The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1874-04-02

| times rs much per mile, ms they charged
these foreign shippers. Now, sir, this Is
not right, but 1t Is q matter which cannot
be regulated by statute. 1t will not be reg
ulated by this statute. That road will have
to carry freights at whatever price is fixed
by the New York Central or the New York
and Erie, or it cannot get them to carry.
And if this commission should fix the rate
of freghts at five miles per ton per mile,
or less, over the New York Central and the
New ork and Erie, the road in my State
will have to carry them at the same rate or
1t will not get the freights. What will be
the resultp 1t will carry at that rate, and
possibly less than that rate, and then 1t
will turn around and grind us at home be-
| tween the upper and neither milestone 1t
will put the burden upon our local freights
from town to town in the State. 1t gives
these low rates to foreigners, to persons
who live thousand miles away from the
line of the road, but as compensation for
it it charges higher rates upon us. There
is no redress. We could not have any re-
dress if we tried
Mr. Willard said he was willing to 60
as far as any man, in any measure than
can be shown to be safe, wise and Consti-
tutional, to put limitations on the manage.
ment of railroads; but regarding the rights
and duties of such corporations as created
and defined by State law, they cannot be
afterward bounded or defined by national
! legislation, without interfering both with
the right of the State to control and with
| the privileges which the State has given to
them and has never withdrawn.
Let me suggest another difficulty. There
are several railroads that connect with rail-
roads outside of the United States. The
| Vermont Central Railroad connects with
the Grand Trunk Railroad. The Grand
| Trunk Railroad lies partly in Vermont and
partly in New Hampshire and partly in
| Maine, hut it has the larger portion of its
line in Canada, and then it connects with
| the Michigan Central Railroad at the other
end The New York Central Railroad con-
meet with the Great Western Railroad,
| and with other roads in Canada. Now,
how are you going to regulate freights
brought from Canada over those roads /?
How are you going to regulate frcights car
ried from Chicago to Port Sarnia, and then
over the Grand Trunk Railway to Rouscs
Point, and then over the Vcrmnnt Central
and other lines to Boston? Part of the line
Is entirely hey ond your jurisdiction, and
you cannot regulate the rate of frcights in
any way on that portion CT the line. You
may say that the Vermont Central Railroad
shall not carry through freight and charge
more than Il certain amount per ton per
mile; but that load is forced to make CON
nccion with foreign corporation, over
which YOU have no power. and concerning
which you can say nothing. And vet it
really derives large portion Of its bust
ness from that foreign railroad. or that
which comes over the lakes by way of Og-
densburg to Rouscs Point. Now, here you
have a difficulty which is inSurmountable
You cannot regulate the trciglts shipped in
that way
But what more? This bill in terms is
applicable to through lines. | confess do
not quite undcrstnd the phrascology of the
bill, or how far this matter of through lines
is expected to reach. There are over four
hundred railways in the United States, ac-
cOrling to the latest statistics. and if YOU
regulate through freghts you have to reg
ulato them upon every road. There may
be small road in Massachusetts. perhaps
five miles long. and yet it may take up
freight to be delivered in San Francisco.
A short piece Of road in Vermont may take
up freight to be delivered in New Orleans.
How are yon going TO fix the rates Of freight
on that! by what measure will you csti-
mate it? How can you fix the rates upon
that little road which does not carry freight
enough to pay running expenses, and which
is built mainly for the purpose of develop
ing the resources Of some particular local
ity the marble or slate interest of my State
or some manufacturing interest in some
other State how are you going to regulate
its charges when it takes up ear of freight
to be delivered a thousand miles away,
part of which charge may be going to an
other road which may have a higher or a
lower rate? 1t may have to he shipped over
dozen different roads before it gets to its
destination, and the rates OF freight to be
fixed by this commission over those roads
may not be alike on any two of them. Then
how are you going 10 regulate rates on
this little road, supposing you have the
power? This only shows one of the diff
iiculties which it seems TO me must lead
one 10 believe that the power docs not eX.
ist.
| have here the fifth annual report of the
railroad commissioners OF Massachusetts,
and | call the attention Of members to the
differences in the earnings and expenses of
those roads. Mr. Adams reports that there
are nineteen roads in Massachusetts, the
average receipts of which are Sl4, 900 per
mile; the amount varying from $4,000 on
the DuXbury and Cohasset road, $4,000
on the Boston and Albany road; that the
cost of operation amounts TO $4,000
mile OIL the average, the cost on some roads
being much greater than on others; and the
OF freight varied from 1.0l cents per ton
for long distances to one dollar per ton for
short distances. 1t is not apparent to any
one who knows anything about railroads,
where so many elements are to be taken
into account and such widely different rates
must be established, that you cannot fix
these rates by any regulations that may be
in the least uniform. You must take every
one of the four hundred and sixteen roads
in the United States and fix the freight on
each one Of them and they will vary from
one cent per ton to one dollar per ton per
mile, as is seen in this statement of the
Massachusetts roads; and lie who sup
poses that any good to any one can come
out OF any such attempted regulation must
have much greater faith in the power of
legislation than ! have.
Most of these roads have been built for
the purpose of developing the country; in
many years-as in my Statc--by taxation
on towns. \ road has recently been put
in operation in Vermont to which the town
in which | reside gave $500, 900 and we
are now charged more thai per cent as
tax each year to pay the interest on the
bonds VIC issued to raise that money. The
road does not now; and will not for years,
pay any dividends on the stock for which
we subscribed; and if it pays the interest
on its mortgage-bonds, it will do better than
| dare hope.
We should be glad of any legislation that
will enable it to earn fair interest on its
cost; but | do not understand that the far
ners of this bill propose to make unprofit.
able roads prof able. Instead of that.
they propose to make them less profitablc