The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-01-23
KANSAS OIL men
ASK NATIONS AID.
Western Refners Appeal for JUS
tice Against Standard
Oils Methods.

Journal Special Service.
Chanute, Kan, Jan. 23.-The indie
pendent oil refners of Kansas have
mailed to James r. Garfield, commits /
sioner of corporations of the depart
ment of commerce and labor, an ap-
peal for justice against the conspiracy |
between the Standard Oil company and
the railroads to shut Kansas oil out OF |
the market. t
The refners who sign the appeal are
Clifford Thorne, AT. Robertson, f. S.
Bennett, G. D. Webster, J.. NJ Cameron,
IL. sKaessmann, D. 0. McGee and c.. d.
| Martin. These men own eight rein
| cries TOW in operation, besides two in
course OF construction at Atchison and
Kansas City, Kan. They have invested
more than 81 100000 in refneries, tank
cars, storage tanks, wagons and bar
| rels.
They say that by reason of conspir
acy between the Standard Oil company
/ and. the railroad systems of the south
west, particularly those railroads oPer-
/ ating in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska,
Arkansas and Iowa, and the territories
of Oklahoma and Indian Territory, they
are limited' to the state of Kansas for
a market for their refined oil; that to
all points outside of Kansas the freight
rates on all the products of crude petro-
leum are unreasonably high and have
been maintained at such unreasonably
high rate for the express purpose of
cOnfning the business of the independ-
ent refners to the state of Kansas.
Railroads Arraig ned.
q The Independent retiners in appealing
for justice against the Standard Oil
company, arraign the railroad compa-
MES IN strong terms, saying:
. HYOur petitioners firmly ha1;auo tho+
no no class OF shippers in the United
States today is more directly affected
by Interstate freight rates than the IN
dependent oil men by reason of the fact
:, that their competitor controls many
. railroads and owns a pipe line, forming
network over the American nation,
rendering it comparatively independent
OF the rates they establish for their
rivals to pay. '-
''By means of remarkable manipu-
latlon OF Interstate freight rates, the
standard Oil company. has endeavored
to crush all competition from the Kan
sas oil fields outside the bounds of the
state of Kansas. Today you can ship
the same quantity of oil 100 miles in
Kansas for the same price that you can
J ship 1t five miles if those five miles hap
,, pen to cross the state line. One is con-,
trolled by state legislation, the other is
interstate commerce.
Il Your petitioners represent that. as
long as the present conditions continue,
they are absolutely confined to the ter
rltory within the s2 boundaries Of the
state Of Kansas as a base Of operations,
They declare that the Standard Oil
company and the railroads have built
Chinese wall around Kansas. Within
the boundaries of Kansas, these agen-
: cles inform us, we can have a so1Iare
deal but whenever we ATTEMPT to cross
the state line we are commercially dead.
: Hemmed In on All Sides a
I'VE are hemmed in on all sides.
! Like prison. guards the railroads and
l. l. borders Of the STATE gun in hand, ready
l TO cal! q halt on any man who has the
crude or refined, outside the borders of
g the state. If we are going to have any
n independent competition in crude ne
y tro!eum and the products of crude be
n troleum worthy of the name, we must
{. have wider market than the state of
= Kansas. ea.,S.
: sH1Refned oil can be shipped north
;, from Chanute. Kan, to Weber, Kan, in
It the county of. Jewell, a distance of 254
miles, for 1912 cents per 100 pounds.
The freight rate from Chanute, Kan.
to the town of Superior, Neb., on the
|" same line OF railroad as Weber and
distant seven miles further. is 80 cents
lie per 100 pounds.
IS Seven Miles Trebles Rate.
Y "Thus an increase of seven miles
is in the distance nearly trebles the
1T freight rate. There is no change of
routing. there is no change of cars
n n there is no change Of road, the crossins
= of an imaginary line adds threefold to
Il the freight rate and the addition admits
s. OF no reasonable explanation except the
re arbitrary use of the te-making power
and the desire on the part of the rail
"a a roads to limit the business of the indie
es pendent refners and producers of crude
oil to the confines of the state Of Kan
III sas. .@gt ar:-
he "We submit that there is no iustifica
K; tion in law or in morals for such in
~ crease, and that it is the result of the
II arbitrary exercise Of. the rate-makine
az power by the railway. managers with
in out regard to the cost of the shipment
IL of the distance traversed by the ship
-. ment. And we also assert that thu
ae effect of such unjustifable discrimina
IS, tion is to limit the field of competition
1t, Of the independent producers and re
finers Of crude, petroleum in Kansas
on and that the existence of such rate ha
t et no other justification and is maintained
~ for no other purpose j.. 49,.
r-