The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1906-06-12

have an advantage by the use of our
own pipe lines from the Western oil
fields to the coast and the use of water
transportation thence to New England
over any one who uses all rail trans
portation from Western points. But
this advantage is one which it is not
possible to correct by any rate legisla-
ton, unless it is proposed to bankrupt
the railroads in order to meet water
competition. Yet we are not alone in
this method of transportation. Some of
our competitors do the same thing, and
deliver oil at the points in New Eng
land that we do by the same process.
Mr.. Garfield claims that the refusal
to prorate on the part of the New Eng
land railroads has given the Standard
Oil Company practical control of New
England territory and enabled it to
maintain eXorbitant prices for kero-
sene. Yet while it is admitted that the
New Haven road has recently begun to
prorate this alleged condition of con-
troll has not changed in any way nor
have the prices of kerosene been affect
ed. The New England roads believe
they can make more money by a refusal
to prorate, and if in doing so they are
violating the propreties, clearly they,
and not the Standard Oil Company,
should be made the object of attack.
The Commissioner is peculiarly I'M
fortunate on the subject of rebates,
The public may well take his word that
he made an exhaustive examination,
and yet withal he says that with one
or two exceptions the investigations of
the bureau have as yet discovered no
rebates in the technical sense on in
terstate business These exceptions
were on business done wholly within
the State of California, over which, of
course, neither Mr.. Garfeld's bureau
nor the Interstate Commerce Commits
sion has any jurisdiction. But in those
cases the alleged rebates were fully
explained to Mr.. Garfield and involved
no turpitude whatever. 1t was a new
business on the Pacific coast, and be-
fore it had been systematiZed there
were overcharges, not to the Standard
Oil Company alone but to every one
engaged in the enterprise, which over
charges We're subsequently adjusted.
"He says the Standard Oil Company
has habitually received from the rail-
roads and is now receiving secret
rates and other unjust and illegal dis
ordinations. 1t is hardly fair or man
ly for him to add the sentence: OF
course there may be other secret rates
which the bureau has not discovered
"In dealing with the determinations
which are alleged to be violations Of
the Interstate Commerce law the plain
answer is thet if Mr.. Garfelds state
ment is correct itw as the duty Of the
Interstate Commerce Commission to
have taken action and brought not
alone the Standard Oil Company, but
the railwaycOmpanies involved, to book,
and this they have never done. Vio-
lations of the law i'm this respect do not
fall within the jurisdiction of the Blu
reau of Corporations, and any state
ment on the part of Mr.. Garfield re
specting this subject is gratuitous and
valueless.
MI. Garfield's claim that by the use
of low interstate rates the Standard
Oil Company gained an unfair advan-
tage is equally unfortunate. At great
expense we constructed pipe lines from
the Pennsylvania and Ohio oil fields
and from the Kansas and Indian Ter
ritOry oil fields to Whiting. If our
competitors did not do the same thing
shall it be said that any one is unfair
who does not give them the advantage
of this enterprise Of ours?
1T is quite true that having our oil
vt Whiting and desiring to transport it
to points in the interior of Illinois we
lao.
man in Ohio who had never expended
a dollar for a pipe line to Whiting
should be able to transport his oil to an
inland town in Illinois over all rail
line at the same rates that we enjoyed
by reason of our pipe lines must ap-
pear absurd to any one. Are we to
have no advantage because we con-
structed these pipe lines? Is the
amount invested and the interest on
that investment to count for nothing?
Take two men going to Boston; one
uses an eight thousand dollar automo-
bile to go to New London, and there
takes the train. Is he to have no ad-
vantage i'm rate from the man who
leaves New York and travels all the
way by rail?
IL is asserted over and over again In
the report that the Standard Oil Com
pany profited by secret and unlawful
freight rates. Yet in the same connec-
ton it is admitted I'm the report that all
of these rates are covered by tariffs
filed with the Interstate Commerce
Commission precisely as the law pro-
vides, and, therefore, they cannot be
either secret or unlawful
'The Commissioner uses the curious
phrase at one point i'm his report that
although a tariff or a rate has been
filed with the (nterstate) commission
in compliance with the terms of the
law, none but the favored shipper may
know OF its existence As the Inter
state law explicitly provides that every
tariff of rates so filed must be posted
at every freight station and open to
the inspection of every shipper, it Is
hard ia conceive If tho poD1Dnfggioupris