The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1902-01-17

sod, transferred from one man to an
other, and any one may purchase and
hold all that he has means to buy and
pay for. The capital stock of the North
ern Pacific and the Great Northern will
be held by somebody, persons or corpora
lions, If not by the present owners, by
other owners. Suppose by death Of pres
emit owners the stock hould be scattered
and a majority of it find it's way into the
hands Of those interested in competing
fines serving the country to the north or
to the south of the territory served by
the Great Northern and the Northern Pa
cific. Would the people along the lines
Of those railways be benefited? If the
present owners Of a majority of the stock
of the two companies could be compelled
to sell it or dispose of it on the market,
would it fall into hands more interested
in the development and prosperity of the
Northwest han it's present owners? How
is it that the lines have been extended
and improved? What brought about the
present condition of the property of the
two companies? What has enabled them
to serve the people along the lines rs
they nave been served? Plainly the will
insness n ability of those controlling
large interests in the stock of the compa-
MES, who found it to their advantage to
build up the lines and promote the set
tlment of the territory tributary to it and
who will continue it.
BrORd-GauSe Competition.
The great freight producing area OF
the country is along the Atlantic sea-
board and in the territory south of Lake
Erie. The freight that is the product
Of all the manufacturing enterprises
which find a market west Of the Missis-
sippi river to a large extent must pass
through the lakes to Duluth and to st.
Paul and Minneapolis and into the terri
tory between these cities and the Pacific,
ny around Lake MICHIGAN and at that
point going largely to Southwestern lines.
The question of stock ownership, so far
as the public along the lines served by
the Great Northern and Northern Pacific
is concerned, is to be considered in the
light of a great competitive condition
between the territor.- served by the
Northern lines and those Of the South
and West-between ines whose interest
it is to secure traffic as against the
Northern lines, to populate and build up
the country in which the people along the
Northern lines have no special immediate
interest.
A few years ago the TRANSFORMATION on
Lake Superior was mainly in the hands
of what was known as the Lake Superior
Transit company, a pool line made up
by steamers operated by Eastern trunk
lines, who also operated boats running
from Chicago, and whenever we reduced
the rates from the wheat fields to Lake
Superior a corresponding advance in the
water rate was made to offset our reuuc-
ton on land and equalize the rate by
Lake Superior and by Chicago. We
built six steel steamers, which at that
time were the largest On the lakes.
The first cargo we landed at Buffalo
we were told that it would have to pay
the local rate from Buffalo to New York,
which was practically the same as the
through rate from Duluth to New York.
We found a way to get around this. and
the result was 20 break up the Transit
company and break down the rates en-
the lakes to a reasonable figure. Later
the elevator charges at the head Of Lake
Superior were IA cents per bushel, and
at Buffalo IA cents per bushel, with an
additional charge for shoveling OF "A cent.
We built large elevators at both places,
the effect Of which has been to reduce
the rates to " cent each in Buffalo and
at the head of Lake Superior; in other
words, where the grain paid 2A cents
per bushel it is now paying 1 cent. The
difference to the Northwest on the 2OO,-
600, 600 bushels of wheat is SO, 800, 900 per
year. The proportion of this we handle
through our elevators is probably Is
per cent. We did not build the elevators
for the purpose of grinding the faces
off the farmers of the Northwest. but in
order that they might nave fair play
and that their grain might go forward
without undue and unnecessary taxation.
l. Say HIS " SIioW y THAT we are at all
times mindful of everything that will
add to your material prosperity.
In 1880 the average rates on grain Q
q from the Red river valley to Duluth q
q were from % cents to 35 cents per q
q hundred; to-day they are from Ia .
q cents to 16 cents per hundred, or Q
. about one-half the rates Of twenty .
. years ago. The rates on coal and Q
n ,,ohar houn hnnr ra1,vnnl L..
q same proportion. q
Reductions in rates of transportation
must be made with the greatest care in
order to avoid unfair discrimination
against persons or localities. A reduction
in the rates Of the whole country of 10
cents for moving a ton of freight 100 miles
would make a reduction of over $15O,OOO,-
600 on the traffic handled during the past
year. and would wipe out a large part Of
the income of the railroads.
Railroad Conditions.
The conditions of the general railroad
situation in the United States at the pres
ent time are hardly understood: For the
year ending une &c. 1890, me number OF
tons carried one mile by all the railroads
was &c. 207, 900. 600 ton miles; in 1900 it was
141 GOO, 100000 as shown by the interstat.
commerce commission reports. In 1901 a
safe estimate will bring this to 165, OOO,-
100000 tons carried one mile, an increase
or 100 per cent in eleven years. During
this time the mileage of the railroads in
the United States increased IS per cent.
While the tons moved shows an increase
or 12C per cent, the earnings show an IN
crease of less than 40 per cent. During
this time the rates have been reduced TO
the extent Of that difference. During thar
period Of eleven years, Notwithstanding
the enormous increase in traffic, four of
the so-called trunk lines have through
competition failed, and been
~reorganized, and all but one of them have
been absorbed by the stronger surviving
lines. Destructive competition has forced
the weakest lines into bankruptcy, and to-
day they are owned by the lines that were
able to maintain their position and credit.
giving the ability to acquire these bank
rupt roads. The Baltimore & Ohio and
the Pennsylvania for half a century have
been rival roads. Both states and cities
have actively aided in building them up.
Destructive competition betw sen them has
fnaly resulted in the Pennsylvania road
owning the Baltimore & Ohio. Have the
rates advanced? Have the people along
the line of the Baltimore & Ohio suffered?
On the contrary. the first step has been
70 furnish money to cut down the grades,
to double track the line from the Ohio