The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1902-10-24
To Suppress Railroad
mbination.
COMPLAINT IS MADE
To Interstate Com m cree Com
mission - Southern Roads
Merged by J. p. Morgan
&. Co. Involved.

Washington, Oct. 22.-The Inter-
state Commerce commission has
made public the complaint of the
railroad commission against the At
lantic Coast Line Railroad company,
the Louisville & Nashville, the South
ern railway, the Southern railway
company in Indiana, the Southern
railway in Kentucky, the Cincinnati,
New Orleans, & Texas Pacific Railway
company, the Cincinnati Southern
Railway company, and the Chicago.
Indianapolis & Louisville Railroad
company involving allegations of un-
lawful combination.
The complaint asks for an investi-
CATION of these roads by the commits
sion, an examination Of the contract
agreements, ETC., the production OF
books, papers, tariffs, contracts, the
issuance Of subpoenas for witnesses, an
inquiry into the management Of the
business Of the roads, an inquiry as
to whether their contracts, etc, con-
stitute an unlawful combination and
conspiracy to pool the freights of the
different and competing roads, and a
device to enable the roads to divide
the net proceeds of the earnings so
as to equalize the earnings of each
of them, and the general results OF the
ARRANGEMENTS made on the commerce
of the section involved. 4s
The complaint says that these roads
| ~At1
and all railroad lines in territory
aggregating $4,000 miles, with an
operating income of over $30,000,0 600
annually, and charges that ]. p. Nor
EGan g. Co. have secured practical con-
troll and management of the affairs OF
These lines. The transportation ia
cilities of this territory, the complaint
charges, practically will become one
system, operated by few individuals
who control the commerce of Ken
lucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Ala
bama, Georgia. Florida, North Caro-
lima, South Carolina, Virginia and
Maryland. The capitalization of the
defendant roads is stated to amount to
at least a billion dollars. ..r
"One man or firm, with few asso-
Cates, controlling the Southern rail
way" the complaint alleges, has
row secured control of the stock Of
the Louisville e Nashville, and later,
Of the stock of the Atlantic Coast Line
company and of the Atlantic Coast
Line Railway company, and has Sc
cured an entrance into st. Louis and
Chicago through lines by which il
would be able to force and compel
other lines to make such rates as II
should dictate, and to dictate schedules
terms, and rates Of every kind to all
smaller roads"
The complaint alleges that this
purchase, construction, and owner.
ship means the placing of the com,
merce of the entire section under the
control and operation of a very few
men dominated by the firm Of ]. p
Morgan & Co.
1t is alleged that the defendan,
companies have not filed with the In
terstate Commerce commission, as re-
Quired by law, copies of the contracts
agreements, etc. 1t is charged thai
such arrangements, combinations
purchase, and sale for the producing
OF what Is called community of in
terests" is simply an agreement OF
combination by which all freights o
oil roads named shall be pooled OF
controlled or routed SO as to preven
competition.
The combination, the commission
charges, is in violation of both tn,
letter and spirit of the laws of tn,
United States and Of the severa
states involved
The Interstate Commerce commits
sion will im,n ad IN talv notify oil onn
cerned of the complaint, and probabl.
will arrange for hearing not earle
than December.