The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-07-11

can co-carrier are responsible for the excessive rates to New York. and the discrimination in favor of Europe com plained of by the representatives or the South American countries. Complaints Made.
 Complaint is made by the Chambers of Commerce of the Pacific Coast ports
 of the United States that the Pacinc Mail Steamship Company Is controlled
 by the transcOntinental railroads .and that 1t Is operated so as to discourage and Pacific ports of the United States The Chamber of Commerce of San Diego states that about S75 carloads of | the products of that vicinity are ship | ped annually .and that a large part of | this freight could be successfully for
 warded via Panama. at rates lower
 mental roads. but that none Of this com
 merce is moved by way. of the lsthmns
 because the Pacific Mail refuses to call l at that port.
 Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce
 says that there originate large amounts of freight in the vicinity of that city for
 received there annually. but none IS
 san Francisco is the only Pacide port port
 of the United States at which Paoine | tons of freight moved via Panama ne-
 tween New York and San Francisco
 during 1904; but many or the san san Francisco business men allege that thls quantity is small compared with what It | would be if an effort were made by the | Pacific Mail % secure business as against the transcontinental railroads. | The manager of one of the largest frult | canneries on the Pacific Coast says that | g., ,O00 tons of canned salmon. fruit and vegetables are shipped annually to Llv- | erpool and London. and that If proper | facilities existed this trade could De | moved via Panama at rates much lower | than those charged by transcontinental
 railroads for shipment to Europe via New York.
 The same lack of facilities prevails at Portland. Tacoma and Seattle as at Los Angeles and San Diego
 Tn 1893 there was Congressional in
 vestigation of the Panama Railroad
 Steamship Company. The committee | making this investigation consisted Of | John k. Fellows. chairman: T. J. Geary.
 Josiah Patterson. H. Henry Powers and Bellamy Storer In its report it stated | that the organization known as the | Transcontinental Railway Pool paid the
 Panama Railroad s75.0O0 per month for | route; and further stated that the | United States should control some out
 let across the 1sthmus. independently
 of all railroad connections. for the bene- | fit of American trade.
 | When in San Francisco number of | citizens called my attention to this re- port and stated that the Government l now has the opportunity to carry out | the recommendations of this commit ] tee. I | ments made by the commercial bodes | of the Pacific Coast the statement or | Mir Schwerin, and other data, 1t clearly
 appears that the Pacific Nal! Steamship | Company has made little effort to de- | velop business between the Pacific and | Atlantic ports of the United States. Mr. | SchWerin says that there Is not suf- ficient business at the ports other than san Francisco to justify ships stopping This is vigorously controverted by the shippers and chambers of commerce Of these cities. At San Diego 1t was stated that the week ending March 11th yes- | sci of the American Hawaiian Line brought to that port via Magellan 3,OOO tons of miscellaneous merchandise. sta | tistics furnished by the various cham- bers of commerce show that there Is l large volume of business which could be moved by Panama if facilities exist l ed and rates were reasonable. The | character of the Panama route Is such that certain articles can De shipped that
 way much cheaper than by rail across
 the continent.
 The important Gulf ports of Pensa-
 cola, Mobile, New Orleans and Calves ton have never had opportunities for inc movement of commerce by Panama | 10 and from the west coast of the United States, Mexico. Central and South
 The Panama Railroad Company oper- | ates 4 steamship line between Colon | and New York, and has refused to allow
 the use of the Isthmns to any compet- | ing line on the Atlantic side. These
 Cuff ports complain bitterly of the re | fusal of the Panama Railroad to give | them facilities by way of the Isthmus,
 and state that az a result their com
 merciaI development has been greatly | injured
 Careless Handling of Goods. | Complaint is made as to careless | handling of goods on the Isthmus, re-
 suiting in loss by damage. and theft | These complaints appear to be justified.
 but can be remedied by an improvement