Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-04-30
rCorrespondence of the Herald
The McCrary Bill Further Cons1d-
cred,

Mr.. EDIToR:-The McCrary Bill,
which has passed the House by A maj.
12l ayes, 116 noes) vests in a board
of 8 u. S. Commissioners to be ap-
pointed by the President, full power
to prescribe rates of transportation for
all railroads carrying freight or pass
engers between the different States.
1t processes not to exercise authority
over local roads having their termini
within State lines; yet, clearly enough'
the law would fail to accomplish its
ends unless the Commissioners were
allowed authority over local as well as
inter State roads. Railroads are COM
mon carriers, under legal compulsion
to carry whatever is presented to
them for transportation, and they re-
ceive from and deliver to each other
even when arrayed as rivals, with as
tonishing reciprocity and liberality.--
Passengers are passed over severa
States and lines on one coupon ticket
at reduced rates. Freight bills on
long routes over various roads, are al
lowed to accumulate for settlement at
the point of delivery. They are thus
linked together in vast system
Brierean arms of the same body. The
produce shipped at Podunk for Saints
Rest, so miles away, is destined finally
to be set down at the Atlantic sea-
board, and the producer who is COM
PEELED to market by that line, may find
himself Disseminated against if it is
left free to fix its own rates, and may
find all his property kept in a state of
depreciation by reason of such dis
elimination. Clearly then, to work
| equal justice to all localities and to
bring the aggregate freight charges
on Western produce to the minimum
cost at the board, the Commits
sioners must prescribe all the rates
from the point of original shipment to
the point of final delivery.
Statistics are rot agreeable read
ing but they are in order just here;
and must be permitted to trouble
the reader with a few. First. The
actual cost of railroad freight trans
| portation to the companies is l cent
per ton per mile. The distance by
rail from Milwaukee to N. Y. city is
about 100 miles and to move a ton of
| freight over that route would then cost
$11.00 without cents profit to the
roads; yet flour is now carried over it
all rail at e5cts per barrel by the car,
or at about SO per ton, and grain in
bulk at 421cts per 100 pounds, or
$3.50 per ton, which shows loss to
the roads of about So per ton in either
case. Again, an Eastern Transports
ton Co. furnished cars at Boscobel last
winter for wheat in bulk delivered at
Albany, n. Y, at $40 per car to load
$50 bushels, or at 40cts per bushel-
less than $14 per ton. After paying
the railroad companies their charges
for transportation, the residue of profit
on this business must have been small
indeed.
| Competition is the life of all bust
ness and monopoly is its bane. The
liberal, wide and far-reaching dis
ordinations in favor of Western pro-
ducts partially shown above, are the
results of competition between and
among the rail ana ''~",- -
49,, ~ the same general directions to
t1tnS ~ -. ~ ~ oUnIIISI UIal centres. This
discrimination saves the great West
annually millions Of dollars, and thus
tends to equalize values, not only OF
the products of the soil but of the soil
itself as between the East and the
| West. incidentally, all other West
ern property real and personal is ia
vorably effected in like manner. am
told that the shipping interests of the
Lakes are greatly deprecated at pres
ent, and that vessel owners are antici-
pating losing business and final ruin
by reason Of railroad competition
against them. 1t is therefore of the
highest Importance to keep alive this
competition and to encourage discrim-
nations operating in our favor. This
can be done and be permanently as
sured by the States acting together or
concurrently, to prevent by well ad-
yised legislation, the consolidation by
purchase, lease or contract to raise
rates, of rival roads within the several
States tending in the same general di-
rection. 1t is matter of some pride
to the writer of this article (the read
er will excuse a small flourish of self
adulation) that, foreseeing the evils of
railroad consolidation and railroad
dead-heading by legislators, he drew
up and introduced in county Repub-
lican Convention of this County over
ten years ago, a resolution instructing
the members of the Legislature for the
County to legislate against these evils.
The resolution carried unanimously,
but the instructed members continued
to use railroad passes and utterly
failed to make head against railroad
consolidation. Soon thereafter, gigan-
tic railroad combinations were effect
ed in the State which have already
taxed the mass OF It's people vast sums
for the benefit Of the few.
The McCrary Bill enacted into law,
would put speedy end to railroad
competition and thus stab in the vital
part the great North West in the
name of which it is brought forward.
Congress cannot directly or through
its servants discriminate in favor of
one interest or section to the prejudice
of another; it cannot prescribe cheap
transportation rates favoring one To-
cality to the neglect of others, neither
can it compel one railroad or other
transportation company to do its bust
ness at rates inferior to those permit
ted to others. All this would be un.
equal-unjust, and tend to disturb the
harmony of the States If not to oman