River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-04-28
HARTMAN VS.. NORTHWEST.
His Attempt to Obtain Control of North
ern Pacific Railroad. His Success
Would Have Caused Disaster.

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
The court found that the govern
ment was satisfied with the relief it
obtained and expressed itself as fully
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 APP
pear to be more equitable.
The fact that the directors of the Sc
ha 70 re 81
holders a plan of distributing the
stock of the two railway companies
in a 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 I'm
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 it's 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 kefeller-Harriman 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
interests for many years past and
even up to the present. They are OPP
posing favorable distributing tariffs
to the northwest. Their policy is to
work everything to the southwest
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 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 manufactur-
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
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.
The hardware interests of Duluth
have had a taste of Hartman meth
DDS as compared with the methods
employed by the Northern Pacific
and Great Northern, and the dealers
are conversant with the attitude of
the Union and Southern Pacific conn
panies in their effort to force an adj
iustment of the freight rates on
hardware to the Pacific coast states
which would prevent the hardware