Omaha daily bee., 1885-06-24
be afforded, would soon be bankrupt.
PLAN SUGGESTED.

IH Abbs
! DON'T think composition can be con.
holl,d by humsn Law. If congress would
provide for q c )mmisslon Of men, honest,
experienced men, to make observations.
they might gradually bull up = lew that
would meet the desired demands, but I
have never teen q railroad law, hastily
passed, which sny railroad commission
could not tear to pieces. The thing has gone
to untorstep RESULTS Until the stroneest
COZ p5raticns control the whole county,
therefore just the right sort of legista-
tive remedy to apply, Mr.. Adams pre-.
terred not TO denote or suggest mas
much as he was not prepared to say.
Suppose congress- would pass a law pro-
hibiting pooling, requiring publication of
rates and also requiring a classification of
rates, inquired Senator Cullom, do you
think 1t would be Of any benefit to the
railroads or to the people2
81 think such q law" replied Mr..
Adams, "would be the greatest boon that
could be conferred upon tho railroads of
the country so far as the prohibit
tlon OF pooling Is concerned,
and 1t would also be a blessing most de-
voutly deslred If the system of Issuing
passes was entirely abolished. That Is
the greatest curse railroads have 10 con-
tend with. The speaker stated that his
road YVES giving no less than $4,000
worth OF free transportation daily, but
about GO per cent of this amount Is for
employees of the company. Last week
the list OF passes given out, as 1t was sent
to hin for inspection, fer q period Of
seven days represented S14, 600. He has
been trying ever since he bfcame presi-
dent of the read to cut this down, but Is
met with the argument that to do 30 will
DO the cause of the road losing an I'm
mense amount of business, as other roads
keep 1t up and people will 90 with
their business where they can get passes.
1t mixes itself up with traffic, and with
politics to such al extent that IL has abb
solutely become one of the greatest nuts.
snces of tho day. II makes a favored
class which somebody must pay for. To
such an inconceivable limit has the sys-
tenn gone that sixteen per cent more is
charged those who do pay fare, on &C.
count thereof.
A t CUTTING.
il the government will only succeed In
putting u stop to rate cutting and make
an established scale Of rates, l think 1t
would be satisfactory to the roads, but
the sharp practices resorted to by freight
and passenger agents to work their
schemes would put the prosecuting attor-
neys' to considerable trouble. But the
people, when talking of establishing max
imum and minimum rates by law 40 mol
realizs the differences in conditions be-
tween one seotitn of tho country and an
other.
The books of a railroad company will
chow Its gross receipts, and toe com-
panies ~alwsys have full knowledge when,
and to whom rebates are charged. Of
courss If this was not allowed by the
management the agents or employees
would not keep 1t up, but q road without
rebates would soon become bankrupt.
If the sysiem could be abolished on all
roads, such a thing would meet the sp-
probation of railroad men as to the
survival of the tittest theory. Mr..
Adams stated that he had bsen trying to
Continued on fth page.