The Winslow mail., 1897-06-05
What is Pooling2

The following extracts from speech
delivered in the United States Senate
by Hon. 0. 81. Platt, of Connecticut, in
1887, are as true to-day as when he ut
deed, this speech, in the light of pres
ent events, reads more like prophecy
than warning. Exactly what Senator
Platt said would happen has come to
pass:
"a pooling contract is based-that is
to say, the percentage of freights or
the portion of freights which each COM
pany agrees to be satisfied with-is
based upon the results of traffic for
several years under free competition;
and it is strange thing that, however
fierce the competition, the amount of.
competitive traffic which road secures
is practically the same. This appor-
tionment of traffic, then, is based upon
what returns for some years under open
petition-w competition has
been fierce and when it has not been
fierce-have been secured By each COM
peting road.
"The fact to which I have alluded
shows that there is for every competing
railroad it's natural, normal share of
the competitive business, business
which will come to it whatever the COM
petition may be. 4 competing railroad
company may be justified il saying
that such share Of the competitive busi-
ness belongs to it SO. long as it main
tains only reasonable rates for doing
it, It is upon that theory that the ap
portionment is made. IL it itconstitutes
an agreement for the prevention of
competition, for non-competition, it is
this, that the railroad company will not
light for more than it's natural share of
The business. Its object is, as I have
shown by the quotation from Judge
Cooley, to remove the inducement
which exists for railroads to enter into
E,ruinous competition or into unnatural
strife for business which does not be-
long to them.
at may be said that the purpose of
pooling is to maintain and establish
equal and stable rates. What is this
oili for? What has been the purpose
of the committee ia this bill? They
nave heard from all over this land that
80 oe +Lo ob;of o16 frrootaSt o.rSo- n
complaint against railroads was the
ductuation Of rates, rates which were
up to-day and down Tomorrow, p for
fthe reiailer aud, down for the whole
saler, and lnctuating up down as the
caprice of the railroads or the emer-
yencies of the competitive strife should
require. Look 1T the report of the
committee, look st the testimony be-
fore the committee, and you find that
one OF the main objects Of the bill Is
70 make rates stable and permanent
when they have been found to be rea-
| soma BILE. I challenge proof of 1t.
leard petitions presented at that desk
his morning praying forthe passage OF
this bill. For what purpose? Topre-
vent excessive rates, Determinations,
and pooling It shows the utter and
lamenta BILE ignorance of what pooling
contracts really are. There is not "a
man who ever studied them, there is
not a man who ever investigated their
operation, but what viii tell you that
the main purpose Of them is to prevent
determinations; and yet here we have
bill in which we propose to make
criminal the means which the railroad
companies adopt to prevent discrimi-
nation. Others may agree TO it for the
sake of getting legislation. l will not"