The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-05-05
Action of New York Central.

Mr. Garfield cites the fact that the
New York Central Railroad company,
which refused for itself and affiliated
lines to give access to records of state
rates.
At the beginning of the investigation,
he says. the Standard Oil company de-
MED that it had obtained in recent
years or was now obtaining any rebate
or other transportation discrimination
as against it's competitors, and yet he
says that most careful review of the
facts and the explanations leads to
the conclusion that the Standard Oil
company has habitually received from
the railroads, and is now receiving,
secret rates and other unjust and il
legal determinations.
In 1904 these rates saved to the
Standard Oil company three-quarters
of a million dollars, representing the
difference between the open rates and
the rates actually paid. These dis
examinations" he says, have been so
long continued, so secret so ingen-
iously applied to new conditions Of
trade and so large in amount as to
make it certain that they were due to
concerted action by the Standard Oil
company and the railroads"
He says further that the Standard
Oil company is receiving unjust dis
rates, the published rates from the
leading Standard shipping points being
relatively much more than rates from
the shipping points of its competitors.
Discussion General.
Mr.. Garfield then refers to seven in
stances of important determinations in
favor of the Standard Oil company in
various parts of the country, and says
that most of the secret rates and some
of the open Determinations discovered
by the bureau were abolished by the
railroads shortly after such discovery.
After calling attention to the good
which already has resulted from the
investigation, Mr.. Garfield says the
changes effected have put the indie
pendents upon a fairer footing and
made competition possible in terri
tories heretofore inaccessible. The re-
port concludes as follows:
Nevertheless, the widespread dis
ordinations in open rates still in force
leave the Independents at serious dis
advantage. The investigation has only
incidentally touched state shipments
from distributing centers. particularly
in less thar carloads. The few in
stances of such shipments which, taken
in connection with through traffic, may
result in Determinations on interstate
business.
Devices to Dodge the Law.
L have cited these particular in
stances to show the various methods
by which determinations are obtained,
and to call particular attention to
methods which, If legal are mere de-
vices to obtain exactly the same re-
suits as should be obtained by rebates
paid on interstate business. Any
freight discrimination, whether it be
state or interstate, tends to give control
of markets to the preferred shipper,
and makes monopoly possible. If ex-
listing law merely prohibits a special
rate device for obtaining discrimina-
ton, AMI permits the same result to
be accomplished in a different way,
then the legislation is to that effect
sham.
This investigation has shown very
clearly one glazing defect in the inter
state commerce law. viz: The method
of filing and publishing tariffs. AL
though tariff or a rate has been filed
with the commission in compliance
with the terms of the law, none but
the favored shipper may know of its
existence Tariffs may be made and
rates may be combined in such man.
ner as TO make it practically impossi-
bic for the ordinary shipper to find
them. AS long as the state rates are