Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1888-12-27

cannot furnish legal proof OF them. ny
information comes indirectly or ut second
hand; and while have no doubt myself
Of its accuracy, yet II were brought to
book as 10 time and place and ciroum-
stance could not give them. The thou.
sand evssiuns of the Interstate Commerce
act cannot be proved In court. Yet
among us railroad men the fact that these
things are done ia notorious. II Is all
part and parcel OF that sneak.thist and
piespocket method OF doing business
which has become second nature in Ger
tain grades Of the railroad service.
The community, aud least of all the
railroad community, should not therefore
either DO deceived or deceive Themselves.
II Is this absence of good faith, this
greed Of acquisition this turning over Of
business to subordInstes to hack away at
each other at the expense of the stock
holders, which has brought the railroad
system to its present low condition, aud
threatens to carry 1t still lower. 10
attribute 1t to the Interstate Commerce
act Ia an inter mistake. II that act were
totally repealed tomorrow it would pro-
duce but a Temporary aud stock jobning
relief. For fow days things might be
apparently better, but they would be
sure to drop heavily back again into
their present bad eatate, unless the knife
OF reform went deeper and out at the root
Of the evils I havs referred to. The
railroad system must heal itself; no act
Of Congress or repeal of any act of Con-
gsess will greatly help IL.
Bot in saying what have said do not
mean to imply that ia my Judgment the
Interstate Commerce act is harmless,
much less useful, piece of legislation.
On the contrary, l eui very sure that, as
it stands, 1t il not. II has been 10 opera
ton two years, and we now begin to feel
its effect, and to be able to forecast it's
results. And both ita present effect and
it's future results are exactly those which
its trainers meyer contemplated, and from
which, if they realized them az we do,
they would recoil. The process of
grsyitation and consolidation, go far AS
tine railroads are concerned, was going on
fast enough before, but the Interstate
Commerce act has given to it new i'm.
petus. 1t has done this through process
which is unmistaksble to all who make a
study Of the subject.
The practice known 90 pooling, which
the Interstate Commerce act inhlbits,
WAS merely method through which the
weaker railroad corporations were kept
alive. To prevent excessive and unequal
composition business was so divided rhat
the less favored corporation had SONS
share Of traffic assigned to it. This prac-
tice the Law put stop to /; and it further
enacted that rates 10 competing points
should not be less than rates to inter
mediate points.
These enaoiments struck st the very
foundation OF the business system under
which the railroads in the country, and
the country itself, had been built up, aud
it took some time for them to produce
their results. They have Of late been
doing 80. Under the operation of the
act the smaller local railroads through
out the country are being ground out Of
existence. II Ia the long haul which
brings in the profit. The smaller inde-
pendent railroads cannot have the long
haul, and oan only be operated probably
in connection with the larger railroads.
They are thus, one by one, becoming ua.
remunerative, and being forced, whether
they like it or mot, into the maws Of the
few great systems into which the rail,
roads of the country are rapidly crystal.
LIKING.
So much for the practical working OF o
law inhibiting pooling. Next came the
long and short haul CLAUSE. just as the
small, local railroads are crushed out OF
existence by the anti-pooling clause, SO
the local points of distribution and
s ecG clncs s h- Sss.S. sss.ts s
the country end themselves, because Of
the long and abort haul clause, unable "a
compete with the great commercial cen
tres. Traffic, under the provisions Of
the act, must inevitably seek the railroad
having the long haul to the most distant
aud largest centre. The operation Of the
law in this respect is now beginning IL
make itself felt upon the smaller distribut
ing points. They are deprived OF thei,
markets, for those who formerly bought
OF them can get the same goods on better
terms from the larger and more distant
centres. This cid local system Of distri.
button is broken up In favor Of the cen
tralized system.
This fact is now making itself apparen,
to the manufacturers and iobbers OF til,
smaller cities or towns az against Chicago
St. Louie or Cincinnati; bnt az eure q,
the law Of gsayitation appIisa to all plaoei
and works under all circumstances, THU
SANE long and short haul clause will mex
make Itself felt against Chicago, st. Louis
aud Cincinnati, AID in favor Of New York
In other words, contrary to avery desigi
OF those who framed the act, its pro
visions have lent q new impetus 30 JUS
those forces which II was intended {,
hold in check. Instead of building III
the local road and the small Distributing
centre, it is working the sure destructio,
OF both. An artificial, bus most powerful
impstus, has thus been given to the process
of Capitalization. With the body polite, a
with the human body, q mistaken remed,
only aggraVstes the disease. The remed.
In this case was mistaken one, aud tn
danger now il leel, seeing the disease az
Rrayated, the physician should c0nclud
that he had fallen into the vulgar erro
of not giving enough OF his surs-cur
remedy, and so proceed to douhla III
desc. IL il not another doas of the sam
treatment, bnt wholly different tres!
ment which is required.
Under these circumstances II may, Der
hsps, be asked what my view OF tn
future Is, and wbRt should now be done
While do not care set up as pyophet
the trend OF events seems TO me plall
enough; nor do l bslieTe that any 40!
Congress or of state Legislature csl
thwarr or greatly change it. The railroads
of this country are moving rapidly to
Wards some great system Of consoles
ton. I do net know when or how it VII
come about, nor is it necessary now Il
consider this. Neither do I believe /
will become an evil when it does corae
Nevertheless, it is a matter of commo
notoriety that such result is We've
with grave popular apprehension. w
have seen what the progress of the las
20 years has been in this respect Crys
tslllzaiion has gone on during those years
30 thai, while then railroad of 200 @
800 miles was considered large, one 0
s 100 or 5000 miles noE il far from bein