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OMPANY BY THE DETROIT BOARD OF TRADE. SUBMITTED MARCH 3, 1873. DETROIT: TRIBUNE BOOK AND JOB OFFICE 1873. >«•- T H E DETROIT BOARD OF TRADE vs. TIIK GHAiXD TRUNK RAILWAY. '^ » » MEMORIAL OK A COMMITTEE OF THE DETROIT BOARD OF TRADE TO THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE OF THE LEGISLATURE OF MICHIGAN, APPOINTED TO INVESTIGATE CHARGES MADE AGAINST THE GRAND TRUNK RAILWAY COMPANY I5Y THE DETROIT BOARD OF TRADE. SUBMITTED MARCH 3. 1873. DETROIT: 'I R I b U N E BOOK AND j () H OFFICE 1873. ■ w^^w- ■■^—■■^■WipiWWfglW^M 'T WiPIWIW '' MEMORIAL. Jfr. Chairman and Gentlemen of the Legislative Committee : With your kind permission, I will now sum up the evidence that has been adduced before you, and also reply on the part of the Detroit Board of Trade to Mr. Spicer's attempted justification of the Grand Trunk Railway, I will, at the outset, state that Mr. Spicer's endeavor to show that this investigation has been instigated by a few members of the Detroit Board of Trade, mure par- ticularly myself, Mr. H. P. Bridge, and the Messrs. Bots- ford. out of personal feelings and motives, has turned out a painful failure. His other statement, that "a large number of the most upright, respectable and wealthy members of the Board, disapproved of, and were decidedly opposed to this investigation, and were perfect'y satisfied with the Grand Trunk management, and had voluntarily offered to come forward and bear testimony to the efficiency of the road and its managers, has not been sustained or supported by one single gentleman of the Board except Mr. William Livingstone, who, under oath on his cross examination, swore that he had no experience ivhatever touching the matter being investigated. Conse- quently his evidence goes for nothing either way. The Committee must have noted with pleasure, the mmt 1 I. [ entire absence of ill-feeling, rancor or personal motives on the part of the lioard and its managers in this case. On the contrary, every member of your Honorable Com- mittee must bear witness to the unvarying courtsey, ac- commodating spirit and personal good will towards the Grand Trunk and its managers, exhibited by every mem- ber of the Board of Trade interested m this investigation, completely disproving Mr. Spicer's assertions to the contrary, and destroying the chances of those he repre- sents to excite public sympathy by raising the cry of unjust, uncalled for, and malignant persecution on account of personal motives, Mr. Spicer was not so forbearing himself, when he characterised the conduct of the gentlemen who have caused this investigation " as not onl\' uncalled and im- proper, but unwarrantably impertinent." Gentlemen of the Committee, we shall not indulge in tills style of argument or language. The case we have presented, and proved before you, is too strong and just to need the use of such strong sentences. We have de- pended on the merits of our own case, and on them alone for justification of our proceedings and with what success, we lea\e the Conunittee to judge. Mr. Spicer's short sentence which 1 lui\e just repealed, is the kev-note to the feelings the Cirand Trunk man- ag«^rs feel towards all those who do mA (.leem their management imniiiculate and infallible. After Mr. Bridge, my.self, the Messrs. Botsford. antl in fact e\er\- witness produced have shown delays of not dnys^ not wechs, but mouths, of our propert\-. intrusted h\- us to the care of the Grand Trunk for transportation, \-our Committee after having such evidence in limitless abundance placed 5 before you, must have been astounded at the sublime audacity, or simple modesty^ of the managers of this roatl, in decinin^f the men " impertineut^ decidedly impertiuent /" who simply ask that such monstrous \vroni;s be rij^hted, and venture in a proper way to have this outrageous treatment of the patrons of the road discontinued. VV^e have placed evidence in your hands which i)roves that corn ordered shipped at Detroit for (nielph, Ontario, on the 6th of December, i to the statistics of his own line. The figures fiiri.ished by the Grand Trunk officials prove completely, and without a chance of contiadiction, what we have so stoutly main- tained and what the managers of the ro.id have as stoutly denied — tht vast importance of the Michigan busines.s and its great extent and volume. Ihe figures furnished from Sarnia from the agent of the road at that point triumphantly proves our every state- ment on this head, and as clearly and triumphantly dis- proves every statement Mr. Spicer made to the contrary, and proves farther, that Michigan and Detroit alone could have furniv'.ed a greater number of cars of freiglit than have been ferried across the river from Port Huron to Port Sarnia from the first day of December, 1872, to the 27th day of P"ebruary, 1873. I see looks of wonder, and Incredulity on the faces of many members of the Com- mittee. I will