The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1902-02-11
In Transfer of Southern Pacific
Steamers TO Galveston.
RATE SYSTEM UNAFFECTED THEREBY
Contemplated Rsadiustments Of Inter-
State Tariffs VIII Not Change Rels-
tive Position Of Texas Point5.

II seems, from the way the Galveston
News has been handling the announcement
that the Southern Pacl1c Is about ready to
transfer its transcontncntal business from
New Orleans to Galveston. that 1t secs moth
ing OF value in the proposed rhange in the
routing OF through freight save an lmagi- (
nary disadvantage 70 Houston.
To begin wiJh the News declared, /
through the medium OF q especial" from
New York, that the coming Of the south
ern Pacific ships to Galveston meant tie
moving Of the headquarters Of the Morgan
Steamship line and Of the Southern Pacific (
railroad lines 10 that city. Finding this
assertion groundless it exclaimed tha,,
anyhow, the through business that the
Southern Pacific steamers will handle
through Galveston viii not pass through
Houston. and that the coming OF those
ships will bo followed BY the adoption Of
a system Of rate making that will make
Galveston the Iobblng center OF the South.
west.
Way the News should insist upon spoil.
ing really valuable item by loading II
down With Measurements which must, Of
necessity destroy the good effect its pub
4lEdllph hAAbulA hAfN hAAAt 10 AANNl NllNAi 81
BE.
LcEitlmatcly exploited the news that
the time has come for the realization Of
Mr. Hnuuugtons plan to Use the port Of
Galveston for transcontinenta business is,
OF itself. sufficiently important tor adver-
Using purposes, and It was foolish to at.
tempt to use it to Justify impossible con.
illusions concerning Houston
+ ~
But 10 the facts:
The sbsurdity Of the report that the re.
moval OF the headquarters OF the southern
Pacific system of Texas from Houston 10
Galveston - contemplated is too patent to
call for comment. with regard 10 the
declaration that transcoutlnental freight
passing through Galveston Will not touch
uoustou The purpose Of making It Is not
plain, unless 10 be taken FOR granted that
because it was forced to practically ac-
knowledge that a large proportion OF its
New YORK special" was oyerdrnwn. the
News seeks consolation in trying to create
the Impression that Houston is 10 be IN
some way injured by the new arrangement,
How IL is to oe Injured thereby the News
discrcetl1 omlts telling
The truth Of the matter Is that Il viii
make no difference at all 70 Houston wheth-
~ This freight goes and COMES through or
by the city Much ~ it has already come
and gone through Galveston, via Harris.
brrg and Pierce Junction durlng the past
year and n this has made the least differ
ence here no one has noticed IT, Tue trans
ter OF the Southern Pacific ships from New
orleans to Galveston Is a physical necessity,
the satisfying Of which Will not affect HJus-
ton in any particular. 1t was either that
OK the double tracking OF the Louisiana
Western and Morgan railroads with the
Southern Pacific as the local business OF
these two roads is sufficient to tax their
capacity without handling any transcon-
tiuentsl business. and the Galveston propo-
sition was adopted as the easiest and cheap.
est ot tue two
The suppos.tion that the coming Of the
I Southern Pacific ships win be followed by
the adoption Of system OF rates that will
result IN giving Galveston an advantage over
other iobbins ceuters Is violent the
enc Of the removal OF the general offices.
The News Is badly mixed on this PROPOSE
ton, lsboring a. 81 l. under the deusiun
that the alleged interview With Mr.. IL. \.
Jones. trafic manager Of the Southern Pa
c6c It recently published, mas been accept
ed as genuine.
Wat Mr.. Jones said was that no con
! eiugian had been reached at the Chicago
conference In the matter OF the suggested
automatic reduction OF Interstate rates %
meet the reduction Of State merchandise
rates made by the railroad commission
which went into effect yesterday. VIVA
the News printed was that Mr.. Jones bad
said that the Chicago conference had de
cided 70 make the reduction in question
aud that Galveston would be made bias
ing point" and secure numerous advantages
In consequence. What the conference really
did was to refer the matter 20 a committee
| for determination, and what that commit
tee will probably do viii be to recommend
/ that no reduction be made In rates from
3 the West, but that the New York rate b'
: made the sum OF the combination through
4 Galveston, In fact, owing 10 the reduction
IN State rates made by the commission
\ the adoption Of the combination througi
!, Galveston can hardly be avoided eHcep
s by a reduction of the ocean rate from New
: York, which has not been thought of even
r The News IA now usiug the language 4
attributed 20 Mr. Jones ia an attempt q
inquire out that the southern racine snip
viii bring about what II wanted that gen
: tleman to say would result from the Chi
: cage conference, And In this case, as Il
the former, the News makes itself ridicu
lous. Galveston is already a "basinl
: points" and 40 Is Houston, and so IS New
= a Orleans and so is st. Louis, and so are tn
I Texas gateways, and 50 are the Mississippi
; river crossings, for that matter. There
: nothing in being a basing point. Any oil
|. place can acquire that distinction withou
g getting anything in particular out OF 4
a What the News either does not know
!. or overlooks, Is that no matter what sys
TEN OF rate making Is adopted It's working