Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1906-05-10
FLAYS STANDARD OIL.
PRESIDENT TRANSMITS commls.
sloNER GARFleLo's REPORT
TO CONGRESS.

Wesults OF Investigation OF Transpor.
tat'or and Fre,snt Rates Show the
By Secret Rate.-Department OF
Justice viii institute Proscc ut,ops
In Certain Cases.
Washington, May rr.si,ienf
Roosevelt has transmitted To congress
the report ot James II Garfield com
missioner OF corporations, giving III,
results OF his Investigation OF trans
tton with the oil industry
The president expresses the View
that the report is ut capital lmpois
tance because ut the effort nov hunp
made to secure such enlargement ul
the scope Of thu Interstate coinnlerc,
commission AS will confer upon II
power To meet the demonstrated needs
Of the situation The facts in the rc
port. he declares. are toi the most
part not disputed That the Standard
OH company has benefited enormous.
ly up almost to- the present moment
~ secret rates. many of which were
clearly unlawful, the president say
the report clearly shows. the hencnt
thereby secured amounting To at least
&7500oo Year On this subject he
says
This t750,ooO represents the ptont
tina; the Standard OH company oh
tains at the expense uf the railroads
but of course the ultimate result is
that ii obtains u much larger profit at
the expense ot the public \ very
striking result OF the Investigation has
been that shortly after the discovery
OF these secret rates BY the commits
stuner vi corporations tn. major l,ur
tton vi them were promptly corrected
by the railroads. so that most ol them
have now been done away with This
immediate correction. partial or com
plete OF the evil of the secret rates is
Of course AN acknuWledgmrn that
they We're wrong and Vel Wei. peise
vered in until exposed
VIII Institute Prosecutions.
The statement is added that lhe dc
partment OF justice will take up The
question of institntins prosecutions in
at least certain of the cases and the
hope Is expressed that congress viii
enact into Law the bill of Senator Knox
to correct the construction ul tlc I'M.
nunit. provision rendered in Judge
Humphrey S decision Continuing. the
president says
but in addition to these secret
rates the Standard on plofils inn
mensey by open rates, which are 50
arranged as to give il an ovclwheni
Ing advantage over its ind, pendent
competitors This Is characteristic
example of the numerous evils which
are ineyitabl. under a system in which
the big shippers and the RAILROADS are
left free to crush out all ndividpa
initiative and all powe OF independent
action because of the absence Of AIDE
Quate and thorough going govern
mental control Exactly similar condi
ttons obtain In a large part of the
West and Southwest
II Is not possible, he says, To put
esnN. 4,
which the Standard profits through he
gross favorttism shown IL by the rail.
roads In connection with the open
rates. The profit of course comes
not merely by the saving in the rate
itself as compared with It's com
petitors. but by the higher prices ii is
able to charge and by complete con
troll of the market which 1t secures
thereby getting the profit ON the
whole consumption
Purpose Of the Law Thwsrted.
The president calls attention 10 that
feature OF t1e report regarding the
manner In which the law is evaded by
treating as state commerce what in
reality Is merely a part oi interstate
commerce He says IL is clearly
shown that this device is employed
on the New York Central iailroad as
we'll as on many other railroads. in
such fashion as to amount 10 thwari
ing the purpose vi the law although
the forms OF The law may be complied
with "
II is unfortunately not true. he
says. that the Standard OH company is
the only corporation which has hene.
fitted and is beneftting in wholly i'm
proper fashion bs an elaborate snres
of rate discrintnation5 The sugar
trust. he adds, according 10 the ilves
tigatiOn now in progress rarely ii ever
pays the lawful rate for TRANSPORTS
ton He declares that in the effort
to prevent the railroads from uniting
Tor improper purposes we have VERY
unwisely prohibited th IN from uniting
Tor proper purposes; that is, for pllr
poses of protecting themselves and
the general public as against the poWe.
Of the great corporations
he favors as an element Of com
petition the passage Of sotne such lis-
as that which has already passed he
house. putting alcohol used in he aFfs
and manufactures upon the free list
and ~ keeping m. fee ~ oil aud coal
lands OF the Indian tribes OF on the
public domain in the government the
lands 10 he leased only on snch tefid5
and for such periods rs will enable
the government 10 enjoy control Of
them
witte May Go TO Para.
londnn Mxu -.Chn n4ill Nh.