USA > Nebraska > Nebraska history and record of pioneer days, Vol I > Part 23
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On the 25th of July, 1865, Lieutenant Caspar Collins, of the Eleventh Ohio Cavalry, son of Lieutenant Colonel William O. Collins, of the same regiment, and for whom Fort Collins, Colo., was named, arrived at the Platte Bridge post from Fort Laramie, where he had gone to receive promotion from a second to a first lieutenancy. In the early morning of the 26th, a detachment of twenty-five soldiers of the Eleventh Kansas Cavalry was ordered to cross the river to meet a wagon train from the west and protect it from the hostile In- dians who were swarming in the hills on the north side. Noticing that no one responded to the call for some officer of the regiment to volunteer to command the detachment on its palpably dangerous duty, the young lieutenant, though of a different command, begged to be chosen for leader, and his request was reluctantly granted. The little band was attacked by more than 700 Indians who had killed eight and wounded seven of them when the remainder attempted to retreat to the fort. Collins, who rode a powerful horse, might have escaped, but he turned back to rescue a wounded comrade, his horse became unruly and carried him far into the ranks of the Indians to a frightful death. On November 21st following, an order issued by General Pope named the post Fort Caspar in honor of the intrepid young hero. He was only in his twenty-first year when he was killed.
Philip Kearny won renown in the Mexican war and the Civil War. He also fought with the French who, with their Sardinian ally, con- quered the Austrians and led to the formation of the Italian nation. At Solferino, the decisive battle of the war, Kearny won great dis- tinction by dis dashing initiative. His commission as major general of volunteers was executed on July 4th, 1862, but it had not reached him when he fell at Chantilly. General Winfield Scott said that he was "the bravest man I ever knew and the most perfect soldier." Though he was the more brilliant leader and fighter, the military tal- ents of his uncle, Stephen Watts Kearny, were perhaps of a more sub- stantial quality and his achievement on the whole more important. His career in the war of 1812, against Great Britain, was creditable, and though his most distinguished service was in the war with Mex- ico, he is a very important personage in the history of the wars and explorations of the western plains.
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On the second of July, 1820, an exploring party started from Can- (Continued on Page Five.)
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Nebraska History and Record of Pioneer Days
THE NEBRASKA FUEL ADMINISTRATION
By John L. Kennedy, Federal Fuel Administrator. (A paper read at the annual meeting of the Nebraska State Historical Society, January 13, 1920.)
On October 16, 1917, Dr. Harry A. Garfield, United States fuel ad- ministrator, tendered me by telegraph the office of federal fuel admin- istrator for Nebraska, and I accepted the appointment the same day. My formal certificate of appointment is dated October 17. At the request of Dr. Garfield I attended a conference of state fuel adminis- trators held in Washington on October 26, at which the work of the fuel administration was outlined. Upon my return from Washington I at once organized for work in the state.
State Organization.
In Nebraska there are six congressional districts and ninety-three counties. An advisory committee was appointed, consisting of one member from each congressional district as follows: First district, John E. Miller, Lincoln; second district, George W. Holdrege, Omaha; third district, Mark D. Tyler, Norfolk; fourth district, Frank W. Sloan, Geneva; fifth district, William H. Lanning, Hastings; sixth district, Judge Robert R. Dickson, O'Neill.
Shortly after his appointment Mr. Lanning resigned, and no suc- cessor was appointed to represent the fifth district. The other mem- bers of the committee served until March 27, 1919.
County Committees.
The county was taken as the most satisfactory unit for organiza- tion purposes. I appointed the chairman in each county, and he made up his own committee. Selections were made without reference to party politics. In a few sparsely settled western counties the chair- men made no appointments and took charge of the work personally. In other counties committees were larger or smaller according to population and community requirements, the object being to have a member of the committee in each city or town. They averaged about seven or eight to a county, in all about seven hundred.
Office Organization.
On November 5, 1917, I appointed Fred P. Loomis, of Omaha, assistant fuel administrator, and he rendered excellent service in the distribution of coal during the winter of 1917-18.
