I was also informed that it required about the same number for the year 1893. The first 30 miles of the road from Reno north was formerly laid with iron rails, which have, in the last two years, been replaced with steel rails. I found, in many places, the old line had been abandoned and a new one built, thereby lessening curvature distance and grades. The buildings of the road are good.

The road owns ample lands for terminal facilities for properly operat.ing the road, but none other, confining their business entirely to transportation, and having no interest in dams or reservoirs which are being constructed in Honey Lake Valley, which will, in course of time, develop the country, and will be an inducement for settlers to cultivate the soil, and thereby increase population and business for the railroad. I was really surprised to find such a well constructed and equipped railroad in a country so sparsely settled. I heard no complaint regarding the road; on the contrary, it is doing all that can be done to develop the country by having low rates and assisting to market its products.

I made inquiry of J. M. Fulton, Master of Transportation, about extending the road. Mr. Fulton was non-committal, but informed me that if it had not been for the California Legislature of 1893, they would now be building north into Modoc County, California, and Lake County, Oregon, which, he says, is the best territory that he knows of without a railroad. This road is a three-foot gauge, has only two stations in California, and I am really in hope that the owners of this road will see their way clear to build it into Oregon, as that would be the means of developing a great agricultural country, besides furnishing accommodations for carrying out live stock, instead of being driven a long distance to a railroad.

Respectfully,

WILLIAM BECKMAN,

Railroad Commissioner for the First District.

Filed in office of Railroad Commissioners, June 3, 1893.

SACRAMENTO, May 25, 1893.

To the honorable Board of Railroad Commissioners of California:

GENTLEMEN: While on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevadas, I also traveled over the Carson and Colorado Railroad, starting from the Mound House, in the State of Nevada, thence running south, in the State of Nevada, to Queen, 183 miles; thence, in the State of California, to Keeler, 113 miles. This road runs through a sagebrush country; there is very little traffic on the same, either in passengers or freight. From Queen to Keeler, trains run on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays south, and Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays north. There is very little inducement for this road to branch out, or to extend its line; hence, but little improvement has been made, only what was absolutely necessary, for the last two years, although I found the road in very good condition, the station buildings sufficient to accommodate all the business, and in very good condition. I think the company deserves a great deal of credit for keeping their road in such good condition, when the emoluments are very light. It is true, some of the patrons of the road complain about high rates, but wherever I got in conversation with any

of the patrons, they admitted that they would not run the road if it was given to them, free of rent, for five years. I learned, by inquiry, that the builders of this road in the beginning were to extend it either to Mohave or to Barstow on the Santa Fe system, but I have my doubts whether this road will ever be extended, unless they should develop resources in that country not known of at the present time. While there are very fertile tracts of land adjacent to this road, at the same time the general nature is that of a grazing country.

On the 5th day of June, I expect to go north as far as the Oregon line, shall take in the Colusa and Lake Railroad, running from the town of Colusa to Sites, also the Yreka Railroad, running from Montague to Yreka, the county seat of Siskiyou County, and will report my observations at our next meeting.

Yours respectfully,

WM. BECKMAN,

Railroad Commissioner for the First District, California.

Filed in office of Railroad Commissioners, June 3, 1893.

SACRAMENTO, July 10, 1893.

To the honorable Board of Railroad Commissioners of California:

GENTLEMEN: Since our last meeting I have traveled extensively through the States of Oregon and Washington. I had a very pleasant meeting with the Railroad Commissioners of Oregon. We spent several hours discussing freights, fares, and railroads generally. I find that freights and fares are a great deal higher in Oregon and Washington than they are in California; but, considering the comparative sparseness of the population along most of the lines in Oregon and Washington, and consequent differences in the traffic to be moved, the differences in rates may be justified by the differences in commercial and industrial conditions. The following comparison will give you some information of passenger and freight rates in Oregon and a portion of Washington:

SACRAMENTO, CAL., July 10, 1893. Commissioner Beckman's comparison of passenger rates on the Oregon railroads and California railroads, being one cent per mile higher in Oregon than they are in California, as the following table will show:

SACRAMENTO, CAL., July 10, 1893. The following table will show the comparison on grain between the Union Pacific of Oregon and the Southern Pacific of California:

Filed in office of Railroad Commissioners, July 29, 1893.