prove what I have stated from the figures just placed in your hands by Mr. Campbell of the Grand Trunk Railway, acting here for the Company, of course I have only had but a few minutes to look at them ; but this few minutes' examination of theso figures has aston- ished me. Mark I pray you with attention what they tiisclose. From Dec. i, 1872, to Feb. 27, 1873, a period of 89 days, the number of cars crossed from Port Huron to Sarniif, were 4,750, of this number Detroit furnished 1.055. The average number crossed daily was 53 33-89 cars in all. The Detroit portion was ;i fraction under 1 2 cars, or as near as can be, 22 per cent, of the whole number; man v of these cars were ordered for weeks '#§>■' before they were furnished at: Detroit, and many, very many of them, have been weeks on their way to point of shipmeiat ; c\nd have not yet reached their destination when that destination is within 200 to 230 miles of the City of Detroit. And yet, Mr. Spicer makes solemn oath : " the company in Michigan does at all times carry all the freight from Detroit and other points in Mich- igan, as fast as it can possibly be received and taken forward East by the Grand Tiunk Railv/ay from Port Huron ai:d Sarnia through Canada." Your honorable Committee have before you, abundant proofs of what " as , fast as can possibly be received " means ; it means 84 days to Guelph and two to three months to New England points. Mr. Spicer speaks not only in eloquent, but in grand cloc[uent terms of the wonderful things the Grand Trunk Railway has done for Michigan and the West.. Why gentlemen, if I owned a railroad 1,300 miles long with 2,000 employees, 400 locomotives and 5,000 cars, 1 should either take more than 53 cars, (530 tons) daily Dul of the thousands of tons offered at the West for transportation, or cease boasting under oath that this great road and its great equipment depended on the West for business to keep it moving, when dis- piscd and ignored Detroit could have furnished the road more business this winter than its own figures just quoted prove the road, and its managers have the ca- p.icity to do. Cientlemen, only think of a road with 2,ooo employees dependitig on 53 cars of western freight per day, to keej) it running to its fuP capacit)-. and the full capacity so small that freight is iionths in reaching .vS destination. A capacity of 53 cars per day with 5,000 10 cars gives each car 95 days to make the round trip whatever that may mean ; but suppose 2,500 of the cars are employed in the local trade, it would still give each car 45 days to make the round trip, or about eight trips in a year. I think that there is no road on this continent, that can show as small a capacity for doing business, with so great means at its disposal to do it, as the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada ; and to allow the line to be entirely blocked up with 53 cars per day from the West shows it is full time that heaven, Micawber, the Legislature of Michigan, or the English stock holders took charge of it, or that the present management should radically change their present sys- tem of doing business, mingle more among their cus- tomers, to learn their wants, art more in harmony with the requirements of the best patrons of the road and die public at large, and cease to evade, resist and deny all demands for improvement and reform. A few more words and I am done with Mr. Spicer and his lame excuses. I made no charge whatever as your Committee are well aware, about any oflficer connected with the Grand Trunk, being in anyway concerned in rings, this statement is entirely gratuitous on the part of Mr. Spicer. I simply stated that if the Grand Trunk owned all its cars instead of hiring them at one and one half cent-s per mile, it would be better for the owners of the road and the public, chat if the cars run 100 miles per day, they would pay for themselves in two years. And that if a car lasted ten years the Company could have built and (iwned five cars for what in that time they would have paid for the mileage on one. And that if these figures were correct it was no wonder that the road vvas poor II i trip e cars i give about road ipacity isposal 1 ; and ith 53 e that or the present It sys- ir cus- ly with ad and .3t and icer and as your ted with ngs, this . Spicer. d all its :ents per oad and lay, they hat if a )uilt and uld have se figures vvas poor and the owners of the cars were rich and made money fast. I am not aware that the road has complied with your request for a list of the stockholders in the car companies operating on the Grand Trunk Railway, or how many miles they run and how much they were paid in 1872. This information if furnished would throw all necessary light on the car question. Mr. Spicer states that when Mr. Potter was here from London and visited the Board of Trade and asked what grievances the members had to complain of, no one replied and Mr. Potter and the Company