Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1888-03-01

IOu nay per Ctut VI
their tonnage is east of Pittsburg?
Mr.. Sage: Yes, the. rate from New York
to Chicago is based on the water rates. They
have very low scale, and they carry that
scale to ST. Louis; SO that ST. Louis, al
though il is not on the water like Chicago,
gets the benefit of the competitive water
rates based ON the short mileage from New
York.
Although we have not very much interest
in Missouri, some of the gentlemen here at
tended a special session called last summer
to take into consideration nothing but rail-
road business, and want to say that all OF
the railroad men there. were heard fully. l
think they devoted three weeks to us. L
was myself day and half talking to them,
and Mr.. Ripley WAS three days. These
gentlemen decided in their own minds be-
fore they came there that the railroads were
destroying the country, and they must make
rates TO prevent our extorting; but after
they talked with us, and after they found
there were grades of railroads, when they
found the Missouri Pacific run along the
Missouri river and had to make low rates,
and that the Iron Mountain system, part of
the Missouri Pacific going into steep eoun-
try, charged higher rates, and had to do it
and the people did not object, and down at
Cape Girard was a little road forty miles
long, owned by one man who owned the
| land, and who charged on it something like
five hundred per cent higher rates than tho
other railroads, and his own people said:
Don't stop lin doing that; If you do, his
| railroad is stopped at once, they saw at
| Cnce rates must be made suitable to the
| character of the country and the inhabitants
along the line. You know, gentlemen, that
| the retailer WHO sells the small lot of goods
| and makes from thirty-three and third to
|, fifty per cent does not become a rich man,
| but our great wholesale firms are very glad
| sometimes to get two and one-half per cent
| or three per cent profit. They make their
| money, not on the large profits of the small
| business, but the small profits on a large
| business We have no power now to make
| rates.
The long and short haul principle of the
National law makes them for us. j will
show you how the rates are made from the
| Mississippi river to Kansas City and Council
| Bluffs The short distance is from Hanni-
| bal to Kansas City. That makes the rate on
| all reads to Kansas City from the Mississippi
river. The st. Paul cannot get one cent
| more On their long distance from Clinton to
| Kansas City, In the old times we could
| charge the rate made by the Commissioners.
| The Interstate law compells us to-day to
| charge no more across Iowa. than fourteen
| and One-half cents across the State because
| Tie Interstate rate from Chicago is san
cents.
Chairman: 1t is popular belief, think.
| that in fixing rates, that the rates are fixed
| uron the paying basis along the line.
Mr.. Sage: No, sir. The short line inva-
! Iiably makes the rate. Practically in the
summer the Missouri river makes the rate
between st. Louis and Kansas City on such
articles as can be loaded on steamboats,; If
the Missouri Pacific don't make tue same
| rates as the steamboats,, they don't get the
business. We necessarily have the st. Louis
| rates from Davenport, Clinton and Burling-
| tor, because our connections from Ohio come
| TO us at Davenport the Burlington at Burl-
| ington, the Northwestern at Clinton. ETC.,
| and if we don't make the same rates at these
points, the business would go through st.
| Louis. The interstate law permits US to
| name any rate we choose. 1t must be prop
| erly posted and must not be higher on
! shorter haul. That seems a simple law but
| is changing the whole world of trade There
| is no longer any reason for naming MAXI
mum rates by statute.
/ will come by and by to the House rates
made Saturday, but l would like to go on
| and show you that when we talked at JEFF
| ferson, Missouri, for some time, our talks
were not in holes and corners, but were held
! Ill the Senate Chamber. The committees
! net us there. and every member of both
| Houses heard all that was said The place
was crammed. Now, after it was all over
| they realized that we were not endeavoring
| 10 destroy them. They assisted by cross
examination in bringing out many cases
| where we had done great deal of help in
| trying TO develop their country. They had
a rough country in the southern part. They
| finally adopted the Interstate law. with
| some added provisions more liberal in this
| respect-that the commissioners were per-
| mitted, in the ease of manufactures and
! other cases that seemed to them necessary.
TO suspend the long and short haul clause
Now, l jump from Missouri TO Illinois.
| You are all aware that, when the granger
| laws were abolished in 1879, the only State
| bat retained the old law was the State OF
| Illinois. The Governor names the Commits
! sioners, and they, not having devoted their
| lives to IailrOading, have always been ready
! 10 discuss the subject in consultation with
us. They stated two weeks ago that they
! distinctly understood that the Railway Com
mission of Illinois was not in the interest of
| any class: that the railways were entitled to
| the same protective powers from the Com
! mission as any class Of farmers and manu-
| factuIers and merchants, and they wished
| The railroads TO distinctly understand that
! they were not there to antagoniZe them. Mr..
| jeffrey was present, and he will probably in
| very vivid manner explain this to you.
| This Interstate law had this eff
| feet in Illinois, gentlemen: There
| out of Indiana into Illinois on an Interstate
| basis of The trunk line rates from New York
| to st. Louis. The trunk lines first made rates
! from New York to Chicago and st. Louis:
| next the rates are made from Buffalo aud
| Pittsburg proportion less TO Chicago and
! ST. Louis, and then from Toledo, Cleveland,
and Indianapolis at rate still less to Chi
cago and st. Louis. This basis Of rates,
! yOn will observe, Affected all the rates across
! Illinois, and the rates from Indiana, Ohio,
! and Pennsylvania TO commercial centers in
| Illinois, such as Bloomington, Decatur, Peo-
] ria, Springfield, and the cities along the
| Mississippi river in Iowa. from KeOluk to
| Dubuque inclusive, were less than the rates
| to all these points from Chicago. This was
not equitable; so the Burlington aud Wa
| bash railroads lowered their rates from Chi
! cago TO these points by a tariff which has
| been enormously called mileage tariff,
} which ii is not. Ii is commercial neces-
| sity tariff. based on the provisions OF
| the inter State law, and it is done in the in
teresls of Iowa. The distances from Chicago
| 10 the Iowa commercial centerS on the Mis-
| siSsippi river vary from 1873 miles, Chicago
| to Clinton. 10 206 miles, Chicago to Burling-
| ton. Yet all these river towns must have
! tie same rates from Chicago, irrespective of
| mileage, otherwise the towns ON the Missis-
| sippi river having the long distances from
| Chicago could not compete with the shorter
| distance towns on the river in jobbing goods
! in Iowa. The Illinois Commissioners re-
1 Al.