COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL ASSOCIATION OF UNION SPRINGS, ALA., ET ALS. VS. CENTRAL OF GEORGIA RAILWAY COMPANY, ET ALS.

Petition for Rate on Compressed Cotton from Union Springs, Ala., to All Points in Alabama.

The complainant is an association composed of citizens of Union Springs. They petition to the Commission that the defendant railways be required:

First: To publish a rate on compressed, as well as uncompressed cotton from Union Springs to all intrastate points, and

Second: That said defendant railways be required to desist from discrimination against the compress located at Union Springs, and thereby discriminating against that locality.

The compression of cotton had its origin at the seaports engaged in the exportation of cotton. Its purpose was the reduction of the size of the bale, to be enabled thereby to increase or double the carrying capacity of sea-going vessels. In economizing of space in vessels, the expense of handling cotton as an article of freight was greatly reduced, resulting in a proportionate decrease in ocean freight rates, and in general benefit to the exportation of cotton at large. The advantage that was derived from compression was soon after recognized by the railroads for the economization of space in their own rolling stock used in the transportation of cotton to the ports. Some of these railroads begun to erect compresses at various cotton centers along their lines in the interior, and cotton passing such centers in course of transportation to the ports was stopped, unloaded, com

pressed, reloaded and shipped to the ports, while the empty cars thus obtained by the reduction of space were retained and used for additional transportation of the cotton crop in its course of movement from point of origin. The movement was much accelerated and cost of handling reduced, which found its reflection in the wid er development and expansion of the trade in the interior. With the growth of the cultivation of cotton, its area increased and new compresses were erected in the interior. In the erection of new compresses not only railroads, but private corporations and individuals also participated, through the encouragement of the railroads, until the greater part of the cotton crop was compressed in the interior at such points where a sufficiently large amount of cotton could be concentrated for compression to pay a fair return on the investment in a compress plant. The railroads paid the cost of compressien which, at that time, in Alabama, was 10 cents per hundred pounds-the custom of the railroads paying for the compression still prevails. As about double the quantity of compressed cotton could be placed in a car when compared with the amount of uncompressed, the handling of compressed cotton became a great advantage to the railroads and the payment of the 10 cents per hundred pounds for compression was generally conceded to be productive in increased revenues to the railroads in the shape of releasing the rolling stock, provided the haul of the cotton was of sufficient length.

The Central of Georgia Railway Company, one of the defendants, owns several of these interior compresses erected many years ago, which were among the first of these interior compresses to come into existence. They continued the operation of these presses until recent years when they were leased, afterwards becoming the

nucleus around which was formed the Atlantic Compress Company, a corporation, which is operating through ownership, or lease, practically all the compresses in Alabama.

Since the origin of compresses, the system of handling cotton at the interior compresses has undergone various developments. There are now three different methods in operation between the compresses and the railroads in the handling and transportation of cotton.

First-The handling of local cotton, under which is understood such cotton that had its origin in the local market wherever a compress may be located.

Second-Cotton which is shipped from points that have no compress, on through bills of lading to destination. This cotton, en route, is stopped at compress points for the purpose of compression, and is restored to the railroad after compression has been finished, to continue on its way to destination.

Third-Cotton which originates, or is bought at the small interior market and concentrated at compress points for the purpose of re-handling by shippers, and compression.

This latter system of re-handling cotton originating at smaller points, has grown greatly in late years. Such cotton is shipped from the small points to compresses, local freight charges ostensibly being collected from point of origin to the compress point. But the buyer of such cotton has the privilege of assorting, classing and handling cotton received at the compresses in this manner, until he has collected a sufficient amount of cotton of uniform grade as suited for his purpose to reship the same to destination. He then tenders the expense bills for the cotton he has first received and in return the railroad at the compress point issues to him a

bill of lading, taking its origin from the original point of shipment. The rate of freight inserted in the bill of lading is the through rate from the original point of shipment and not from the compress point, and upon the exchange of expense bills for through bill of lading, the railroads refund to the shipper the amount of local freight charge he originally has paid for transporting the cotton from the smaller points to the compress cen

ters.

It is necessary to state that no such concentration is practiced at other than compress points, and that the purpose of concentration is to economize rolling stock and to facilitate and make possible the movement of the cotton crop, when the supply of cars would be insufficient to transport the vast traffic during the harvest season. The evidence shows that each of the different railways concentrate cotton at Union Springs, and while the Union Springs Northern, and Seaboard Air Line, and their connections, perform the business at the Union Springs compress in the manner as described in the foregoing, the Central of Georgia Railway Company, though concentrating cotton at Union Springs, declines to receive from the compress cotton in compressed state. In other words, the Central of Georgia will carry cotton from small points to Union Springs but refuses to have such cotton compressed at the press located there, thereby declining to avail itself of the benefits to be derived from the custom of concentration, when carried out as designed or intended. It ships such cotton as it has hauled to Union Springs away uncompressed and has it compressed at other and competing compresses. The defendant, Central of Georgia Railway, declines to offer any testimony or participate in this hearing, presenting the following reasons therefor: That if the relief be

granted in any respect whatsoever, prayed for, the result will necessarily be to decrease the net revenue which the Central of Georgia Railway Company now enjoys for hauling cotton out of Union Springs and if that be true, the Commission is enjoined by the terms of a certain injunction issued by the United States District Court from granting any relief sought in the petition.

The defendant, Central of Georgia Railway Company, would not, the Commission feels sure, after mature reflection, seriously urge the objection as presented, and the Commission will not here discuss the application of the said injunciton to the subject matter of the complaint at issue. It is sufficient if their orders steer clear of any violation of its restrictions.

The Commission will not at this time give consideration to that part of the petition which asks for a differential in rates on compressed cotton, as there is before the Commission a like petition in which all railroads within the State are joined at which hearing the question can be more fully gone into.

As to the discriminative feature of the petition, there are two practices as disclosed by the evidence subject to complaint:

First-Concentrating from Union Springs to other compress points and not permitting concentration from such points to Union Springs;

Second-While under the semblance of allowing concentration privileges, the cotton, in fact, is not permitted to take the usual course as at other concentrating points.

Concentration at compresses is a great boon to the producers of cotton. According to the system of letting shipments of cotton go forward on original freight rates from small interior points to final points of destination,