The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-09-09

A special dispatch to the Chicago
Record from Montreal, under date OF
ST pit Z, says:
The officials of the Canadian Pacific
railway do not see why there should be
any surprise at their acceptance of the
decision of the interstate commerce
commission in the matter of differ
entails.
I'VE could not do otherwise" said
Mr.. MacNichou, the general traffic
manager, this morning. I'VE always
have recognized the authority OF the
interstate commerce commission, al
though we are a foreign corporation,
and shall continue to do so. | Will not
say that we are the only railway that
has strictly obeyed its mandate, but
! am willing 10 assert that we always
have done so, and that cannot be said
of the American roads that recently
made complaint about US ana appealed
to the commission to protect them.
Il consider that the decision OF the
commission was in many respects de-
cided victory for the Canadian Pacific,
and am confident that the public VIII
50 regard 1t when the full text Of the
document is published. The verdict
jUstifes every step we have taken to
protect our rights. and While we were
not aware that we were expected to
make a case upon the SPECIFIC question
of Qifferential rates we are gratified at
the fairness and good temper shown by
the commission. 1t expressly explains
that its opinion on this point is based
upon testimony that was not entirely
satisfactory and that the material facts
agree with our contention. 1t declares
that Our attitude has never been I'M
fair and the American lines are rebuk-
ed for refusing to accept our offer to
submit the question to arbitration.
1T was a question that ought never to
have come before the commission, but
the American roads dare not risk ar
bitration, because they know they were
in the wrong. The commission says we
were claiming only what numerous
American lines had claimed and were
enjoying, and declares that the Great
Northern and Northern Pacific, which
have been at the bottom of all this
fuss, were guilty of Willful violation
Of the law in taking a substantial diff
ferential for themselves. 1t might have
added that some of the Eastern lines
were doing the same. We believe that
the Canadian Pacific, although a for
eign corporation, is the only one that
has observed the law in this matter.
The commission neglects to allude
to the fact that it has recently sus-
pended the long and short haul clause
of the interstate commerce law in Or
der that the American lines may COM
pete with the Canadian Pacific for
purely Canadian business to and from
Manitoba, but this subject will proba-
bly, come up later.
The commissioners also seem to
have overlooked another important
fact" continued Mr.. MacNicholl,
which is that several important Amer
lean railways are actively competing
for purely Canadian traffic, and to
prevent it the Canadian Pacific could
we'll afford to withdraw from the
United States traffic If such an ar
rangement were practicable. But we
shall continue to mind our own bust
ness as usual, and shall always charge
as low rates as anybody and take diff
ferentials when it is proper and just
to do 50. But we shall file a schedule
of our rates with the interstate COM
merce commission at Washington in
obedience to your laws, and will stick
by that schedule"