, 1873-03-12
The Railroad Men Have q
Hearing Before the
Legislative Com
mittees.
The Illinois Central and Chicago, Bur.
lington & Quincy Represented.
Speeches by Col. Robert Harris
and President Newell.

6Pn1NeF1ELD, Dlarcl ll.-A joint Meeting OF
the Senate and House Railroad Commttecs was
held this evening In tho sonato Chnmbor, tho
.obteot being to hoar tho yiows OF railroad OIL
oiAls. John Nowoll, prosldont, and L. Tilson, q
Director Of tho Illinois Central, and Robert
Harris, General Superintendent OF tho Chicago,
burlington Il Quincy 1sai'rond, were in attond-
suoe. The chamber was full Of spectators and
Representatives. Tho meoting was called to
order by hrr. Hildroth, Chairman Of tho
House Committee, who callod Senator Donahuo
to tho chair. Tho latter stated tho object Of tho
xnoeting.. and invited the railroad gontlomon to
speak. Mr. Harris spoke aa follows:
> There aro two or throo simple Thoughts that +
would like to prosont to tho Committee TINT
voiea and confused qucetion. Twenty 1.-Two
5ears ago was connected with railroads,
With the aa1ona Resa. ! have Isss Always
would deviao q regular tariir; TINT ihoro wore
many doubts nbout 1t, and perlapB many things
that did not understand, md many difficulties
in the way. said would submit to COM
thlank piocee Of paper, and accept any tarifr
adoption. provided that tho net reault
;ot The tariff should bo tint tho property Of The
,,suppoae1 have made TINT proposition thousand
'timea since wns connectod with tho Chicago
Burlington Quincy Railroad, now Bomo lon
years, No ono has ever taken It up. Now, tho
Ehing must DO agreed upon. Tho papers Of
tthia State, more particularly our Chicago papors,
tor the last thrce months havo devoted them
laelvea to nothing else than Credit Mobi1or and
'read with great cure ovory article that has up
paated, trying to sce ii could not find gome-
thing now in them, and learn something from
fhem, but have not boen ab1o to learn any
$S1rx wat Nrv@ Trt11FS1 S136hta tsorY
reported in their annual report TINT the avorago
cosh cost Of tho railroads in this State ought to
;be only about s25, 900 por mile. Tho Times, in
m article commenting on that, very Justly said
be constructed at nn actual cash cost. In tho
first place, there is shnvc TINT is almost obliged
70 be nado In order to get money at al,
not know Of any bonda being sold at moro than
30 or 85 conta In the noxt place, the rapid PROS
,eoutson Of the road to build it in year cauBos
e years interest to be added to that Coming down
,Galena, which perhaps could bo built for S25,000
e mile, but . rnilroad like the Chicago t. Alton,
the Northwestern, and the Chicago, Burlington
@ @sng ii TO y could Nosody nSs y eoad ss
Quincy Road for losa than s25,ooo, and Il any y
5os os snena wants f. do 1ros 50 nnt, he neSa Cd
8ete them. wo hayo dopots in Chicago @ costing g
&l, 900, side tracks at ovory Ave miles. Ii
,lA1rora and Galosburg We havo extensive works.
We hare 4 double track for great number Of
s. sreassd teda1 at It loss So tnene esy; 600
bonds and stock. That is 'l,e''4 tie funda- u la1
'mental question, because the Quos-
the amount OF capital invested. Starting With
thnt, ws hRvo sixty-five conts, or two-thifdn, on
eyory dollar on the trunk lines-the limos TINT
pro tdentifying with the grcatneaa and mngnia
years, surprising anything that re had read as
nhiltten ID tue Arabian Nights. sixty-nve conts
bf every dollar s expended in getting the dollar.
a1st to tho payment Of interest on tho bonds
hand secondly to dividends on tho stock, tt
twould follow therefore, that after paying sixty
five cents to get the dollar, and one-third to pay
tuoed thelr fares one-ni1th on an average, their
etookholdars would not have QUO penny left
Now, suppose it did not pay them. It would cat
up every particle Of tho commercial value
question. Whether or not this burden il spread
hs evenly as ciroumstaucos will admit flink
the proposition that there should DO q reduction
OF one-Bixth from the average tariff Of tho road
and rondor tho stock worth nothing. The fact
1t It in a broad Wow. " to Tic
noxt question. therefore, would DO upon tho
The fact OF discrimination, We grant, ia by rea-
Bon Of tho complicated system that prevails in
thiB State, and is in come respects peculiar to
this State. In tho first place, it has tho Misais-
When you consider tho network Of railroads
and the fact TINT we have the AIisnis-
aippi On tho vest and Indiana on
the East you will readily SEQ why nobody has
faaS1 aan!d daP pdng my oa0F 'i7 to give me tariff that
The question is whether discrimination can
possibly DO svoidod. Whether it is not forced
tEe east md It tic Woat roads woro ni furnished i
We heard no complaints as to this mattor OF
discrimination. Perhaps might bo
ssn9swered, It is because prices woro
were not noticed. But tho fact ID It did not OK
tat. When tho northorly and aouthorly roads
were alone theso Determinations did not exist I
feel au1e that If the matter was discussed can
dldly and fairly before tho people Of the State,
the whole OF the excitemont with reference to
this question would aubaido. On the question
Of discrimination between individuals, the su-
promo Court has given. their Judgment that
ono porson is not entitled to any privileges over
another ~ to localities Discrimination is forced
upon roads oftentimos under such circumstances
as to make It better for the other customers Of
the road that such discrimination should DO
msdo. Tho enforcomont Of the legislation thst |
has been On the statute-books Tho paat wear |
would bankrupt any road in the State In q fow |
months. II was an cr-post jacto law. II
sa1u thaE tno lo#eat tafil III 1orce OIL any dny OF
tho preceding year should bo tho measure Of all |
the tariffs for that year. Now, the Toledo 4
Wabash Road. in competition with tie Durline-
ton Quincy upon D certain day, could have
cent any business over their line ut IcaB thau |
cost price. That Inv forces them to carry al |
business from all points for tho aubaeauent |
year at rates that would bo loss than cost price.
We hare been challenged with disobeying tho |
law of the State We Claim that there is nobody |
IN the State that would be more careful to oboy
the law than the railroad oficera Of tho State,
1t Is partly owing to their caro- to enforce order
md docornm that ladies' or children Gun |
travel alono from Bangor to San Fran-
law as It now stands Oh tho
atatuo books contrayonos our very existence. !
Its observance would be tho same as tho sur
render OF the property. Wo are asked, why
don't you roduco the faro from three and a half |
to three cents. There goes your sixth, and with
It all tho prtlto applicable to dividends. Tho
Chicago, Danyille l. Vlnconncs, tho Illinois