The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1889-05-16
RAILROAD DOINGS.
President Hill, Of the Manitoba,
Testifies Before the Senate
Committee.

NEW YORK. May S.-The senate committee,
which Is investigating the workings OF the
interstate commerce law and the matter of
the Canadian roads doing business in and
with this country, resumed its laoo%s
promptly at 10 o'clock this morning in the
Fifth Avenue hotel Senator Hiscock was
the only member of the committee absent
President J. ]. Hill, of the ST. Paul. Minneap-
oils & Manitoba railroad, was present to tell
what he knew about railroads and his own
in particular, but the first witness called by
Chairman CulIom was President Charles
Francis Adams, of the Union Pacific road
Mr. Adams thought the interstate COM
r1erc4 law in many cases q cluel one; those
who obeyed it lost by its operation, and
those who eVaded it, profted. Il should like,
however, to see it universally obeyed and
given fair trial" he said, Hand, since Jan.
l, really believe that the law has been bet
ter obeyed than ever before" Mr.. Adams
thought that n common railroad law De-
tween Cadada and the United States, and a
legalized pool, would be a good thing and
would tend to bring about solution of the
present troubles in reference to Canadian
roads.
IF you think the interstate law is a good
thing then where does all the opposition come
frum?" asked Senator Blair.
You must remember that the country has
been built up on a system Of distribution, which
the interstate law shakes to it's foundation. The
long and short haul clauses give in effect to the
smaller cities, manv Of the advantages hereto
fore exclusively enjoyed by the larger cities, aud
the consequence is that in a city like San Fran
cisco the opposition is very strong.
In conclusion the witness said that while
nominallv the president Of the Union Pacific
railroad. he really knew buS little of its
practical workings, and referred to the COM
mittee of the members of the Union Pacific
railroads executive staff at Omaha Presi-
dentJames j. Hill OF the St. Paul, Minneapo-
lis & Manitoba railroad, was the first wit
ness called after recess He described in
detail the subsidies 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 Gorman, evidently
| with some purpose in view, questioned the
witness for a long while 90 the subject of the
| Canadian Pacific. Mr.. Hills remarks were
| often full of Information, but on many lead
| ing questions his memory was apparently
| bad He gave an account of the probable
! route of the future between Asia and Europe
| The Canadian Pacific road, he said, had a
! fast line of steamers running from its West
| ern terminus TO Asia and from its Eastern
| terminus to Liverpool.
one can travel from New York to Yokahama in
| two weeks.
"IS there much foreign trade-Asia trade
| coming over the Canadian Pacific road?" asked
| Chairman Cullom.
Considerable. Some comes over our load
destined for Omaha"
Chairman Cullom-Why does it take such a
| roundabout course?
| Probably because or 6 cents hundred
! pounds is an inducement We have Different
rate, and time is no object it pays to take ad-
| vantage OF the lower rate.
| Switching over to the eastern terminus OF the
| Canadian Pacific road, Chairman Cullom asked
| whether not the road in question was not try
| ing to get an outlet across the State of Maine.
| and after crOss-questiOn or two Chairman Gull
| lOm asked What if we made Canada part OF
| American"
| We'll think the Canadians would make good
| Americans" answered Mr. Hill with smile.
The witness also treated his hearers to an
exhaustive address 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 con-
| stlucted along the levees which could trans
port freight cheaper than the high-pressure
, steam boaia
| Erastus Wiman next took the witness chair.
"The construction Of the Canadian railways,
| he said, "has done mOie to contribute TO a
| closer relationship between the East and
West than anything else" Mr. Wiman spoke
| strongly in favor of commercial reciprocity
and figured out how in that event of that as
an assured fact Canadian territory would a:
once be built up by emigration from Europe
and largely from the United States.