Amador ledger., 1905-11-03
STATE BOARD OF TRADE TAKES
POSITIVE ACTION.
Expresses Unqualified Opposition to
Having Transportation Rates
Made by Commission.

The California State Board of
Trade has adopted the following pre-
amble and resolution in opposition to
conferrin the power of rate making
on the interstate commerce COM
mission:
The California state board of trade
hereby expresses its unqualified oppo-
sition to the policy of comforting
upon the Interstate commerce COM
mission the power to regulate rates
of transportation upon interstate
commerce carried by the railroads of
the United States.
The comforting of such power
would, in the opinion of this body,
convert the Interstate commerce
commission into a board of traffic
managers for all the railroads carry
ing interstate traffic-a policy which
would be the equivalent of merger
of such railroads and the extinguish-
ment of every element of competition.
1t would contravene the national
policy crystallized in what is known
as the antitrust law, the provisions
of which were so successfully invoked
in resisting the merger of the North
ern Pacific and the great Northern
Railroads.
1t would vest the Interstate COM
merce commission with the power to
regulate the earning capacity of the
81, 400, 600, 600 invested in the rail-
roads of the country and thus con-
stituting that commission a potent
factor in the transportation business
of the country would confer npon
the railroads the moral right to enter
the arena of politics in their corpor-
ate capacity as measure of defense
against the possible arbitrary and
confiscatory exercise of this power.
1t would engender at once sectional
strife between the different portions
OF the country as to the measure of
protection which this power of re-
gulation might be invoked to confer
upon the various sections-a contest
in which the newer and more sparsely
settled regions of the United States
would suffer by reason of the over
mastering political power of the popu-
lous centers, and from this source of
danger the products of California are
especially menaced.
The export commerce in the green
citrus and deciduous fruits, the dried
and cured fruits, the vegetables, the
wine and the lumber products of
California must be carried an average
hundred miles to reach their center
of distribution in the United States.
These products compete with like
eastern products which are carried an
average distance of less than two
hundred and fifty miles. Owing to
the disparity in volume between the
east and west bound traffic,
the railroads have heretofore carried
the products of California the dis
tance noted and delivered them in
eastern markets at a rate that has
enabled them to successfully COM
pete with like products in the freight
movement of which but one tenth of
the distance has been covered.
That this fostering policy, referabIe
to the existing conditions of traffic,
would be continued under a political
control and direction of freight dis
tributlon in the United Stated is not
even probable.
In view of these objections,
Be it resolved by this board, that
the senators and representatives in
congress from the state of California
be requested to exercise their in
fuence and cast their votes against
the policy Of comforting upon the in
terstate commerce commission the
power to fix the rates OF transport
alton on the interstate commerce of
this country.