Rawlings v. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad

190 N.W. 569, 109 Neb. 167, 1922 Neb. LEXIS 36
CourtNebraska Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 13, 1922
DocketNo. 22101
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 190 N.W. 569 (Rawlings v. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Nebraska Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rawlings v. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, 190 N.W. 569, 109 Neb. 167, 1922 Neb. LEXIS 36 (Neb. 1922).

Opinion

Morrissey, C. J.

The complainants made application to the state railway commission for an order directing defendants to install a connecting track between their respective lines of railroad ah one of four designated points between the village of Blue Springs and the city of Wymore. The relief prayed was denied, and complainants have appealed.

• A line of the1 Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad [168]*168Company extends from St.. Louis, Missouri, by way of Kansas City and St. Joseph, Missouri, Palls City, Table Rock, and Wymore, Nebraska, to Denver, Colorado. A line of the Union Pacific Railroad Company extends from Kansas City, Missouri, to Lincoln, Nebraska, by-way of Topeka and Manhattan, Kansas, and Beatrice, Nebraska. The city -of Wymore is located in the south central part of Gage county on the line of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company and the village of Blue Springs is located one mile north of the city.of Wymore on the line of the Union Pacific Railroad Company. The two lines of railroad intersect 2% miles east of the Burpngton depot at Wymore and run parallel to one another in a northwesterly direction about one mile. The Burlington line then takes a more westerly direction and enters the city of Wymore, Avhile the Union Pacific line takes a more northerly direction and enters the village of Blue Springs. There is no physical connection between the tAvo roads either at Wymore, Blue Springs, or the point of intersection, Avhere cars may be transferred from one road to the other. The nearest point'at which transfers may be made is the city of. Beatrice, 13 miles distant from the city of Wymore.

Adjacent to the lines of railroad, Avhere they parallel one another, there is a stone quarry from which is shipped large quantities of rock in car-load lots varying from. 400 to 500 cars a year. Each railroad has a spur track on its line to handle this freight. The rock to be shipped over the Union Pacific line is loaded directly from the rock-crusher to the car by means of a chute. The rock to be shipped over the Burlington line, because of the absence of physical connection between the two lines, is hauled from the chute of the rock-crusher across both lines of track Avith teams and put on a dump from which it is loaded into the cars. The “round trip” for this haul is approximately 1,500 feet. The testimony shoAVS that the cost of loading the cars on the Union Pacific track, through the chute from the rock-crusher, is merely nominal, Avhile [169]*169the cost of loading by means of teams on the Burlington line runs from $2 to $4 a car.

The shipments vary from year to year, but during the first nine months of 1918 there were shipped over the Burlington 142 cars, and 130 cars were shipped over the Union Pacific. In the year 1912, 594 cars were shipped over the Burlington. As the record stands it presents a showing of an ice plant on the land of the Union Pacific Railroad Company at Blue Springs which is inconvenienced because of the absence of the physical connection asked. However, the showing as to this industry is not strong, and, since the argument in this court, the owners of the plant have filed in substance a disclaimer of interest in this proceeding.

The Farmers Lumber & Grain Company, doing business at Wymore, complains chiefly of its inability to handle Rock Springs coal which originates on the line of the Union Pacific because of the added freight charge by reason of the shipment having to travel north to Beatrice and thence south to Wymore, or a truck haul from Blue Springs. The testimony on behalf of complainants show an added cost on this coal of approximately fl a ton, but the testimony on behalf of defendants makes it clear that because of a new rate, of which complainants were not informed, there was in fact a difference of only 30 cents á ton. The quantity of this coal affected is not .easy to ascertain. There has been only a small quantity handled by this company, but with the installation of the connection sought, or with the lower rate now in force, the quantity may be increased. Complainants contend that the Farmers Grain & Elevator Company, located on the line of the Union Pacific at Blue Springs, suffers inconvenience and . injury to business because of the absence of the connection. However, the testimony of the manager of this company fails to support the claim. At most, his testimony shows that this connection would be of substantial advantage only during the seasons when there is a failure - of the. com crop west of his place of business. His testi[170]*170mony is to' the effect that, when “there is a scarcity of corn, we would not ship any wheat in that direction, but it might happen, and has happened, that through that territory there might be a chance to:ship corn in preference to further south; not very often, but it has happened." The industry chiefly affected is the Rawlings Ice Plant located on the line of the Burlington about 2% miles west of the proposed connection. The plant has a storage capacity of between 25,000 and 30,000 tons. Mr. Rawlings testified that he shipped about 600 cars of ice during 1917; that at various times he has shipped considerable ice over the Union Pacific lines, and that • when shipments are made over that line to points south of Wymore the shipments go north to Beatrice over the Burlington line, where it is transferred to the Union Pacific line, and comés back . by way of Blue Springs, practically repassing the point of origin. That in 1918 he thus shipped 33 cars of ice, and that on this shipment he paid $489.94 freight in excess1 of what it would have cost him had the connection which he here seeks been installed and in operation, except that from the amount stated there should be deducted a small sum for switching charges. He also mentions another shipment of 14 cars which was prejudicially affected because of the lack of the connection sought. Among other shipments pointed out is one of 40 cars sold to the Pacific Fruit Express, a subsidiary company of the defendant Union Pacific Railroad Company. Under his contract of sale he was required to deliver this ice to the purchaser for shipment over the Union Pacific railway and, the nearest point at which he could make the delivery being the city of Beatrice, he was compelled to pay the local freight on this shipment from his plant to that city, amounting to $800.

In 1917 he claims to have lost the sale of 2,000 tons of ice to the same company because he could not profitably make a sale and pay the freight to the point of delivery. On all shipments to the north and west over the Union Pacific lines he has been compelled to pay local freight [171]*171over the Burlington line to Beatrice, and it is claimed that this virtually shuts him out from the trade at these points. The railway commission found, and apparently its finding is supported by the evidence, that the interchange óf carioad traffic at Beatrice from November, 1916, to April, 1920, was approximately 500 cars, and that of this number, had there been a transfer switch at one of the points in question, 50 of these cars would have been there transferred.

As to the shipments of rock, the commission found that the transfer if installed would effect a saving only to the amount of the difference between the cost of loading the cars on the Burlington by wagon and the cost of loading from a chute, less a proper switching charge which it would be the duty of the commission to fix.

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Bluebook (online)
190 N.W. 569, 109 Neb. 167, 1922 Neb. LEXIS 36, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rawlings-v-chicago-burlington-quincy-railroad-neb-1922.