On December 17, 1917, I appointed Arthur L. Palmer, of Omaha, executive secretary. He served continuously to August 31, 1918, and resigned to enlist in the navy. He rendered very efficient service to the fuel administration and to the state.
On October 15, 1918, Myron L. Learned, of Omaha, was appointed director of enforcement for Nebraska, and Henry F. Wyman, of Omaha, director of conservation for Nebraska. On October 18, 1918, Robert W. Johnston, of Lincoln, was appointed director of fuel conservation for the hotels of Nebraska. Administration offices were maintained in Omaha from October, 1917, to April 1st, 1919, with the necessary stenographers and office equipment.
Fuel Supply.
At no time during the period of fuel administration did Nebraska suffer seriously for lack of fuel. Throughout the winter of 1917-18 sufficient coal could have been obtained from usual sources of supply to meet all requirements. The transportation facilities, however, were inadequate. Coal cars, loaded and empty, were congested at diversion points and terminals, and the free movement of available coal was thereby delayed. The railroads also lacked engines and equipment. When producing and consuming districts were created by the fuel administration and the zone system was established, the Nebraska situ- ation was materially changed. Pennsylvania anthracite was excluded from the state. To deprive small householders and consumers of stove and chestnut sizes, suitable for baseburners, of a supply was a real hardship. Nebraska also lost nearly a million tons of the best bitu- minous coal, usually obtained from Illinois, and was obliged to look to Wyoming and Colorado and the south for substitutes. The western coal was mostly lignite, inferior in quality and heat producing ca- pacity and subject to considerable degradation. A sufficient supply of bituminous coal could not be had from Routt county, Colorado, be- cause of the bankrupt condition of the Denver & Salt Lake Railway. From the broad transportation standpoint, the zone plan seemed to be perfect, but in operation it benefited the east and burdened the west with kinds of coal to which consumers were not accustomed. Early in 1918 a new coal field was being developed in Wyoming, about a mile and a half from the Winton branch of the Union Pacific railway, under an agreement with the Union Pacific Company that a track should be laid to the coal mines. The government, however, took over the railroads before the agreement was signed. The new field prom- ised a large supply of excellent Rock Springs coal, much needed in Nebraska, and upon my presentation of the facts to Dr. Garfield, and with his recommendation and cooperation, and the cordial cooperation of Mr. Calvin, federal manager of the Union Pacific Company, the railroad administration assumed the contract, and large shipments of coal have been had from the new mines since October, 1918.
During the period of fuel administration, Colorado anthracite came into Nebraska in limited quantities from the Crested Butte dis- trict. The state was quite well supplied with fuel; but consumers were not always satisfied with the kind and quality of the coal available.
Distribution.
Nebraska is a mincless statc. Our problems related largely to distribution. This was particularly true during the winter of 1917-18, when the transportation system was found to be unequal to the emergency. Every effort was made to relieve the situation and re- lease cars, but considerable disorder and confusion prevailed for sev- cral months after my appointment, Coal cars were not placed prompt- ly for unloading, and were frequently "bunched," so that coal dealers were unable to unload them as they arrived.
There were no through joint rates into Nebraska from Colorado
and Wyoming, and cars could not be diverted to any extent from one railway to another. In the southwestern part of the state, reached only by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy railway, much difficulty was experienced in preventing actual suffering during the winter of 1917-18. In some instances that railway furnished and transported coal in the night to particular communities, to meet emergencies. These conditions induced me to insist upon through joint rates from all Wyoming and Colorado mines to all points in Nebraska, so that coal cars might move freely from one line to another at the most con- venient junction or diversion point. Such rates were eventually put into effect, to the great advantage and relief of consumers throughout the state.
When the zone system of distribution was established by the ad- ministration, we were deprived of Pennsylvania anthracite. Our sup- ply of bituminous, coal from Illinois was also zoned away from us. At that time it was understood that we should get our chief supply of bituminous coal from Routt county, Colorado. The mines in that territory were reached by the Denver & Salt Lake railway-known as the Moffatt Line. That road was in the hands of a receiver, because of financial difficulties. It lacked equipment and funds to meet oper- ating expenses. The railroad administration had not taken the road over, and late in August, 1918, it ceased operation entirely. The closing of the railway was a calamity. My experiences of the preceding winter convinced me that I could not assume responsibility for the distribution of coal in Nebraska during the winter of 1918-19 under the changed conditions. I so informed the United States fuel adminis- trator, and the railroad administration took over and operated the line.
