Document vB9N9BXQjjZ2N2DO7EqaJZOXE

J y January 30, 1320. Mr#. Jacob Blausteein, 1st- VU? & Gen. Mgr., Imeriean Oil Company, m rie&a Building, . Baltimore, l* . x. Bear Sr. Blsoatea* ' ' -X. '!' `. With the expanding business of the Ethyl Gasoline Corporation our Medical Directory Br. lobert 1* Keke, has tewe>oa fee watch to see feat a. additional health hasards are incurred. Sa baa always considered one of the greatest points of possible risk to be in fee shipping of EIIL fluid over railroads sad other transportation facilities* Recently we had a less than ' carload shipment of 10 drums feat-arrived wife one draa in a leaking condi tion, quite a substantial amount of Miffb fluid having spilled out of it* this fluid; saturated a part of fee floor of fee car and also some of fee other shipping cases in it* The railroad company people apparently made no attempt to clean up. fef fluid and when we found out about fee situation we had to . trace a shipment, of empty bottles in cartons all the nay to Texas, and fee car itself back to fee Philadelphia, yards in order to get this spillage entirely cleaned up. " * 'i Dr* Xehoe feels that we and oui- customers are taking an unwarranted risk in attempting to ship SSHSt fluid in less-than carload lots which,,.' you are aware, ijavolves. the rehandling :of fee dross at transfer points one car into another by inexperienced railroad freight handlers who undoubtedly alls than to drop end knock .against other things so feat it would m m in fee course of tins m could probably anticipate feat a given percentage of fee dross of ETHIL fluid so .shilled, 'would leak to son extent.. This is not' fee first or only tine we hare had a leaking drus but the events that occurred in this \ particular instance have made Ur.,Sehoe -realise fea possible serious troubl'- that can arise* .' ' .: " '.' -* i When carload lots of SEEK. fluid arc shipped from .our Plant wo are : able to do our own chocking of fee drums and we have worked out a special proced.nre which insures the .drums will not move in fee ear, unless fee entire car , itself were to tee demolished in a wreck, which possibility we cannot veiy well entirely eliminate* The car is sealed after it is loaded and is not touched by fee railroad handlers or anyone els until it arrives at the refineries of our distributors who have supposedly trained personnel who can recognise fee . dangers involved in fee event all of the drums are hot infect and would see feat all spillage is carefully and properly cleaned up before fee car is released* We night say that we have never had any trouble wife carload shipments, We have been looking over your use of ETBXL fluid and it appears even during this winter season that you are using about 10 drums a month. A minimum oarload is 44 drums*.. .. - SsXfS tfiT 0000701 Sir* i * B lau ateln , - 2~ 1/50/E9. fe do not like to ask you to carry too large an inventory of ZS3H* fluid but Ur* Kehoe has insisted that we take up the Question m t h all of our customers who are at the noseat ordering in less than carload lots, and advise them that he considers it necessary for the to order fall carloads at a time. le rather believe that if you will calculate the carload freight rata, as compared with the L.C* 1* rate, you will find the difference between the two will at least equalise the interest on an investment if you will compare the average inventory of ETH2L fluid that you keep on hand today against the average of your inventory on a carload lot order basis* If you have serious objections to taking 44 drums at a tiae, you sight have your Traffic Department calculate what it would cost you tp pay the carload' freight rate even though leas than tkxs quantity of 3SZL fluid was shipped, as ecspared with the freighting cost on L.G.1* -afcipaeats. and we believe that you will find you will not pay any sore freight on a carload basis for SO to 5 drums than you iKmld by paying the L.C*L. rate on thi3 same quantity la two or three different shipments* Of course, if we eleet to pay the carload pate on a weight of ETHIL fluid that is less than carload, the railroads will still seal the car and ship it through to its destination without rehandling. le are writing all of our customers who order in less than-"carload lots a similar letter today and wa, frankly, have no alternative but to accept Dr. Kehoe*s advice on all, questions that relate to possible health hazard. We hope that you .will not be unduly burdened in making the necessary arrangements to so order JSSXL fluid in carload lots and await your advice as to how you wish us to handle future orders for it. lours very truly, CiC HE 0000702