took it for granted there was none to make. I was asked by some of the members to appear before Mr. Potte*-. but I refused for the reason that Mr. Potter had taken no notice of a communi- cation sent from the Board to London, a few months before hisvisit here. I had too much respect for myself and the Detroit Board of Trade to put myself voluntarily in com- munication with one who had insulted a body of men as respectable and influential as the gentlemen composing the Board, (by not answering their communication,) my tastes do not run in that direction. The conduct of the English managers of the Great Western Railway of Canada was in decided contrast with the course pursued by the London officials of the Grand Trunk. Mr. Spicer rather intimates that I was rude to Sir Thomas Dakin. Nothing can be further from the fact. Sir Thomas' visit to the Board and that of his friends was one of the most enjoyable meetings ever held by the Board, and will always be remembered with feel- ings of pleasure by every one present, laying our grievances against the Great Western Railway before Sir "rhomas in a plain business like manner, was noc deemed m imper- .jmmm B»!^>^w»=iV' ■ r -^■f'gmeatm 12 HI III tinence, but a friendly act and accepted as such and I am sure Sir Thomas and his friends look back with only feel- im^s of pleasure to those hours spent with the Detroit Board of Trade. I will now review the evidence offered by the Grand Trunk to justify its conduct and overturn the testimony presented by the Board of Trade. Mr, Livingstone the first witness swore he knew notJiiiig about the question at issue, hence as before stated his evidence was worthless for the Grand Trunk. Daniel Ryan had been in business 13 years, last year had shipped only two full car loads, one of pork and one of whisky, to Port Huron, my other shipments were five and ten barrel lots, never remember to have shipped many full cars, in 13 years. Know nothing about the question at issue. Peregrene M. Edson. Lives at Fort Gratiot. Have been in business 10 years. Never shipped a car load of anything at once during that time. Know nothing about the question at issue. Thomas Conway. Am a manufacturer at Ridgeway. Ship 100 to 300 cars per year to Detroit, Chicago, Buffalo and New York. Get plenty of cars. Do no business at local stations in Canada or New England. Knoiv nothing about the question at issue. Hiram Hazelton. Reside at Baltimore Station. Ship I to 3 cars per day. Get plenty of cars. Cross-examined by Mr. Stewart. I pay $300 to $500 per month freight, average shipment 2 cars per day, all to Detroit. Mr. Stewart: You must get very low freights to get 2 cars per day for $300 to $500 per month. Have 1 I am iy feel- Detroit Grand timony knew stated 5t year , one of ive and my full ition at Have load of ^ about dgeway. Z!hicago, Do no 13 you not made the number of cars too hit^h. Ans. : I i^uess I have j^ot things a little mixed. Knoiv nothing ahoni the question at issue. M. D, Frink. Live at Smith's Creek. Have shipped 300 cars of staves within three years. Have had no trouble in getting cars. Knoiv nothing about the c^uestion at issue. These gentlemen are all the witnesses outside of the officers of the Road that have been brought forward to disprove the charges preferred by the Board of Trade against the road. You will please note that every one of those witnesses swear that they know nothing about the question at issue. Such absurd and farcical specimens of rebutting testimony was never offered before any tribunal. The failure is so plain and complete I will say no more about it. Mr. Spicer has had every opportunity to furnish all the testimony he desired and the result is before you. Not one of the rich, highly respectable, prominent members have come forward to help the Road as Mr. Spicer states they offered to do, and he did not dare to summon them ; if he had their evidence would have been on a par with thern imported from Fort Gratiot, Port Huron, Smith's Creek, and Ridgeway ; all would have sworn that they knew nothing about the question at issue. We have proved every charge we made. The road has found each charge supported by incontestible evidence. We have presented for your consideration, an array of facts that cannot be assailed or overturned. We have shown you that the growth of Detroit has been kept back and the developement of the State retarded by the neglect of the Grand Trunk and other roads to do the business of both promptly. We have shown you that business u of jjreat volume and importance has been lost to the city on account of the delays we complain of. We have shown you by the figures that Detroit and the State of Michigan have been belittled and sneered at by the Grand Trunk Railway managers. We have shown you that they acted towards us in the spirit of Judge Taney in the Dred Scott case. He declared, that " negroes had no rights white men were bound to repect." The Grand Trunk road acts as if Detroit and Michigan " had no rights," its managers " were bound to respect." We hope to teach them a sounder doctrine. I am glad Senator Richardson and Representative Burns are on this Committee. They are large merchants, and can understand our case. Suppose either of you had customers i8o to 190 miles from Detroit, and that you shipped them goods that did not arrive for many weeks after they had left your hands and been receipted for by one of our railroad companies, do you think you could retain their custom .