The coal distribution system of Nebraska was built upon the wholesale dealers of the state, and the retail coal dealers relied largely upon the wholesalers for their supply. It was the custom of the whole- sale dealers to place orders with the mines in advance and dispose of and divert the coal in transit to meet actual conditions. The distances from the mines to ultimate destination points were great, transporta- tion slow, and the demand and supply were affected daily by acute weather conditions. The coal in the hands of the wholesale dealers, therefore, depended upon the privilege of diverting and consigning coal in transit to supply their customers. August 30, 1918, an order was made in Washington, by Mr. Calloway, in charge of the distri- bution of bituminous coal, prohibiting mine owners and operators from accepting orders for coal without the name of the ultimate consignee and final destination being given. The result of the order was im- mediately apparent in Nebraska. It was revolutionary, so far as our state was concerned. I therefore insisted upon the revocation of the order as to Nebraska shipments. The matter was finally adjusted in Chicago on October 7, 1918, by and between the Washington officials and myself. Under the terms of the agreement then reached, the wholesalers and jobbers retained the privilege of reconsigning in transit, but were required to report weekly, in triplicate, all recon- signments and diversions made within the state, one copy to go to the district representative in whose district the shipment originated, one to the state fuel administrator, and one to C. E. Lesher, director of the bureau of statistics. The arrangement was satisfactory.
During the summer of 1918 car congestion and delays in unload- ing were almost wholly eliminated, and thereafter the transportation of coal in Nebraska was very much simplified and improved.
Throughout the administration period, much of the coal coming into Nebraska was imperfectly cleaned and badly prepared.
One of the greatest evils in the distribution of coal is the short- age in weights. These shortages, cther than normal shrinkage, should not be absorbed by the coal dealers and consumers of the country. They are the result chiefly of inaccurate and imperfect methods of weighing at the mines, the overloading of coal cars and pilfering in transit. In an order of mine, made June 25, 1918, relating to margins, I authorized the retail coal dealers to have the coal weighed on the track scales nearest to destination, so that they might be furnished with competent evidence of the actual amount of coal received. They were permitted to add the expense of re-weighing to the cost of the coal to them.
Prices and Margins.
Soon after my appointment it became evident that great difficulty would be experienced in reaching correct margins, because of the im- perfect bookkeeping methods of the retail dealers, and the lack of accurate records for previous years. My intention in the first instance was to establish prices in the different cities, towns and villages throughout the state. The county committees in Douglas and Lan- caster counties investigated fully and reported specific prices for Omaha and Lincoln. These prices, with certain modifications, were put into effect in Omaha, December 19, 1917, and in Lincoln January 3, 1918. The prices in the two cities were substantially the same, dif- ferences in freight rates and local delivery charges being taken into account. Prices were established for the communities in Douglas and Lancaster counties outside of Omaha and Lincoln, to take effect Feb- ruary 1, 1918. Before establishing prices for the state at large, re- ports were called for from the several county committees, and I soon became convinced that the local price plan was impracticable and dif- ficult of equitable application, because of the changing mine prices and transportation and other charges. Definite priccs were then dropped, and maximum retail gross margins were established, on all coal and coke sold to consumers ir Nebraska outside of Douglas and Lancaster counties, to take effect February 9, 1918. These margins were on substantially the same basis as the prices in Douglas and Lancaster counties. On March 30, 1918, I made an order establish- ing maximum retail gross margins for the entire state, effective April first. In that order coal dealers were required to post up and main-
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Nebraska History and Record of Pioneer Days
tain in their places of business, accessible to their customers, the government price of each kind of coal and coke handled, the maximum . gross margin allowed, the retail price at the yard, and the drayage and delivery charges. This enabled consumers to analyze prices. The order which was effective April first was superseded June 25, 1918, by a state wide order dated June 22, 1918. The later order materially increased the margins and permitted the retail dealers to add the cost of unloading from the cars to the cost of the coal to them. The April first order was too close to permit a reasonable profit to the retail dealers. The order of June 25 was liberal. In the meantime, between these dates, the cost of handling the coal and carrying on the retail coal business had very materially increased. December 27, 1918, an order was made, which took effect January 1, 1919, reducing the margins on yard screened coal teli cents per ton and establishing a maximum average unloading charge of twenty-five cents per ton.
