N&W in 1912--Freight rates

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Bluefield Daily Telegraph
March 10, 1912

MEANS SAVING OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS
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Full Effect of Decision in the Rate Case Just Beginning to be Understood
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BLUEFIELD NOT ONLY TOWN THAT WILL BENEFIT
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All Rates Complained of by People of This City, Except Those From Chicago, Were Found Unreasonable and Some Reductions Are Listed
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COMMERCE COURT WILL NOT GRANT AN INJUNCTION
    The full effect of the decision of the interstate commerce commission in the Bluefield freight-rate case is just now beginning to be understood by the people most interested.  The facts are that the reduction will aggregate a saving of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually to the people of the towns along the Norfolk and Western affected by the decision, Bluefield not being alone in the benefits.  The contention was that Bluefield, Radford, Christiansburg and other points were being discriminated against as compared with Roanoke, and when the case was decided the Roanoke Times claimed that Roanoke had won out.  Such is not the case, the fact being that Roanoke has received the hardest blow in her history.  Under the old rates some commodities from the west were hauled through Bluefield and on to Roanoke at rates that enabled the Roanoke jobber to ship back as far as Narrows, and even to Welch and Richlands, [for] less money than Bluefield jobbers were paying to have them delivered at Bluefield.  Under the new rates Bluefield can compete for trade east of the city half way to Roanoke, and at every point less than half way can undersell Roanoke.  The same holds true in the case of Radford and Christiansburg.
    The commission found all of the rates complained of by the Bluefield people unreasonable, except those from Chicago, and ordered reductions effective April 15th....
[The list that followed gave the cents reductions in six freight classifications from various cities.  The list was followed by several rather tedious paragraphs.  Both the list and the following paragraphs are omitted here.]

Gordon Hamilton
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