The National tribune., 1882-04-01
The Transportation Problem.

ern cities upon the question of trans
portation rates to the seaboard. The
commission began its session in New York,
whose merchants confined themselves prin-
cipally to presenting arguments against the
allowance of diferential rates to rival sea-
ports, claiming that the charges for trans
portation by all the great trunk lines from
competing points in the West to the Allan
tic seaports should be uniform, or, in other
words, that no account should be taken of
the greater distance to New York as COM
pared with Philadelphia and Baltimore.
Philadelphia a,-where papers were read in
favor of maintaining differential rates,-and
thence to Baltimore, where it was in session
for several days a fortnight ago. Before
promulgating any decision in the matter,
the commission will, doubtless, take testi-
mony in some of the Western cities, so as to
get the views of producers, and will then,
companies themselves. The question is one
which concerns the prosperity of the West al
most as much as the welfare of the rival East
ern ports, for upon the decision of the COM
mission-provided, of course, that it should be
accepted by the trunk Iines-depends the
rate which the growers of grain will have to
pay hereafter for its transportation to mar
ket 1t is argued by the New York mer
chants that the railroads should not be per-
mitted to charge any more per bushel for
transporting grain from Western points to
New York than to Baltimore notwithstand-
ing that the latter city is nearer to the great
points of competition in the ratio of 66.8 to
1OO-nearly one third nearer-on the ground
that the excess of distance is more than bal
anced by the difference in actual cost of car
riaee. They maintain that, owing to the
fact that there aIe no heavy grades to be
| surmOunted on the line Of the New IOrk
| Central, bushel of grain can be carried to
New York as cheaply as to Baltimore. II
| this were true, it would establish, perhaps,
| the equity of their claim, but, as matter of
fact, while it does require greater motive
mower to do business on the Baltimore and
| Ohio Railroad, for instance, than on the
New York Central, the cost of fuel on the
latter is so much greater than on the former,
that the advantage of grade becomes of small
consequence. Indeed if we turn to the Off
cial statistics as furnished by Poor's Manual,
we shall find that the percentage of working
expenses of the three great trunk lines aver
aged from 1870 to 1880 as follows:
Baltimore and Ohio :. 6276
Pennsylvania o4i2
New York Central &. . 6866
showing that the irst-named road is not
only the shortest from the West to the sea-
! 49, ut the cheapest to operate. Accept
ctual difference in distance as the
establishing differential rates from
ae to the Atlantic seaports, Baltimore
would be entitled to differential of 173
whereas it has been as low as g. and is now
but 8-which New York desires to wipe out
entirely. 1t perhaps makes little difference
to Western producers and shippers which Of
the rival seaports gets their business, but II
is of vital consequence to them that the city
which is farthest away in point of distance
should not have the power of making the
rates to cities which are nearer. As matter
of fact, fifty per cent. of all the grain which
is shipped East comes from districts II
which there is no railway competition, Sc
that if, for instance, the rates should bC
eeualized, shippers would lose any natura
advantage which they may have derived
from the fact of being on the shortest lint
to the ocean. Thus, for example, shipper
at Cincinnati would have to pay as much Il
send his grain to Baltimore as to New York
although the former point would be only
about two-thirds as far away.
The effect of such an equalization of rate.
as the New Workers demand, would be, o
course, to build up the commerce of tina
city at the expense of all other interests
: Inasmuch as the cost of ocean freightS from
New York to foreign ports is always mucl
, less than from Philadelphia or Baltimore
Western shippers, in order to protect them
| selves, would be forced to export to Europ
/ via New York, and the commerce of Phila
delphia, Baltimore and all Southern port
5 would be sensibly diminished, if not alto
t gether destroyed. Furthermore, 1t wOul'
deprive the West Of all the benefits of com
petition which it now enjoys and would pu
3 it within the power of the New York rail
, roads to fix the rates Of transportation from
) all sections of the cOuntry-a monopol.
more monstrous than any which the tarme
, has hitherto experienced If the great trunl
f lines were united in an agreement to charg
uniform rate from all competing points t
e their termini, there would be nothing t
t restrain them from raising the rates to an,
E point they pleased The railway war
lI