-' You know you could not, and that is just the position of the complainants in this case. Mr. Dickinson swears he has lost the orders for forty cars of. grain this winter for want of cars, and that the orders for these forty cars would have been followed by other orders, so that the first loss in business involved the loss of succeeding business that he would have secured. Mr. Wendell swears his firm has lost business to the extent of 250 cars per month. Mr. Bridge swears that in the winter of 1 871- 1872 he had to forego one order of 40,000 bushels of grain /or want of cars, and that he lost much other business besides. Mr. Anderson swears to a nearly total destruction of his business for want of cars. 15 Mr. Alexander Lewis swears to refusing many orders for the same reasons. The losses of the firm I represent have been heavy for the same reason. The business of J. L. Hurd & Co. would have been at least six times as large over the Grand Trunk if they could have got the cars. Out of one sale of 40,000 bushels corn, ordered by the pur- chasers to be shipped on the Grand Trunk, only 800 bushels were shipped on that Lne ; 39,200 bushels had finally to go over the Great Western of Canada, the managers . of which line are now waking up to the fa^-^ that Detroit is of some importance as a freight point, and they are making the most gigantic efforts to ac- commodate the trade. They at least do not ignore our right to be served. J. L. Hurd & Co. have also had to ship, and are shipping, 60,000 bushels more corn that was all ordered by the Grand Trunk Railway, bit for which no cars could be furnished. This large amount goes over the Great Western Railway, by con ;fnt of the purchasers, who see no hope of getting their business done over the Grand Trunk, although they so n^uch desire to do it over that line. I will not weary you with any farther illustrations of the sad incapacity of the Grand Trunk to meet the de- mands upon it for cars. I have stated enough ; I have offered the attorney of the road here present any amount of further testimony of a similar character, but he is satisfied that enough has been adduced to make out our case. I will now turn to the effort s lown to establish the fact that the road in Michigan is no part of the Grand 16 Trunk, consequently the Grand Trunk was under no obligation to do any Michigan business unless it suited its own convenience to do so. I tell the managers of the Grand Trunk Railway that Michigan will tolerate no such pettifogging. The portion of the line in Michigan is the key to the position of its western trade. Let it once be known that the policy and purpose of the Grand Trunk Company is to ignore Detroit and the State of Michigan, and it would arouse a feeling of such determined hostility against them in the breast of every man in the State as would not be profitable for the road and its business. This road has received valuable franchises from the people of this State its property has been freed from the same taxation as our own roads it has the protec- tion of our laws, it has more of our business offered to it than it can do, it has the good will and good Wishes of us all for its well being, but let it adopt or even hint farther in that direction, and at once its best friends becomes its most bitter enemies. We are glad to perceive to-day that the monstrous idea of yesterday is kept in the back ground let it remain there forever. We seek peace, friendship, harmony with the road and its managers, but let them war against the interests of Michigan a little longer, or deny their responsibility to her people and her laws, and they will soon find to their sorrow that there is one State in the Union, that is not afraid of a road 1,300 miles long or its mana- gers either. In conclusion gentlemen of the Committee we leave this matter to you and the wisdom of our representa- 17 tives at Lansing. We ask you for no law to embarrass the working r{ the Grand Trunk line within the borders of Michigan. VVe seek no law that will compel them to carry our produce at a loss to the owners of the road. Our Hoard of Trade have ever considered the laborer worthy of his hire, and have always deemed it just that rates should be remunerative to the owners of these great lines of communication, that they deserve a fair percentage on their outlay, and enough besides to keep up their roads to the highest attainable point of efficiency both on