, 1874-11-24
TRANSPORTATION.
Examination of the Results
Of Railway 0ompo-
tition.
Efforts Of the Scaboard Cities to
Control tho Trade Of
Chicago.
Probability that Baltimore
Will Draw Largely from
New York.
Documents Submitted by The Senate
Transportation Committee on
lilo Sleeping Cur
Question.
George NJ. PulIman's Plea that
the Railroads Cannot
Do the Work.
Statistics Relative to Tho Illinois & Dlich-
igan Canal Furnished by Com. =
missioner Utley. -.
Difficulties Of the Wisconsin Roads
in Complying with the
Potter Law.
How the indianapolis, Bloom
ington & Western Came
to Grief.
The Pacific Railroads and the Steam-
ship Company Settle Their
Difficulties.
How the indianapolis, Bloom
ington & Western Came ..
to Grief.
The Pacific Railroads and the Steam-
ship Company Settle Their
Difficulties.
The Receiver Of the Muncie
Railroad Continued.
RAILWAY COMPETITION.
TIE BALTIMORE / OTTO RAiLnoAD-TuE uITY OF
DAITj3iOuE.

RAILWAY EOMPTTIT1QN.
TIE BALTIMORE oIi1o RAiLnoAD-TlIg ulTY or
DALTiMonE.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 19, 1874.
To The Ea1or a Tho cafeago 7r5oune:
SIN; The subject OF railway competition is
one Of great practical momont to tho people Of
this country. It is also one which has elected
no little theoretical discussion among notablo
statesmen and writer's Of this and Of ether
limits. Tho most Of theso. pothaps alt, claim
TINT thoro is no sueb thing as permanent railway
competition TINT, in tho end. thoso great cor
poratlona always combine In behalf of their own
mutual interests. 10 this conclusion. tho
BpoclRl Committee Of the Senate On Inland
Transportation, In the roluminou8 report of
last winter, gave full assent. Numerous facts
waro set forth to chow tho correctness OF this
opinion, and with great apparont strength Of
reaHon. AA Is vol known to your Intelligent
readers tho Massachusetts hallway Commits
Hionors, composed Of mon of wide information
upon this subject, aone time ago made tho eatno
lIuo Of argument. aud with creator forco and
ability than tho Senate Committee was able to
bring to bear, or indeed than Inns bean anywhere
eise done.
An opinion sustained by ablo and eminent
mon, 1would combat with respect and deforonce.
Nevertheless, I ain bound to say that think tho
opinion is based upon On erroneous conception
Of what competition Is. To compete Is not the
na1no thing ks 10 cut q throat. Competition
among men engaged In the Rame line Of busi-
ness il a struggle for its greater share at fair
prof ta; whereas tho cut-throat notion Of COM
petition il tho rorv reverse OF tho true idua and
is struggle for a monopoly Of busincnB. It
Ia an attempt to destroy AL competition.
Railways, in Europe az VOL Rs III America. havo,
III many Instances, attempted to destroy all CON-
rious points naturally competing will ono an
other. IAess attenWs hA'o almost invariably
| failed. and IN the long run thoy Will Inevitably
fail, every Quo. 1t ls tIua, however, that seeing
that cutting taronts IL not profitable oconpa-
tlon, railways have stopped tlo business gouer-
| plly doing so through compromise or "combi-
nation " with competing llnos. BY these combi-
nntions tue old ''cut-tlroat" rates havo been In
yariably raiaod, of course. And henco 1t is COIL
cluded that RAILWAYS do not per1nanontly con-
poto. but inevitably "combinc."
Tho conclusion is - un'SarIantcd aa would be
the conclusion that the ory.goods merchants Of
chicago do not compoto with tho dry-goods mcr-
chants Of other cities and among themselves.
because they do not spend thoir whole lives aud
fortunes in tue insane attompt to destroy tho
business Of their rivals aud completely control
the tfsda- It!e marchauta inyountarlly md
necessarily combine Tor tair profits preclsely as
much 80 in practical effect as If tho eontract
were written down in plain words md nominatoa
In the bond Of an express compact. The dilfor.
ence. and tlie only dldorcncc. bctwcon tho vir-
tuei combinations netweon oil elaaaea of tsatlora
this: That, in the presont stato OF things, there
cannot, in tho nature Of the case, DO III much
! competition IN the bus1nosH OF ta1lWay-trana-
po1tatson ~ in other branches OF trade. This Ia
all thofo iH to 1t. This Is enough. lowevor, TO
calao railway combinations to be, in gome in-