not only can be, but is enforced, with the result that claims that are otherwise valid are constantly being rejected.

3. Many claims are not paid, because it is not possible to produce certain essential documents. While there are cases in which it is not possible to collect claims where papers are missing, there are other cases where the wise traffic man knows how to offset such shortages; for instance, by using a bond of indemnity if the original bill of lading cannot be produced. It may also be said that such documents as the bill of lading would often not be missing if the man who handles claims would see to it that those documents are kept where they can be found when needed. It is a fact that bills of lading often lie around in the offices of business houses like pieces of scratch paper, until they are thrown away or put away by some one who looks upon them as a nuisance.