The Saint Paul globe., 1905-02-24
HIGH RAILROAD MEN
TO SETTLE RATELAW
President Fish Says Roosevelt
Named a Committee to
Draft a Bill

WASHINGTON, D. c., Feb. %
Stuyvesant Fish, president of the Illi-
nois Central, read a statement today
before the senate committee on inter-
state commerce which has the rail-
road rate bills under consideration.
Several members of the committee de-
sired Mr.. Fish TO discuss the subject
of differentials, and he consented to
return to Washington at some time
convenient to the committee and give
his views.
Mr.. Fish gave an exhaustive review
of the changes that railroad securities
nave undergone in various parts of the
country, calling attention particularly
TO the fact that a great majority of
stock held in the United States was
formerly held abroad.
Discussing the Esch- Townsend bill,
he devoted considerable time to the
subject of the practical as well as the
constitutional difficulties that would be
encountered by the interstate COM
meree commission if it attempted 10
arbitrarily fix railroad rates accord
ing TO the authority given ii by the
bill.
Must Consider Outside Ports
Mr.. Fish said that to fix equitable
rates that would not discriminate in
favor of one port as against another.
the commission would have to take into
consideration the railroad rates in Can
ada and Mexico, ard the water rates
from ports of the United States to
ports abroad. Upon the subject of diff
ferentials, Mr.. Fish gave practical eX-
amDles of the workings of rates in
various parts of the country. In an
swer to a question by Senator Dolli-
yer. he declared that there was no
truth in the charge that traffic man.
ayers were disposed to build up great
communities and ignore the smaller
cities.
He said that the complaints usually
came from manufacturing centers and
big shipping centers and that undoubt-
edly these centerS prove a magnet to
the man who goes after the business.
Chairman Elkins called attention to
the powers of the government under
the laws governing common carriers,
and Mr.. Fish said:
We'll, the law could compel a rail-
road to carry the business for while,
but if it was at loss it would put
the roads into bankruptcy and then
the business would have to stop. The
only alternative would be to make up
the loss by advancing the rates on 9TH
er articles and so on down the line.
The law does not contemplate that
The conditions would become rapidly
worse"
Suggested Committee
Just before Mr. Fish concluded his
statement he told of an interesting con-
ference he had in January, 1902, with
President Roosevelt on the subject of
railroad legislation. Chairman Knapp,
of the interstate commerce commits
sion, was at the conference, and the
president was quoted as saying that
the railroad men and the members Of
the commission should get together and
prepare some measure that would meet
the recognized evils of the railroads in
the conduct and management Of their
business.
The president suggested that a COM
mission of five men should be chosen
to represent the railroads, and named
Morton, of the Santa Fe; Hughitt, of
the Chicago & North Western; Cas-
satt, of the Pennsylvania; Spencer, of
the Southern, and Fish, of the Illinois
Central, as a good committee for the
railroads to name. Mr.. Fish said moth
ing had been done in response to the
presidents suggestion.
After the meeting had adjourned Mr..
Fish was asked why the railroads had
| not proceeded according to the ideas of
the president. He said that the mem
bers of the interstate commerce COM
mission were not disposed to entertain
the idea
Mr.. Fish also said that while he
questioned the wisdom of legislation
establishing fixed price for any char
| acter of service, he would gladly CO.
operate with members of congress or
the interstate commerce commission in
drafting some measure that would pre-
vent rebates and other tricks that limit
or destroy competition.