COMMUNICATIONS, COMPLAINTS, ANSWERS, ETC.

COMMUNICATION OF U. S. MILLER & BROS.

Hon. JAMES W. REA:

MILPITAS, June 18, 1893.

DEAR SIR: AS Railroad Commissioner, I wish to ask you a question. At Milpitas the Southern Pacific has opened a wharf, on which we land our perishable produce. Now, in order to keep it from wilting, we have to load it in the cars ourselves, at the same time paying them 10 cents per hundred for shipping (double rates). This is not justice. Is it lawful for them to compel us to do it? If not, I wish you would give them a gentle notice of this negligence, and oblige your friends and supporters.

U. S. MILLER & BROS., Milpitas, Santa Clara County, Cal.

Filed in office of Railroad Commissioners, June 27, 1893.

JAS. V. KELLY,

Secretary.

REPLY OF SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY.

SAN FRANCISCo, August 3, 1893.

Hon. JAS. W. REA, Railroad Commissioner, City:

DEAR SIR Returning herewith letter of June 18th addressed to you by Messrs. U. S. Miller & Bros., Milpitas, I beg to say that we have carefully investigated the complaint, as we have every desire to meet the views of and satisfy our patrons to any extent practicable.

At Milpitas, as at other points where miscellaneous garden and field produce is shipped to San Francisco, the offerings of freight greatly fluctuate; for example, before the vegetable season opens there is very little shipped from that station in the way of miscellaneous produce, but as the season advances and fruits and vegetables mature, shipments of these commodities increase, dropping off later, after these crops have matured and been marketed. When business is light at the station our agent at Milpitas can easily do all the work without assistants; as the business increases we add such assistants as may prove necessary.

We have a freight platform there which Messrs. Miller & Bros. speak of as an "open wharf"; this platform is 20 feet wide, and while ample for the business done, is not wide enough to permit of any produce becoming wilted while being trucked across it. When business is brisk there a number of teams from different shippers, and more than

one perhaps from the same shipper, come to the depot at the time generally understood to be the hour when freight should be delivered at the station if to go forward on next train; at such times there is apt to be a rush, one man, whether it be the agent or his assistant, can, it is manifest, attend to but one team at a time, and the teams therefore have to take their turn. As, unfortunately, patrons generally do not make deliveries at the station until as near the time of train arrival and departure as they feel they can safely do, all of the fruit is delivered at a comparatively late hour, with a good deal of rush to get through as a consequence. If any of the teamsters undertake to unload their freight before their turn comes, it is not practicable for the other teams to be kept waiting while the agent with his assistant, or assistants, goes out of the regular order to take charge of the freight of the party unloading ahead of his turn. Sometimes also it happens that there is more than one team belonging to the same shipper, in which event, in order to hasten matters, it has more than once occurred that the two teamsters assist in getting off the load, so that they may get away without delay, and in that case it would not be unnatural if one of them did some of the trucking. It is usual for the teamsters to put the freight off the wagon onto the platform; if there were but one teamster and he was working with our agent or assistant, very likely the work would be combined, one lifting from the wagon, the other taking it and putting on the station truck, or both working on the wagon or with the station trucks, as might seem to be the way to do business with the quickest dispatch. It is not our custom to ask or require shippers to truck their own produce from their wagons into our cars, and we cannot find that Messrs. Miller & Bros. have found it necessary to do any trucking. We aim to furnish the assistance necessary at that station, and expect our own employés to do the work at the station.

As a rule, we get along very pleasantly at Milpitas and other stations like situated and with like kind of traffic, and have had no complaint except the one before us. Usually the agent and the shipper work harmoniously and pleasantly, and we are rather surprised that this complaint should have been deemed necessary. We are satisfied there is

no foundation for it, for we have not relied on the statements of our agent, but have sent a man specially to investigate the matter.

Yours truly,

C. A. SMURR.

Filed in office of Railroad Commissioners, August 4, 1893.

5R

JAS. V. KELLY,

Secretary.