Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1888-12-08
INTERSTATE COMMERCE.
A Record Of Railroad Extensious-The
Number of Railroad Corporations Much
Greater Than the Number of Operat-
ing Companies, Leases tho Reason.
Combinations for the Protection - Bush
ness of the Roads and Their Patrons
Allowable, but Great TRUSTS"
Condemned.

WASHINGTON, D. c., December 3.-Ths
following Is summary of the annual 70
port of the interstate commerce commits
sion:
From the best information now available
the railroad mileage of the country on the
30th day of June, 1888, is estimated at 81,
7S1, of which 2,312 miles had been complet.
ed and brought into operation within the
six months preceding that day.
The number of corporations represented
is 1.251, but, by reason of leases OF other
contract arrangements, many corporations
hold, control and operate one or more roads
owned by other corporations, and the whole
number making reports or operated at the
time named was 665.
The commission deplores thu rate wars,
and thinks that these evils are magnif ed by
the custom of allowing subordinates to make
rates. On the subject of pooling and trusts,
the report says:
II is reasonable to expect that carriers of
the country will, where practicable, make
such joint arrangements, so that the public
shall find an arrangement with one ade-
quate for the purposes of any single transac-
ton. There should be some means of en-
forcing among carriers the obligations,
moral or legal, that would grow out of such
arrangements. The only effectual means
by which good faith could be enforced was
the pooling of freight or earnings, but pool
ing is now out of their power, being forbid
den by law. The tendency among railroads
seems likely to be in the direction of con-
solidatlon as the only means of mutual pro-
lection against rate wars. But anything
equivalent to the creation of what is now,
technically denominated as trust, could
parties were at liberty to form it at pleas
ure. If the parties could come into harmony
on the subject, an arrangement of the sort
would be SO powerful in its control over the
business interests of the country, and SO
susceptible to uses for mischevious pur-
poses, that public policy could not
for moment sanction it, at least,
unless by statute it were held in close legal
restraints and under public control. Like
arrangements in other lines of business are
already sufficiently threatening to the pub
lie interest and the most ardent advocate of
the concentration of railroad authority can
hardly expect that it will control the trans
portation of the country. Lacking con-
centration of authority, railroads can do
much towards better relations with the pub
lie and the establishment of better relations
very imperative. In all the cutting of rates
the party beginning it makes insinuations
against its competitors. Carriers cutting
rates have proclaimed that the reduced
rates were all that could be justly demanded
when persons having experience knew that
persistence in such rates would lead directly
to bankruptcy. An impartial observer is
compelled to say that such methods do not
belong to the present age. To make the
adversary feel and fear the power to intiict
injury is often the first and principal thought
and a rate is cut, when in a ruder age it
would have been throat. The motive is
to obtain a right or extort privilege, or
punish a wrong and irrespective of any
question whether there are not legal RENE
dies which are adequate for all purposes of
substantial justice. While this commission
is not at this time prepared to recommend
general legislation towards the establish
ment and promotion of relations between
the carriers that shall better subserve the
public interest than those which are now
common, but must nevertheless look for
ward to the possibility of something of that
nature becoming imperative unless q great
improvement in the existing conditions is
Voluntarily inaugurated.