Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1902-06-07
THE WEEKLY TRIBUNE.
RAILWAY COMPETITION AND
TRUSTS.

President Hill OF the Great Northern
road, made a notable speech at Chi
cago this week, dealing with phases of
commercial and industrial life. Among
the matters discussed was that of rail
way competition and trusts. OF the
former, Mr.. Hill said:
There has been during the past year
a great deal of public discussion about
railway competition and a large
amount of volunteer literature has been
written on the subject. It is always
a safe basis to assume that no business
will continue for any length of time if
the result of its transactions is a loss,
and this is equally true Of your bus
mess and of that of the railways. No
individual, community or nation can
afford to build UP its commerce on the
foundation that railways will destroy
each other for the general benefit. This
has been done in some s. in the
past and the roads which have followed
this course have gone through the por-
tai of bankruptcy into the hands of
rival owners, and, in some cases, in
to the hands of owners whose greater
interest is in other directions, and
whose object in obtaining them has
been more to restrict the growth Of the
country than to increase it.
Competition in railwaKrates is either
active or inactive. All railway rates
are the subject of conference between
the lines interested, followed by an
agreement as to rates, and the condi-
lions of the business OF the country
demands that this course must always
be followed. All rates T by law
made public, and whatever rate is
adopted by one road must be adopted
by the others, or they will lose their
share of the tarfic. In this there is
no active competition. When compe-
tltion is active, tariffs are disregarded
and private rates are made to large
shippers and rebates paid, amounting,
dS GudS "a USCAE puU11oACu3 @EOAIOA Anouo
sums in the yearly aggregate. To
prevent this active competition, both
the federal government and the several
states have enacted laws which have
been a dead letter on the statute books
until public opinion has demanded that
the various commissions take some ac-
tion under the law. The recent ac-
tivity OF the Interstate commerce COM
mission has resulted, / believe, to a
large extent in correcting this abuse,
and. if they follow it up with the
power conferred upon them by the act
of congress, the entire system of pri-
waite rates will be abolished to the adj
vantage of the trade Of the whole eoun-
try, and Of the railroads as well.
There is, however, a competition
between the railways which will con-
tinue to exist as long as the railways
are run, and that is the competition OF
markets; the necessity of building UP
the various interests Of the country
served by the respective railway lines.
In this the competition lies between
the producer and the railway in one
locality, acting together, against the
producer and the railway in another
locality, competing for the business.
II the railway is to increase its traffic,
it can only be done by increasing the
business of its customers. This same
principle applies to the occupation and
cultivation OF the land along the lines
Of railway throughout the country, and
particularly applies to the lines west
of Chicago. Unless the farmer can
make money by the cultivation Of his
land, either through selling his wheat
his grain, his cotton or his stock, with
a profit to himself, the time must come
when he will cease to cultivate The
land, and the railway is left, as it were
in a desert.
For the past twenty years or more
have had some experience in opening
up and peop1ing new states, and have
always adopted as a fixed policy thu
making Of rates on the products OF the
country seeking a market, and The
necessities OF life, such as coal ,lu1nbel
and building material, at the loves
rates the company could afford. look,
ing more to our profit from the lighter
articles Of merchandise and shell
goods consumed in the country. Al
times we have been criticised for this
this criticism mainly coming iron
merchants who have desired a lowe
rate.
The following will illustrate our am
swer and the reason for the course N.
have pursued: Take a farmer in Iows
with a hundred acres OF wheat yield