The retail coal dealers in Omaha and Lincoln claimed that they should have higher prices and margins than the dealers in the smaller towns, because their expenses were greater. The dealers in the small towns urged that they should be allowed greater margins than the dealers in the large cities, because they transacted so little business, and had to maintain their coal yards and equipment. My opinion was that the entire state should be on the same basis. In the cities the greater volume offset the increased expense. In the small towns the business was light and the expense in proportion.
The state wide margins were equitable and fair to all retail coal dealers in the state and gave general satisfaction.
The orders of the administration were generally complied with throughout the state. There were few instances of overcharging, and these were due largely to loose business methods.
The margins and prices established and maintained in Nebraska related to the retail coal business. The commissions allowed to whole- sale dealers and jobbers were provided for by direct orders of Dr. Garfield.
Where instances of overcharging were brought to the attention of the administration, coal dealers were required to make refunds to their customers; or they were obliged to turn over the amount of their overcharges to the American Red Cross.
Conservation
The "lightless nights" orders of Dr. Garfield were enforced in Nebraska; and requests by the state administrator for the late open- ing and early closing of stores and places of business were generally complied with.
After careful investigation through the several county commit- tees, I prepared a conservation order covering the late opening and early closing of stores for the winter of 1918-19. The signing of the armistice obviated the necessity for putting it into effect.
The campaign for the conservation of fuel had considerable effect in Nebraska. It is estimated that during the administration period 350,000 tons of domestic coal and 150,000 tons of steam coal were saved in the state. The steam coal estimate includes 792 tons saved in Omaha by the Omaha & Council Bluffs Street Railway Company, through the adoption of the skip-stop system, and 2,337 tons by the interconnection of the Central Light & Power Stations in Grand Island and Fremont.
These figures represent an average saving of 8 1-3 per cent on the estimated normal consumption of 6,000,000 tons during administration control. The saving on steam coal is figured at 5 per cent, on account of the poor quality of coal used, and the saving on domestic coal is figured at 11 2-3 per cent. In drawing the line between domestic con- sumption and stationary steam plants, a half of the total consumption is allotted to each.
There would have been a further increase in the saving of coal if consumers had been able to get the kind and quality previously used. Under zone restrictions they were obliged to use coal of in- ferior quality, with reduced heating capacity.
Summer Storage.
During the summer of 1918, at the request of the administration retail dealers and consumers purchased large stocks of coal at sum- mer prices. Several fires resulted from the storing of lignite, and much of the coal slacked in the bins. The mild weather and the signing of the armistice lessened the demand, and the coal dealers were left with large stocks on hand, which they had difficulty in disposing of to advantage, in competition with Illinois and other east- ern coal which later was obtainable in Nebraska.
Retail Coal Dealers Registered
A registration system for retail coal dealers was adopted in Ne- braska. Upon application filed with the local committees, certificates ) of registration were issued. When the list was complete it was ar- ranged alphabetically and numbered consecutively. It was then printed in pamphlet form, the address following the names. There were 1,392 dealers registered, each of whom received a copy of the pamphlet. Copies were also furnished the committeemen, wholesale dealers, distributing representatives, mine operators and others in- terested.
Cooperation.
The fuel administration had in Nebraska the complete and cor- dial cooperation of the governor, the state council of defense, the food administration, commercial and industrial associations, and patriotic organizations throughout the state. The wholesale coal dealers and jobbers rendered invaluable service. Almost without exception, the retail dealers handled their business as directed by the administra- tion, with the utmost good will and with excellent results.
