The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-02-03
ABUSES AND
THEIR REMEDIES
IGNORANCE AND AvARICE OF
INDIVIDUALS RESPONSIBLE.
Declared to Have Had the
Effect of Increasing Discrimination
Rather Than Lessening It Interstate
Commerce Commission Control of
Rates Held to Be Vicious Policy.
Opinions Of a Rate Expert.

Opinions Of Rate Expert.
The public is suffering from discrim-
nations. not oppressive rates.
Efforts Of managers to prevent rate
Determinations fail largely because the
shipping public individually undertakes
to get favorable and unlawful rates.
The interstate commerce act has done
more than any one thing to foster and
build up, by discriminating rates, en-
terprises known as trusts. ..r ~.
The trans Missouri decision prevents
the assembling of managers to discuss
regulations and they have been unable
to think of any way to afford fair and
uniform rates except thru consultations.
. The best discovered aid to maintenance
of rates Is the pooling privilege, which
is prevented by law.
Pooling would enable railroads to dis
continue many of the worst abuses from
which the public suffers.
The proposal to give the rate-making
power to the interstate commerce COM
mission is most vicious piece of legis-
lation.
a It. is not likely that rates will ever
show material advance over present fig
ures.
More than 80 per cent of the people
with an opinion hold the error that rate
making and Observation-Disclosures are the
same. Any legislation on the theory that
giving rate-making power to the COM
mission is to affect ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Is
based on pure error.
The passage of the Elkins law was a
step forward.
Railroads are the only corporations
amenable to the common law.
Every proper rate adjustment is born
of conditions.
A government cannot honorably I'M
dertake to fix the revenues of it's citi-
zens and their enterprises without obligat-
ing itself for their liabilities.
Legislation to govern transportation
rates should cover water as we'll as rail
transportation. #1
These pertinent sentences from an in.
terview with a specialist in the mat
ter OF railroad rates and the effect Of
railroad legislation, show in way the
trend of his views. Altho his expert
ence has been for years mainly with
the traffic managers side of the traf-
fie question, in the interview he de-
sired to take the position of a citizen.
He himself has changed his views in
many ways and his present position is
based on ripe experience.
In part he says: "What the public
suffers from is not oppressive rates, but
determinations. Railroad managers
| have expended more time and thought
| In efforts to prevent and discontinue
| rate discrimination than in any other
! field of railroad management. The fail
| ure Of their efforts has been largely
due to, the attitude Of the shipping pub
lie, which, as, a whole, condemns dis
| elimination and individually undertakes
to = procure favorable and unlawful
rateS A 1moat al,
employs man whose principal duty
is to prevent application Of tariff rates
| to the business Of that establishment,
and the means resorted to are frequent--
~ more ingenious than honorable.
- Says Law Fosters Trusts. &
"However, the greatest difficulty en-.
countered is legislation that has de-
feated its own purpose. Insurmount
able obstacles presented by the inter
state commerce law and the Sher
ments essential to rate maintenance
combined with the necessity for sucl
rate maintenance, gave impetus to thu
movement for railway mergers and con
solicitations. ~.
"Railroad mergers are not so dan
gerous to the public welfare as the grea,
industrial combinations, because of thu
common law prohibition Of unreason
able rates. -
1.-THE best aid.yet discovered to main
tenance of rates and their application
to the business of all parties is the ex
ercise of the pooling privilege. <Fo
many years traffic associations wer
maintained by the railroads to ad
just rates between markets and com
modities and to maintain and appl,
them uniformly. They were greatly as
sisted by the privilege Of pooling, unit
the passage of the interstate commerce
act. That law seemed to have almos
the immediate effect of placing rate
in the hands of a few Of the large ship
pers, who were in position to fnanciall
embarrass certain railroad lines unles
, they were willing to disregard the lay
and enter into private arrangements TO
rebating. These understandings wer
especially pernicious because, made wit
danger Of detection. =. !. AZ
Il do not mean to convey the ide
that to legalize pooling would stop rat,
cutting or troubles with rate ad JUS
ments, but it would enable railroads Il
, discontinue many of the worst abuse
from which the public suffers. Al e
..From the standpoint Of a citizen
believe the proposal to give the rat
making power to the interstate con
merce commission is the most viciol
!. piece of legislation suggested within m
memory. AS railroad man, I kno
i their efforts would necessarily result
o colossal blunders, against which tt
:, public should be protected.
j. Rates Not Man-Made.