Virginian Railway Tonnage Ratings

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I have a question about locomotive tonnage ratings on the Virginian. I understand tonnage ratings on the Norfolk and Western, tonnage is given for each locomotive for a subdivision based on the service it is in (time or slow) with reductions for temperature. On the Virginian, tonnage is given for each locomotive for a subdivision based on the locomotives speed. For example, a US-A going east from Roanoke is rated for 12,400 tons at 10 MPH, but 9,830 tons at 15 MPH.

My question is that if in this example a train is being assembled with the full 12,400 tons and a US-A pulling, does the dispatcher add to the trainorders that the speed limit is 10MPH regardless of other instructions (like the speedlimits in the timetables?)? If not, then what is the point of having different tonnage ratings for different speeds?

Help would be much appreciated,

Zachary Negaard
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