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50 THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN.
WESTERN COAL DEALERS OBTAIN
CONCESSIONS FROM RAILROADS.
The Iowa-Nebraska Coal Dealers' Association has
come to an agreement with the railroads with
which it has been negotiating for several months.
Two important concessions have been made by the
roads, and President C. H. Chisam, speaking for
the members of the association, announces that
they are satisfactory. He says there will be no
effort by the dealers to secure legislation on reciprocal
demurrage, present arrangements being entirely
satisfactory. One of the points conceded
by the railroad companies is a reduction in the
weighing fee at destination of coal shipments from
$2 to $1 a car, together with the acceptance of
weights at delivery as the basis of freight charges.
The other victory won by the coal men has reference
to demurrage charges for cargoes which they
fail to unload within 24 hours after delivery. In
future, whenever the demurrage is questioned for
any reason, a board of arbitration will pass upon
it before payment is made.
Heretofore the dealers have always paid demurrage
charges first, and then, if there was cause
for complaint, would file a claim for the return of
the money paid. Hereafter they will not be required
to pay until the board of arbitration decides
that the charge is just. This board will comprise
the manager of the Western Car Service Association,
acting for the railroads, and a man chosen
by the coal dealers. Its conclusions will be mutually
binding. Lumber men are included in this
arrangement. The advantage to coal dealers in
basing freight charges on the weight of a cargo
at its destination is that it does not compel them
to pay transportation rates on what may be lost
in shipment. It often happens that a car of coal
loaded at the mine will tip the scales at 83,000 or
84,000 pounds, but when it is billed the weight
will have shrunk to 80,000 pounds or less. The
old practice was to charge freight on the mine
weight, regardless of the well known fact that coal
cargoes frequently lose in transit from theft and
other causes. Under the new plan the weight of
a carload at the end of its shipment will be taken
as prima facie evidence of the amount of coal it
contains, and the dealer will pay freight in accordance
with it. The only unsettled matter is the
value of the shrinkage in transit. The dealer must
pay for all the coal that leaves the mine, and the
railroads are held responsible for Iailure to deliver
full weights. It will be an easy matter to determine
claims under the system agreed upon, and it
is believed the roads will handle coal more carefully
than before. Where the benefit of the new
demurrage rule conies in is in forcing the railroad
companies to make deliveries regularly or losing
the use of cars till they can be unloaded conveniently
to the dealer. Should one car a day be ship­
ped for a week, and they be held up en route so
that all reach the consignee at the same time, he
will not be called on to unload all within 24 hours
or pay for the cars held, but will be allowed extra
time, according to the number of cars.
RECENT COAL TRADE PATENTS.
The following recently granted patents of interest
to the coal trade, are reported expressly for
THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN b.v J. M. Nesbit, patent
attorney. Park building, Pittsburgh, Pa., from
whom printed copies may be procured for 15 cents
each:
Mine water car, W. J. Richards. Rockwood,
Tenn.; 787,112.
Miner's dumping car, Julia Kerst, Springfield,
111.; 789,189.
Mine-curtain raiser, G. W. Manlove, Cleveland;
787,200.
Chain and cutter-carrying device for mining
machines, T. G. Aultman. Fairmont, W. Va., assignor
to Joseph Jeffrey, Columbus, Ohio; 787,551.
Car-haul, A. M. Acklin. Pittsburgh, assignor to
Heyl & Patterson, Inc., same place; 787,605.
Miner's lamp, Ferdinand Kich, West Hazleton,
Pa.; 787,678.
Process of producing compressed coke, A. D.
Shrewsbury, Washington, D. C; 788,558.
Mining drill, F. W. Olcott, U. S. Navy, assignor
to H, F. Olcott. Kingston, N. Y.; 788,593.
Miner's pick, W. W. Hoover, Penfield, Pa.; Y88,-
719.
Cable-haul, J. L. Wagner, Fairmont, W. Va.;
788,861.
Cribbing, F. H. Brenton and John Struthers,
Pittston, Pa., 789,140. Cribbing, same; 789,183.
Device for cleaning coal breakers, J. L. Miller,
Pittsburgh, assignor to Heyl & Patterson, Inc.,
same place; 789,167.
Coal chute. D. S. Post, Painesville, Ohio, assignor
to H. A. Post, same place; 789,381.
Sunday in Wheeling.
Leave Pittsburgh in the morning; return in the
evening, over Pennsylvania Lines. 8.20 a. m. train
Central time from Pittsburgh Union Station has
parlor car. Returning parlor car train leaves
Wheeling 2.55 p. m.. arrives Pittsburgh 5.05 p. m.
Homeseekers Excursions
Via the Missouri Pacific Ry. to points in Missouri,
Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Old and New
Mexico, Arizona, Kansas, Colorado and Utah, at
very low rates. Tickets sold on first and third
Tuesdays of each month. For information address
John R. James, Centra] Passenger Agent, 315
Bessemer building, Pittsburgh, Pa.