The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1902-01-16

our best interests. Our object in acquir-
an m0re outiet t to the b blst TN maars as : for lpsa ths
grain, live stock and lumber II the
ume Of our traffic to the END nat we
might at all times be able 20 estab-
lish the lowest rates and most favorable
conditions under which the traffic must
be carried. The Burlington, with its own
rails, reaches Chicago, Peoria, Rock ISL
and R=aYe mp Quincy nssyb Atom sn Ha ami
Des Moines, Omaha and Denver, and thus
connects with the main arteries Of traffic
OF the whole country.
What Burlington Purchase Means.
Assuming that the line Of the Burling-
t t6e Great saa MT Sor fher e and Norther anf Pa shae
Jointly had raised the money and were
engaged in the construction Of it, would
p preval DC Of a tSe States q 50 t rave ede by 9isa the
line Of the Great Northern and Northern
Pacific? On the contrary, would not such
as a means Of opening up markets for
northwestern produce and of reaching
markets in the south and southwest,
volume of traffic Of the Great Northern
and Northern Pacific. thus making re-
eral prosperity Of the northwest? In
stead of building the Burlington sys-
TEN, or a line of railway alongside of it,
I16 ITodI NOFtucIu LII 4Soi tiSlN Z III
purchased the capital stock Of a line al
ready constructed. Instead of issuing
stock or bonds for the purpose Of rails
same country, bonds were issued to pur-
chase the stock of a constructed line.
1.-THE capital stock of railway compan-
by somebody and somewhere. Railway
companies, as carriers, are subject to
supervision sup VISION and D. control in1SI,n by the me p perfor for
ance of their obligations to the public.
The capital employed in railway con-
struction is made public, Railroads make
charged for transportation, the only thing
they have to sell, and must report the
and What has been done with it. Courts
are open for the purpose OF
whether railway. companies. as carriers,
observe their obligations to the public.
"The question of the reasonableness of
rates and service does not depend upon
whether one man owns the capital stock
capital stock is owned by ten men or
1000, by persons or by corporations. The
capital stock Of a railway company is
may purchase and hold ali that he has
means to buy and pay for or ,f The an capital tSd
Great Northern will be held by some
body, persons or corporations, II not by
the present owners; by f G5ne pre owners ewn.
ers the stock should be scattered and a
majority of it find it's way into the hands
of those interested in competing perth ~ mes mes
Great Northern and the Northern Pacific,
would the p bpIee along the ff l ines on pr taenf
owners of a majority of the stock OF the
two companies could be compelled to sell
it fan into hands more interested in the
development and prosperity Of the north
west than it's present owners? How is It
improved? What brought about the
present condition Of the property of the
two companies? What has enabled them
they have been served? Plainly the will
lingness and ability of those controlling
large interests in the stock of the COM
panies who found it to their advantage
settlement of the territory tributary to
it, and who will continue 1t.
, The True Test of Competition.
"The great freight-producing area of
the country is along the Atiantlc sea
Erie. The freight that is the product
of all the manufacturing enterprises
which find a market west of the Missls-
sippi river to a large extent must pass
through the lakes to Duluth and, to st.
Paul and Minneapolis, and into the ter
ritory between those cities ana the "a a.
that point going largely to
lines. The question of stock ownership,
so far as the DuHlC along lu0 lilies
Served by the Great Northern and North
ern Pacific is concerned, is to be con-
sidered in the light of a great competi-
tive condition between the territory
served by the Northern lines and those
of the South and West; between lines
whose interest it is to secure traffic as
arc build up the country in which the
people along the northern lines have no
special immediate interest.
"A few years ago the transportation on
Lake Superior was mainly in the hands
Of what was known as the Lake Superior
Transit Company, a pool line made up
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 re-
duction on land and equalize the rate by
Lake Superior and by Chicago. we bullt
six steel steamers, which at that time
were the largest on the lakes. The first
cargo we landed at Buffalo we were told
f fnaa II BH MfaIo t tay New sR 4 york 1ne w iHeii T 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 to break up the Transit company,
and break down the rates on the lakes to
a reasonable figure.
bushel, and at Buffaio IL cents per
vators at both places, the effect of which
has been to reduce the rates to " cent
both in Buffalo and at the head of Lake
Superior; in other words, where the grain
paid az cents per bushel it is now paying
1 cent. The difference to the Northwest
on 20O,0 00, 900 bushels of wheat is So, SOC, 900
per year. The proportion of this we
handle through our elevators is probably
Is per cent. We did not build the ele-
vators for the purpose of grinding the
faces off the farmers of the Northwest,
but in order that they might have fair
play and that their grain might go for
ward without undue and unnecessary
taxation. l say this to show you that
we are at all times mindful of everything
that will add to your material prosperity.
Rates Cut in Two In Twenty Years.
I'm 1880 the average rates on grain
from the Red River valley to Duluth
were from Is to 35 cents per hundred;
today they are from IA to 16 cents per
hundred, or about one-half the rates of
twenty years ago. The rates on coal
and lumber have been reduced in about
the same proportion.
Reductions of rates in TRANSPORTATION
must be made with the greatest care in
order to avoid unfair discrimination
against persons or localities. A reduc-
! ton in the rates of the whole country of
10 cents for moving a ton of freight 100
miles would make a reduction Of over
$50, 900, 600 or the traffic handled during
the past year, and would wipe out a
large part of the income of the railroad.
1.-The conditions of the general railroad
| Sjtua fion In The Tinted States Of +ho