St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-05-09
The Senate Committees Que
ries Take a Political
Turn.
Erastus Wiman Speaks Of
Canada's Status as a
Nation.
Somehow the Santa Fe Finds
1t Mighty Hard to Make
Money.
Trackage and Mileage Rates
Before the Interstate Com
mittee.

New YORK, May S.-The senate COM
mittee which is investigating the work
ingS Of the interstate commerce law and
the matter of the Canadian roads doing
business in and with this country re-
sumed its labOrS promptly at 10 o'clock
this morning i'll the Fifth Avenue hotel.
Senator HiScOck was the only member
of the committee absent. President j..
j. Hill, OF the ST. Paul, Minneapolis &
Manitoba railroad, was present to tell
what he knew about railroads, and his
own in particular, but the first witness
called by Chairman Cullom was Presi-
dent Charles Francis Adams, of the
Union Pacific road. Mr.. Adams thought
the interstate commerce law in many
cases cruel one, those who obeyed it
lost by its operation, and those who
evaded it prOfited. 81 should like.
however, to see it universally obeyed,"
he said, land since January l, l really
believe that the law has been better
Obeyed than ever before. l know, for
instance, that large shippers, who
heretofore practically dictated their
own terms, can do so no longer. The
ing good work and | am glad to see
erateIy. This investigation. too, is GO
ing ahead as rapidly as possible. Pub
LEFTY is good remedy for many of the
evils which we are seeking to mitigate,
and the greatest service The interstate
commissioners could do the railroads in
general would be to prosecute some Of
the offenders. Nothing would have a
better effect on the situation. Since
the first of this year, however, rates
have been we'll maintained. Mr.. Adams
thought that a common railroad law be-
tween Canada and the United States
and legaliZed pool would be good
thing. and would tend to bring about a
solution of the present troubles in ref
erence to Canadian roads. 6 If you
think the interstate law is good
thing, then where does all the opposi-
ton come frOm? asked Senator Blair.
6 You must remember that the country
has been built up on a system of dis
tribution which the interstate law
shakes to its foundation. The long and
short haul clauses give in effect to the
smaller cities many of the advantages
heretofore exclusively enjoyed by the
larger cities, and the consequence is
that in city like San Francisco the OPP
position is very strong"
'Then it is question of whether the
smaller towns shall be enslaved by the
larger ones, or the larger ones give up
some of their prestige to them?" asked
Senator Blair.
''Enslave is strong word" said Mr..
Adams, ''but without question what is
taken from the one goes to the other"
In conclusion the witness said that
while nominally the president of the
Union Pacific railroad he really knew
but little of its practical workings, and
referred the committee to the members
of the Union Pacific railroads execu-
tive staff at Omaha. At IL 80 the stand
was taken by Thomas Lyman Greene.
transportation expert of this city. Mr..
Greene had no objection to legal pool,
but wanted the merchants to have some
voice in fixing the rates. At l o'clock
the committee took a recess until 2.
President James J. Hill, of the st.
Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba railroad,
was the first witness called after
recess. He described in detail the sub
sides and government gifts of money
and land to the Canadian Pacific road
already referred to by General Manager
Hickson, of the Grand Trunk road, and
Senator German, evidently with some
purpose i'll view, questioned the witness
for long while on the subject of the
Canadian Pacific. Mr.. HIPS remarks
were often full of information, but on
many leading questions his memory was
apparently bad. He gave an account of
the probable route of the future be-
Pacific road, he said, had fast line of
steamers running from it's Western ter
minus to Asia, and from its Eastern
terminus to Liverpool. SIN eighteen
MONTHS" said he, Il fully expect one
can travel from New York to Yoka-
hama in two weeks.
us there much foreign trade-Asia
coming over the Canadian Pacific
rOad?' asked Chairman CullOm.
considerable. Some comes over our
road destined for Omaha"
Chairman Cullom-Why does it take
such roundabout course?
Probably because or cents hun
dred pounds is an inducement. We have
a differential rate, and when time is no
object it pays to take advantage of the
lower rate"
Swi ching over to the eastern ter
minus of the Canadian Pacific road,
Chairman Cullom asked whether or not
the road in question was not trying to
get an outlet across the state of Maine,
and after cross question or two, Chair
man Cullom asked, 'sWhatSif we made
Canada part of American"
"Well, think the Canadians would
make good Americans" answered Mr..
Hill with a SMILE. The witness also
treated his hearers to an exhaustive adj
dress on the question of the application
of water routes to railroad rates and
concluded by making statement that
along the shallow waterways. such as
the Mississippi river, railroads could be
could transport freight cheaper than
the high pressure steamboats,.
EraStuS Wiman next took the witness
chair. ''The construction of the Can
adian railways" he said, .'has done
more to contribute to closer relation
ship between the East and the West
than anything else" Mr. Wiman spoke
strongly in favor of commercial reci-
procity, and figured out how in that
event Canadian territory would at once
be built up by emigration from Europe,
and largely from the United States.
This close interchange of ideas and
peoples must eventually bring about
one grand republic. Any attempt to
shut out the Canadian lines from Oper-
ating in this country would be serious
blow to Western American farmers, and
would be badly received by the Cana
dian people. according to Mr.. Wiman.
''Is it policy for the American people"
asked Senator Blair, ito help with their
resources to build up greatnation with
hostile, OF at least alien, connection Oh
the north of us ?"
1.-The tie which binds Canada to Eng
land is but a sentiment. The state Of
Mn V0rtr IN, Iot .fnsr So,
far more important to England than all
of Canada. Canada cannot stay as she
is. She must either become an indie
pendent republic or join with the
United States. There are many forces
at work in Canada. The hopes of a
great party there rest entirely upon one
old man. After the death of Sir John