BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE OF THE US, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 36 ON THE BILLS RELATING TO CAR SUPPLY AND WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1908 CAR SUPPLY AND TRAIN SERVICE. COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, The committee met at 1.30 p. m., Hon. William P. Hepburn (chairman) in the chair. STATEMENT OF MR. JAMES D. CONDON. Mr. CONDON. I come before you in behalf of the Chicago coal dealers and the Illinois and Wisconsin retail coal dealers. The intent of the bill which is known as the Culberson car and transportation service bill (H. R. 13841), is to require the railroads to furnish cars for through shipment to points of destination other than on their own lines; to require them to interchange cars with other railroads. Just a word or two regarding the coal situation. Coal has been regarded by the railroads for a number of years as the one product, probably along with lumber, that has not any place. They start out with a train and they have some cars of coal, and as the train progresses they are able to take on a higher grade of commodity calling for a higher rate. They dump off the coal on the side track, and it has frequently occurred that a car has been as many as ten weeks coming a distance where the usual and average haul should not be greater than ten or twelve days, and that is due to the fact that they throw the coal off on the different sidings as they go along for the purpose of making more out of the power that they then have in hand. The result of it is that in Chicago the car-service association, for example, on the question of demurrage, permits the dealer fortyeight hours within which to unload a car. The coal dealers of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Chicago believe in demurrage, but they insist that if the railroad companies are entitled to a prompt return of the cars the railroads should be required to furnish the cars promptly and furnish the coal promptly. For example, a dealer will have a certain number of demands for coal. He figures that it will take five cars a week or ten cars a week to handle his demand. He orders his coal with that end in view. His equipment is all along those lines. He has a certain number of men for the purpose of unloading cars. If the cars came in that way, two or three a day or every other day, as they are ordered, there never would be such a thing as demurrage, because the average coal man could unload all that he would ask for under those conditions; but they drop the coal off here and there and instead of turning in on a given day five cars and on another day five cars, they will sometimes unload on this man fifteen or twenty cars, and with his usual equipment he is not able to handle it, and the result of it is that he has to pay a demurrage. |