The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1906-05-08
STANDARD OIL FLAYED
in PRESIDENTS MESSAGE
Secret Rebates and Huge Unlawful
Profits Vigorously Attacked by
Roosevelt and Prosecutions
Promised.
COMMISSIONER GARFIELD'S FINDINGS

Monopoly Built Up BY RAilroads--Trus
Bsnefts Enormously From "UDjuss
and Illegal Rates" and Has Advant-
age Over independents Even in Open
Rates--PasSage Of Rate BIN and Cor
rsction OF Humphrey Decision Urged.
Washington, ID. C.-Flagrant and
persistent violation Of the law by the
Standard Oil Company, its enormous.
profits from unlawful secret rates by
which it has been enabled to bleed the
public of still greater profits, and the
cOnnivance of railroads in violation of
the law are laid bare by President
Roosevelt in his message to Congress,
based on the report Of James R. Gar
field, Commissioner Of Corporations, of
his investigation of Standard Oil.
which is transmitted with the message.
In the message the President renews
his suggestion for Governmental SUI
pervision and control of railroads. He
declares it necessary not only for the
protection of the public, but for the
protection of the railroads themselves.
The investigation disclosed, as the
President points out, that up to the
time when it was begun the Standard
Oil Trust profited to the extent Of at
least $750OO0 year from secret re-
bates from railroads. In addition it
was favored by open rates in all COM
petitive fields.
President Roosevelt declares in effect
that the great corporations known as
trusts have the railroads at their
mercy.
In the Presidents message and the
Garfield report the officials of the
Standard Oil Company are accused
of lying, Of crushing out competition
by unlawful means, of obtaining mon
opolies by secret understandings with
railroads, and of practically all of the
crimes that hare been alleged against
the great trust.
The Presidents only recommended
tons in his message are that the i'm
munity law be corrected that the free
alcohol bill be passed, which would be
a setback for the Standard, and that
the further exploitation by the trusts
of coal and oil lands owned by the
Government be prevented.
The message is, in part, as follows:
"a very striking result of the inves-
tigation has been that shortly after the
discovery of these secret rates by
the Commissioner of Corporations the
major portion of them were promptly
corrected by the railroads, SO that the
most of them have now been done
away with. This immediate correction,
partial or complete, of the evil of the
secret rates is, of course, on the one
hand an acknowledgement that they
were wrong, and vet were persevered
in until exposed; and on the other hand
proof of the efficiency of the work
that has been done by the Bureau of
Corporations.
THE Department Of Justice will
take up the question of institutlng
prosecutions in at least certain of the
cases. But it is most desirable to en-
act into law the bill introduced by Sem
ator Knox to correct the Interpretation
of the immunity provision rendered in
Judge Humphreys decision The hands
of the Government have been greatly
strengthened in securing an effective
remedy by the recent decision of the
Supreme Court in the case instituted
by the Government against the To
bacco Trust, which decision permits
the Government to examine the books
and records of any corporation engaged
in interstate commerce; and by the
recent conviction and punishment of
the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy
Railroad and certain Of its officers.
But in addition to these secret rates
the Standard Oil profits immensely by
open rates, which are so arranged as
to give it an overwhelming advantage
over its independent competitors. The
refusal of the railroads in certain cases
to pro-rate produces analogous effects.
Thus in New England the refusal of
certain railway systems to pro-rate has
resulted in keeping the Standard Oil in
absolute monopolistic control of the
field enabling it to charge from three
to four hundred thousand dollars a
year more to the consumers of oil in
New England than they would have
had to pay had the price paid been
that obtaining in the competitive
felds.v
The message continues:
ut is not possible to put into figures
the exact amount by which the Stand
ard profits through the gross favoritism
shown it by the railroads in connec-
ton with the open rates. The profit,
of course, comes not merely by the
saving In the rate itself as compared
with its competitors, but by the higher
prices it is able to charge, and (eyen
without reference to these higher
prices) by the complete control Of the
market which 1t secures, thereby get
ting the profit on the whole consump-
ton.
sit is unfortunately not true states
the President that the Standard Oil
is the only great corporation which is
benefiting in wholly improper fashion.
The Attorney Generals investigation
tends to show that the Sugar Trust
rarely, If ever, pays the lawful rate"
On the subject Of curling monopo-
lies. the message says:
The argument is sometimes adj