The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1888-12-06
THE INTERSTATE LAW.

miniStratlOn Makes Its Report - lno
Long and short Haul Clause Must DO
Eaf0rced-Eytls or Rate-Cutting-Com.
ment Upon the Proposed Hallway Trusts
WASHINGTON, Dec. 1.-The report Of the In.
.er-State Commerce Commission. which
vii be ready for distribution in lew
lays. estimates the railroad mileage OF the
country on June 20 1855. ut i52, 7sI miles. OF
which 2,31s were completed within the pre-
:eding SIX months. The number Of cor
porations represented in the mileage Is
t25f. but by reason OF leases, etc.,
many corporations operate roads owned by
other corporations, ami the whole num-
Der making reports OF operation was Gs5. Of
the 107 cases submitted 10 the commission 30
have been decided. q Withdrawn or settled. 10
suspended by request and "a are still pending.
The report says there have been few cases an-
der the long and short haul clause in the terri
tory east Of the Mississippi and north OF the
Ohio river.
With some exceptions resulting from ocean
competition, the rule Of the short-hanl provis-
ion Of the law has been put in force upon the
transeontinental roads. where its operations
and effect can be observed under what now
appear TO be favorable conditions. In the
s uthern and Southwestern States the COM
mission has had reason to think the carriers
were moving more slowly III bringing their
tariffs into conformity with the general stat
utory law tn In other sections. An inyest-
gat,on has been ordered on December IL.
The commission is in possession OF no evil
lence showing that the operation of the law
has been harmful to the carriers. and is fully
convinced that the effect has been beneficial.
Railroad business during the year has suffered
severe losses. but these are not traceable to
the act to regulate commerce.
With reference to the rate wars in the North
west and among the trunk lines during the
year the report says: ''rhe war Of rates pro-
reeds without possibility OF external authority
mterposng to bring il 10 an end. The legal
right OF the carriers to reduce their general
scale OF rates to any extent under the law as 1t
now stands is believed to be unquestionable !:
they have doac SO. and whether with any ulti-
mate benefit to themselves is at least very
questionable
The making OF unreasonably low rates, the
report intimates is often for stock jobbing
purposes, or to compel the purs base OF the
road by competing lines. Persons having con-
troll OF railroads may deliberately make in
sufficient rates in the expectation OF
profits to be indirectly aud improperly
derived therefrom Every case OF rate war
may be regarded as one OF this character.
Present profits are sacrificed on calculat;o on
that by GRIPPING rival or forcing an agree
ment or compromise on some matter OF con-
tention the loss will in time be more than made
up. In the majority OF such cases the losses
exceed the gains.
The statute has not conferred upon the CON-
mission any rover to order any increase OF
rates when it can see are not remune ratiye.
In general, therefore, il may be said that rail.
road managers possess the power TO destroy
the increases not only OF their rivals but OF
their own stockholders. Good service
and unreasonably low rates are antagonstic
ideas. The danger OF committing the rate
making power to subordinates whose training
and experiences have not generally fitted them
10 deal with matters that involve questions oil
policy is also touched upon.
The report says that the tendency amonG
railroads seems likely to be in the direction oil
consolidation as the only means to prevent
rate wars, now that pooling is forbidden, and
adds:
But any thing equivalent to q creation Of
what is now technically denominated as trus,
could hardly be supposed possible even II thu
parties were at liberty to form IL at pleasure.
the parties could come into harmony on the sub
iect an arrangement of the sort would be SC
powerful in its control over the business inter
ests OF the country, and SO susceptible to uses
for mischeyous purposes, that public policy
could not for a moment sanction 1t, ut least I'm
less by statute it were held in close legal re
straints and under public control. Like arrange
menis in other lines of business are alread,
sufficiently threatening to the public in
terest, and the most ardent advocate o
the con :entration of RI lroad authority can no
| reasonably expect that any thing OF the sor
to control the transportation of the country
will be provided for by legislation. Lacking
concentration of authority, railroads can dc
much toward better relations with the public
and do better service by first establishing bet
| ter relations among themselves"
While the commission is not at this tim
prepared to recommend general Legislation
toward the establishment and promotion Of re
lations between the carriers that shall bette
suhserve the public interest than those which
are now common ii must, nevertheless, loo
forward TO the possibility OF something OF tina
| nature becoming at some time imperative III
| less great improvement in the existing cor
| d.tions is voluntarily inauguraied.
! The report next considers the subject of tn
| effect OF the law upon cites, showing that TIL
| act has in some cases benefited consuming in
| ter or cites and njuriousiy affected d.stribu1
| ing points formerly favored in rates The CON
\ mission believes uniformity i'll classificatio
| as fast as possible without serious mischief
| desirable.
Immigrant transportation is next consd
cred and the COMMISSION recommends re
| ception place larger than Castle Garden, fron
which those no, legitimately connected wit
/ immigrant transportation shall be excluded
/ Interior lines should have agents ther
on equal footing. Payment OF con
u ;ssions for routing immigrants, an
for procuring the shipment OF imm
grants from foreign countries. shout
he declared illegal and made punishable. TIL
commission should have power to fix immi
grant fares. These objects can not be full
accomplished except hy the Federal Govern
ment taking complete control Of the who'll
| subject.
The subject OF the payment of commission
| is treated extensively. The commtss on b.
lteves that the evils OF the system exceeds il
advantages. The subject is brought 10 the a
tention Of Congress.
The subject OF overcapitalzation is recoe
nized as an exceedingly important one, but
is believed that ii can only be handled graz
ually and in detail. 1t has been found impo
sible to satisfactorily obtain immediate info
nation which shall show the cost OF railroa
property, franchises and equipments.
| Another quest on of construction ought ais
| 10 be settled by legislation in order to tai
| away the pretense on which certain throlg
| lines are now claimed to be local lines in ia.
and through lines only in appearance. III
| commission thinks II q line is in fact u throug
line by reason OF ownership the corporate
controlling I ought not to lie at liberty TO mai
| through rates or TO decline % mike them
pleasure. The commission favors joint tarif
and through rates, and recommends that I'll
| carriers engaged Independently in inter-Sta1
traffic on the rivers, lakes and other navigab
| waters of the country be put, in respe
to the making, publishing and mail
tanning of rates, upon the same footing vii
interstate carriers by rail, SO that the excus,
now made by carr ers by rail for great dispa
tiles in rates for corresponding transportation
US between points which are and which are n
| affected by water competition would therel
TO large extent be taken away-
Two newsboys stood on the corne
of the street shouting forth their ware
vigorously. One screamed forth "A
about Harrison's election'' Th
other, with equal vigor, shouted, "A
about the elcction!' then called to tn
other boy: What do you want to sin
out that Harrison's elected for?
well. amt hep" asked the forme
urchin. "Supposing he is. Don't
know that the more uncertainty thel
is about it the more extras you'll Sc
from now till the end of the week?"-