Omaha daily bee., 1889-04-29
AN InPORTANr 1NYESTIG ATroN.

AN IMPORTANT INVESTIGATION.
The special senate committee on our
commercial relations with Canada,
which is to be in Omaha at an early
day, will enter upon its Investigations
in New York City next Wednesday.
The resolution providing for this com
mittee directs it TO inquire whether
commerce originating In the United
States is diverted from American to
Canadian lines, and il so, to what eX-
tent and by what means. 1t Is also to
inquire fully into the question
OF tho regulation of the COM
merce carried on by railroads or
water routes between the United
States and Canada, and to represent
what legislation, If any, is necessary
for the protection of the commercial
interests of the United States, or to
promote the enforcement Of the act
to regulate commerce,
The great importance Of this investi-
cation and its possible results will be
apparent to the railroad and shipping
interests of the country, which may not
be found in sympathy in the event of
attempted legislation imposing such
restrictions upon Canadian railroads as
would practically shut them out from all
competition with American lines. Mean
time there has been promulgated by
by the inter state commerce commission
a decision that the law under which the
commission acts extends to foreign car
riers from or into the United States, so
far as to require them to conform to the
same regulations that govern domestic
carriers, while the authorities of the
treasury department are said to be con"
sidering the advisability of imposing
customs duties on railroad cars crossing
the border from Canada, and of revis-
ing the regulations under which Cana
dian lines enjoy privileges OF trans
porting merchandise in bond. The
position of the interstate commission
regarding the transportation Of traffic
between the United States and Canada
is thus stated in the decision in the
: Grand Trunk case:
Whenever the carriage originates in the
United States and goes to u destination in an
adjacent foreign country, or comes from a
port of entry or other place in an adjacent
foreign country to a destination at place in
the United States, it is intended to be sub
iect to the provisions of the act. Its origin in
the one case and its destination in the other
within The jurisdiction of the United States
give authority to the government to pre-.
scribe such conditions for the conduct of the
business as it may deem just The carriage
is of property produced in or destined to the
territorial sovereignty of the United States,
and the business is in competition with do
mestic carriers. The government has the
right, and owes it to its own citizens, to say
that foreign competitors in the bust
ness shall be governed by the same
rules of justice and fair dealing that apply to
domestic carriers. This is not, as argued by
counsel, an attempt to regulate the internal
affairs or to antagonize the laws of another
country, but, on the contrary, is the assertion
of proper control over our own business and
the protection of our own citizens against
unfair practices which unjustly affect their
interests. The object is that the foreign
transportation agencies that find it profitable
to seek business within our jurisdiction shall
not abuse their privileges to the injury of
the carriers whose legitimate territory they
penetrate. 1t is expected that in return for
the hospitality of entering our domain for
business purposes, enjoying the protection of
our laws, maintaining agencies, soliciting
business, making contracts, receiving and
discharging freight, and participating gener-
orally in the operations OF commerce, they
will observe in good faith the rules of COM
mercial honesty that the law has prescribed
in the public interests as eXpedient for the
regulation of business.
Herein it is distinctly and explicitly
announced that the Canadian railroads
cannot have immunity, on the plea that
they are aliens, from the law regulat-
ing American roads, and it is u very
considerable step toward cutting off the
damaging Canadian competition, OF
which American railroad managers
complain, not without substantial
ground, as the evidence in the Grand
Trunk case disclosed. But how much
farther it may be wise or eXpedient to
go in the direction of excluding thi S
competition is a question in which
American shippers are concerned, and
it will be one OF the duties OF
the senate committee to ascer-
tain the sentiment of the busi-
ness communities most directly con =
cerned. 1t is apparent that this matter
has assumed very great Importance,
making a demand upon the thoughtful
consideration of the business interests
of the country generally. We might
inaugurate a policy that would seriously
damage Canadian railroads to the ma
terial benefit of our own, but with what
consequence to American shippers of
| every class? 1t is new complication
in the railroad situation that may prove
quite as perpleXing as any that have
preceded it.
THE BERLIN CONFERENCE.
The American commissioners to the