account of 'blic convenience and public safety, but still moderate enough not to cripple or interfere with development and production. I think a law compelling all roads within the State to take all freights offered in reasonable quantities within five days after it is offered .or shipment, from the point of ship- ment and then promptly to its destination sufficient to meet our case I would deem anything up to 20 cars a rea- sonable quantity, but would except all interference of Providence such as floods, fires, burning of bridges, ferry boats or stations, in one word we ask for reasonable legislation, such as is fair towards the roads and the people. But the roads must feel and acknowledge that the people are the masters of the situation, and that roads chartered for the benefit of the State and its development must at all times and under all circum- stances serve our people first, then if the Grand Trunk or any other road holding its franchises from the State find they have spare cars and engines to serve the peo- ple of the States beyond our own borders we say go and do it, but not gentlemen until all our reasonable wants are supplied. I believe I speak the unanimous sentiment of the Detroit Board of Trade in repects to these matters. mmm — ......... *..,iM,« m *% 18 Gentlemen of the Committee, for myself and the Board of Trade whom I represent on this most impor- tant occasion, I thank you with all sincerity for your patience and courtesy in giving so close attention to my statement of the case. I have had to speak on the spur of the moment, without the slightest prepa- ration so as to get the case finished and allow you to proceed at once to your duties at Lansing. Once more gentlemen, I thank you in the name of the Board of Trade of the City of Detroit for your kind bearing toward it, in the case now brought to a close. -I •I ■I I % and the t impor- for your ntion to peak on t prepa- low you g. Once le Board I bearing A PPENDTX. The ch;iirman of the Legislative Committee requested me tK'fore leaving;, to send such iiiformution as could be procured bcarini; on llu- (juestion at issue to Lansing. I told hini 1 would look over the fi<^iires furnished by the (ji-.ind Trunk Railway, and see what bearing they had on the contro\crsv. I have onh' the ti"-ures relatinsr to tin: cars crossed from i'ort llur<)n to Sarnia. I ha\e alread)- analyzed those for the present winter, that is from Dec. i. 1872 to l-'eb. 27, 1873. I'rom Dec. i, 1869 to May i, 1870, 6,144 cars w^re cros.sed at Port Huron, of these 2,442 were loaded at Detroit or 40 [)er cent, of the entire number. The time in which these cars were crossed was 151 days, mak- in^^ a dailv average of a fraction ovt^r 40 cars of which daily average Detroit furnished 16 cars. From Dec. i, 1870 to Ma\' i, 187J, 8,662 cars were crossed at Port Huron, of these, Detroit furnished 1,935 or 22 per cent, of the entire number for 151 days, this gives an average crossing of 57^-^ cars, Detroit furnishing 1234 cars of this daily average. From Dec. i, 1871, to May i, 1872, 9,035 cars were cros.sed to Sarnia from Port Huron ; of this, Detroit fur- nished 2,230 cars or 25 per cent, of the whole number cro.ssed for 151 days. This gives an average crossing oi a fraction under 60 cars daily, of which Detroit loaded ^ 20 J 15 of this average, 25 per cent. I will now condense the figures and show the yearly winter crossing' at a ylance : 2.442 •• l,i;35 '* 2,230 " ! .05 5 or 40 per cent. 12^ or 22 " " 15 or 25 " " 12 or 2? " " 1869 — 1870 151 Days, Crossed 6,142, Detroit liat 1870— 1 87 1 151 " " 8,662, 1871 — 1872 151 " " 9,035, 1872- 1873 «9 " " 4750, DAILV AVKRAGK. 1869 — 1870 40 Cars, Detroit 16 1870—1871 57 1871 — 1872 60 1872— 1873 53 33-89 Cars It will be seen that the facilities furnished Detroit has decreased since 1869 — 1870, and as compared with that period, 18 per cent, in 1870,1871, 15 per cent, in 1871. 1872, 18 per cent, in 1872, 1873. In the ni'Mtitinie, the number of miles (jf railroad within the borders af Michi<^an has more than doubled, the business has also more th;m 'doubled, so that if fa- cilities had continued to be furnished by the (irand Trunk Railway to Detroit and Michij^an shippers on the basis of those furnished in 1869, 1871, we should have required 80 per cent the present year of all the cars crossed at Sarnia. Hut as the Eel River Railroad has opened up an immense commerce with this point, I am safe on stating that Detroit ivoiild and did require more cars to do its business promptly, than has been crossed at Sarnia during the present winter. Mr. Spicer has been most unfortunate in furnishing* the Couimittee with figures, that so overwhelmingly proves the correctness of our case. As one of Shakes- pear's characters once exclaimed : " I thank thee Jew, for ihat." If Mr. Spicer has finished his study of Micawber he will find this quotation in the great Drama- -,iS. ise the ;lancc : 2.442 J.U35 2,2^0 !.o55 V CCJlt. II