The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1904-04-28
HARTMAN VS.. NORTHWEST.
His Ate pt to Obtain Control of North
ern Pacific Railroad. His Success
Would Have Caused Disaster.

ton of f. III. Hartman of New York
| for modification of the decree of the
United States court in the case of
the government against the Northern
Securities Company. The petition OF
Mr.. Hartman said one thing while
the object was another. Stripped of
| all legal phrases and verbiage the
object to be attained was the control
of the Northern Pacific railroad. Mr..
| Hartman who represents the Rookie.
| Teller and the Gould interests con.
troll the Union Pacific and the South
ern Pacific railroads. Acquiring the
| Northern Pacific they would control
three of the transatlantic railroads
| leaving the Great Northern railroad
alone to fight single handed for the
| interests of the Northwest. New
York men are not exerting them.
| selves very strenuously to advance
| the commercial interests in the
| Northwest. A few facts in the case
succintly stated may be of interest.
In connection with the decision,
| which was unanimous in favor of the
| Securities company
ment was satisfied with the relief it
| satisfied at present time.
The court found that the duty of dis
| posing of the assets of the Securities
company could be safely left to the
| stockholders of the Securities company.
The decree did not command that
the Securities company should return
stock of the railway companies, or re-
call it's stock issued therefor to the ex-
clusion of other methods, which, in
view of all circumstances, might ap-
pear to be more equitable.
The fact that the directors of the Sc
curities Co., have proposed to its stock
holders a plan of distributing the
stock of the two railway companies
in manner somewhat different from
that which was tentatively suggested
| by the decree but not commanded can
not be regarded as failure to obey the
| decree.
The court did not accept Guthrie's
| argument that stock of the railway
| companies owned by the Securities
company was in the custody of the
! court.
The. petitioners claim that they
should be allowed to intervene to pre-
vent the continuance of the control
created by the Northern Securities
| Co., the court did not agree to. The
government of the United States is the
guardian of the public interests and if
| further proceedings are necessary to
protect the public the government
| should take the proceedings.
The government is satisfied with the
| decree and stands squarely upon it.
! Petitioners right to intervene must
| depend upon their personal rights
The immense through business
which now goes over the Northern
| Pacific would be diverted to the IN
| ion Pacific and the Northern Pacific
| become little more than a carrier of
| local freight. AS the total amount
of tonnage over a road affects direct
| ly the local freight rates the loss of
| this through tonnage would force the
Northern Pacific to keep its local
rates at the highest possible figure.
| When a railroad is making money on
| through freight it can afford to re-
| duce local rates and thereby greatly
facilitate the development of the
country.
If this argument can be substan-
| tiated, northwestern manufacturers.
| wholesalers, and retailers have a
great deal at stake in the effort of
| the Observation-Disclosures combina-
| ton to obtain control of this great
| system.
| All favorable tariffs from the Twin
Cities to the northwest affecting the
business of merchants, jobbers and
manufacturers. have been strongly
opposed and fought against by the
Union Pacific and Southern Pacific
Srfn &c 0t.S ncf
even up to the present. They are OPP
posing favorable distributing tariffs
| to the northwest. Their policy is to
| and San Francisco; this, naturally, is
of no benefit to the northwestern
states, or distributing points in the
northwest.
| Northwestern manufacturers and
shippers have been greatly interested
in the investigation showing a COM
parison of the rates in vogue on the
| Northern transcontinental lines and
the roads controlled by the Hartman
interests.
The comparison in nearly every
case shows that the Union and South
ern Pacific rates are so adjusted as
to give the Eastern jobber and man.
ufacturer a great advantage over the
middle west producer in disposing of
his goods on the Pacific coast. While
the Great Northern and Northern
Pacific rates are arranged to favor
the northwestern jobber and shipper,
so that he can have an equal chance
with his eastern competitor.
If the Hartman interests could ex-
ert the same influence in the control
of the rates to the North Pacific coast
cities, as they do to California, the
St. Paul and middle west manufacture
| er would be obliged to retire from
that market, as it would be impossi-
BILE for him to sell goods as cheaply
as his eastern competitor.
Mr.. Hill has proved himself to be
| one of the most enterprising and
| successful railroad managers in this
| country, in some respects more so
than any of his contemporaries. At
a time when it was thought that a
railroad between the Missouri river
and the Pacific could only be success
fully built by public aid, Mr.. Hill
started upon the work of demonstrate
| ing that it was possible to build and
make profitable a great railroad line
in that part of our country by means
of corporate enterprise.
| Tho hardware interests of Duluth