New-York tribune., 1906-05-25

with inordinate capital. do not think limit OF
slO,O0OOOO would scare Americans"
TELLS OF DESTRUCTIVE COMPETITION.
Frank B. Fretter. secretary Of the National Re-
fning Company of Cleveland and president of the
National Pipe Line Company. operating small pipe
lines in the fields of Finday. Marietta, Homework
and Silo, testified, in part, as follows:
We established our pipe line in the Findlay field
IN lSs8 and We had no sooner begun getung g,S Gus
toners than Standard OIL emissaries began ,5 ioow %
ing us up, saying that could not be relied on.
and pretty soon the Manhattan Pipe Line Company ny
independent concern. but in reality backed by the
Standard
At this point NIr Kline objected to the line of In
Quiry, stating that It affected only the State OF
Ohio Il was not a proper subject for the commits
sloners to handle The commissioners held other
wise and the witness proceeded, as follows;
When this situation developed we called our Gus
toners together and pointed out the past history OF
the oil business. showing them that when COM com
petitor like us was driven out that the e
toners TO stay with us, and we have made our
business success In the Marietta field the same
and see that the vacuum Oil company which
put in there TO drive us out sold out yesterday
In 1886 ali but closed a contract With the Rock
Manager Truesdel was just going to sign It when
he stopped to think a minute. and then toln me me
TO come around in a day or two; When l came anne
around he refused TO sign and said his action was
because MI Barstow OF me @ S5anarG 2egnd o Nv ast
attempt was to sell to the Santa Fe system;
son said 10 me: There is no use wasting words.
You could not begin TO give us the tonnage the
those hose who give us the most business
mcGiatey ceased all efforts among the railroads
r B. Westgate of Titusville PENN said he had
been oil producer for nineteen years. being treas
urer and general manager OF the American Oil COM
pany The product Of his company, he testified, was
marketed IN New England, and up to 1856 the COM
pany had low through rates railroads to all points
in that territory but after that the rates increased
from 2 cents to 2Ss cents 100 gallons to 30 cents
81 cents and 40 cents. and that ever since then the
rates had been high, without any apparent reason
Mr.. Wesgate produced numerous bills Of lading and
freight bills to support his testimony
Mr.. Westgate read letter which he had written
within the last few weeks to a connecting New
England railroad. in which he again applied for
through rate.
THE result this time very joyful" said the
witness. for the through rate granted and
published on May %. just in time for this hearing
before the commission"
was asked concerning the conditions Pennsyl-
vania when the oil pipe lines were constructed In
that state.
THE STANDARD NEVER INVENTED.
1.-The first pipe lines in Pennsylvania were not
invented by the Standard Oil Company" said the
witness at one point in his testimony THE
Standard never invented anything. 1t had always
stolen what somebody else created
1--WE are to-day he said "the only competitor
Of the Standard to the seaboard and that is the
only way transport our OIL for the railroads
are controlled completely by the Standard. We
have been bounded to death by the Standard. They
even tried 20 buy up 100000 issue Of stock.
and we were compelled to put stock in trust
so that it would not be possible to sell out TO this
devil fish, except by the consent of all of u.s.
Senator Emery gave one instance of how a re-
fnery at Philadelphia was compelled to go out
OF business. because the railroads raised the rates
to an exorbitant figure and also scattered their
tank cars TO the distant corners Of the country
Another instance when new field OF oil was
discovered in the Bradford field and his company
took charge OF it. railroad rate Of 10 cents bar
rel obtained. but the Pennsylvania Railroad
Company compelled the connecting line, under
threats to raise the rate to % cents. Then, he
said. the oil company constructed a pipe line
whereupon Standard concern came in and offered
10 cents a barrel more for the oil, and compelled
his company to abandon the field