Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1905-05-25
MAKING PROBLEM.
Testimony Of a Chicago Witness as
Given Before the Senate Commit
tee at Washington. Y.

Given Before the Senate Commit
tee at Washington. Y
Chicago, May 10. Professor Hugo
R.Meyers. assistant professor Of poli-
tical economy. in the University of
Chicago and one of the most eminent
Of the students of economic condi-
tions abroad. today declared that
had the Interstate Commission been
in existence ID the early seventies, it
would have dealt fatal blow to the
wheat growers Of the Northwest.
Professor Meyer has just returned
from Washington where he appeared
before the Senate Committee on
Interstate Commerce, He gave the
senators the benefit Of his twelve
years Of investigation Of the econo-
mic conditions In Germany. Russia,
England, Austria Hungary and
Australia. ~@
"Had the Interstate Commerce
Commission been in existence In the
seventies when Minnesota and Dakota
wheat was in competition with the
wheat Of New York, Ohio and their
neighboring states, the farmers of
the Northwest would have been dealt
blow from which they never would
have recovered said Professor Meyer
tFortunately, however. when the
people of Ohio, New York an6 the
other eastern states which produced
grain went to congress with the claim
that the market Of the American sea
board was theirs by natural right,
and that nobody else should be allow
ed to get into it and demanded that
freight rates should be established
according to the length of the haul.
which would compel the farmers Of
Minnesota and the Dakotas to pay
three, four or even five times as much
for the transportation Of their grain
to get it to a port, Congress did
nothing but listen. The idea Of FIX
ing rates by law and not by CONNER
cial conditions was not serio usly
considered then. II the Interstate
Commerce Commission had been In
existence then with the authority to
hx rates for which it Is now clamor-
ing and had acted as it has acted
many times since, it would have
established just such scale Of rates
as the fasteners wanted and that, Of
course would have excluded the
western grain grower from the Eastern
and European markets On which he
must depend.
ssAs 1t was, the railroads straight
ened the question In their own way
and continued to serve the interests
Of the Northwestern farmer much to
the satisfaction Of q majority Of the
people. Today the farmer of the
Northwest Is able to land his wheat
at an Atlantic sesboard dock at a
cost so reasonable that he can compete
upon a basis Of equality with any one
in the world.
SIN fact, he can send it to Ger
many, for example, where che rail-
roads are owned by the Government
and freight rates are consequently set
at q point that has restricted trade
almost to it's annihilation in some
places, and sell with decided advant-
age over the German wheat grower
who is, perhaps, not one-tenth as fal
from the market.
Early in the present investigation
q very interesting letter vas received
from one Of the large milling houses
Of Minneapolis. 1t was written II
refutation Of some Of the statements
that had been made to the effect that
Western millers were In favor Of put
ting the regulation of freight rates
into the hands Of the Inter-statt
Commerce Commission. No evidence
that this refutation must be hna
could be stronger than the simple
statement Of this miller. He wrot.
!. he could send q barrel OF flour t.
Europe and land 1t as oheaply as b.
could deliver one by horse and wagol
in his own city, ss,, u
Nobody has been discriminatet
against to give the wheat grower tn
grain dealer and the miller Of tn
i. Northwest, this 4 advantage owe
foreign competitors. The whole com
merce Of the country has benefited
as ;it has benefited !. BY q hundre.
n other similar opportunities opened b
u the railroads. Every shipper Mn th
@ United States is helped, Of course, b
anything that increases the Volun uIl 9
Of traf1c TO a point where his cost g
transportation IS lowered. Why an,
IL one should want to replace the system
I 4 that has so | succ essfully built u
s "a American industry until It's pro.du'lcltt
have entered every market in :thl :llll
~