The state fuel administrators of the western states, particularly Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, Wy- oming and Nebraska, had several meetings during 1918, usually at Kansas City, and discussed fully and freely important questions per- taining to administration affairs. These meetings were helpful and, while many of the resolutions adopted and recommendations made to Washington were without result, the exchange of views contributed to a better understanding of the problems involved.
Expenses.
The vouchers submitted to Washington for the expenses of the
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fuel administration in Nebraska, from October 17, 1917, to March 27, 1919, aggregated less than $7,000. The office furniture and equipment purchased for the use of the administration brought at auction more than the original cost. Economy was practiced in every branch of the fuel administration service in the state. My check for $1, in compen- sation for my services, is dated December 20, 1918. It will never be presented for payment.
Expression of Appreciation.
In closing this brief summary of the work of the federal fuel administration in Nebraska, please permit me to express my profound appreciation of the cordial cooperation on the part of the people of the state. The committees in the several counties were loyal and effi- cient, and their work should be gratefully acknowledged. In con- nection with the reduction of expenses at light and power plants, I wish particularly to mention the services of Prof. E. J. McCaustland, dean of engineering at the University of Missouri, who made several trips to Nebraska.
I would be lacking in loyalty if I failed to pay a tribute of re- spect to Dr. Garfield. His high character and integrity cannot be questioned. As United States fuel administrator he was capable, courageous and consistent. He is a splendid type of sturdy American citienship.
Three Military Heroes of Nebraska
(Continued from Page Three,)
tonment Missouri, soon afterward named Fort Atkinson, "to discover a route, across country," between that post and Fort Snelling, which was established about a month before Fort Atkinson was started. The expedition proper comprised Captain Matthew J. Magee and First Lieutenant Charles Pentland of the Rifle Regiment, Second Lieuten- ant Andrew Talcott, of the Engineers, fifteen soldiers, presumably of the Rifles, four servants, and an Indian guide with his wife and pa- poose. It was under command of Captain Magee assisted by Lieuten- ant Talcott. Lieutenant Colonel Willoughby Morgan, of the Rifle Regiment, and Captain Kearny, of the Second Infantry, accompanied the expedition but were not an official part of it. Probably because Captain Kearny kept a journal of the expedition, it has often been said that he led it. The journey required twenty-four days-from the 2nd of July to the 25th, inclusive. Captain Kearny wrote that the officers of Fort Snelling
"were a little astonished at the sight of us, we having been the First Whites that ever crossed at such a distance from the Missouri to the Mississippi river. The object of the exploring party which 1 have accompanied from the C. B. being to discover a practicable route for traveling between that Post & this (on the St. Peters), the one we had come is not, in the least, adapted for that purpose. Our circuit- ous & wavering route is to be attributed to the Guide's advice, being in direct contradiction to our opinion, & we being occasionally guided by the one then by the other."
But the fact that the route approximately paralleled the subse- quent lines of railroads from Omaba to St. Paul, at no great distance from them, and that the captain pronounced the region through which it ran as incapable "of supporting more than a thinly scattered popu- lation," impeaches his judgment, putting him in the same class with Major Long, who proved himself a false prophet in the same way and year.
All of the officers accompanying the expedition were garrisoned at Cantonment Missouri. General Atkinson, who was colonel of the Sixth Regiment Infantry and also commander of the Ninth Military Department, arrived from St. Louis, his headquarters, and assumed command of the troops at the post on June 15th, 1820, and also estab- lished there, temporarily, the headquarters of his department. The fact that Captain Kearny was acting assistant adjutant general of this department, accounts for his presence at Cantonment Missouri when the expedition to Fort Snelling started.
One historian erroneously includes Captain Kearny as an official member of the party, presumably because he could not otherwise ac- count for his presence at the starting place. Another accounts for his presence there by guessing that, "Probably he accompanied the Sixth Infantry, under Colonel Atkinson, when that regiment went west to form part of the Yellowstone Expedition, for in 1820, when he began his journal, he was at Council Bluff, when a camp had been established by that command in the spring of that year."
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