The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1906-05-11
TRANSPORTATION GREAT
FACTOR IN COMPETITION


Tia summarizing his report Commits
siorer Garfield speaks OF his personal
visit rs the oil fields and ot the great
mass 81 Gatl olrairei by him either
personally Of throuEh agents q me (
bureau 81 corporations The preliIl- I
nary study 81 this material. he SAYS.
showed that the most important SUBJ 4
iect was transportation. which enters I
So largely iEso the COSY Of furnished
product and hence a most important
IT, TOT ia competition.
-Ths standard claims that the To-
cation III its rehneries and the use
Of pipe lines are natural advantages
10 which il Is justly entitled - reason
Iof The energy and f3reSiss. ~ rs man
aEars. While in a measure tnat Is
true. ii may not be forgotten that
these advantages we're in part obtained
BY means az unfair competitive meth
DDS after years OF industrial strife.
The development of the pipe line
system By the Standard Oil company
was the result of special agreements
with railroad companies. Further
more those so-called natural advan-
taees have been and are being greatly
increased by Determinations in freight
rates. both published and secret. inter-
state and state. which give the stand
ara monopolistic control in the great
er portion OF the country
Oil Price Is Gauge.
An immediate result Of this deiim-
iration Of the competitive area is
shown by the prices * ordinary IL
Eliminating oil. After deductinE ms
freight rate the price OF such oil J.
usually from two cents % i've cents
GALLON i.l-,ser in the n0n-competitiv'
than in the comperf,sve fields. A rea
sonable profit upon refined OIL j.
about one-half a cent per gallon. Ii j
81 clear that ex0rbitant profits are %
III tainei in the non-cOmpetitive fields
he In 1904 these secret rates saved n
at Standard Oil company three-quarter
IT OF a million collars. representing N
ne difference between the open rates an
OF the rates actually paid. These dis
ne ordinations ne says. have been
long continued. and SO secret. Sd II
rel geniously applied 70 new condition
m OF trade. and SO large in amount as
50 make II certain that they were due
N concerted action by the Standard an
ant the railroads He says further iii
the STANDARD oil company IS receivir
unjust determinations in the matt
put of omen yates. the published rates fro
by tho leading Standard shipping poin
irh being relatively much lower than rat
the from the shipping points Of IFS COZ
pen petitors-
mes Roads Abolish Secret Tariffs.
ate Mr. GARFIELD then refers 70 sew
pet instances ~ important discriminate
$ IN favor 81 the Standard OH coi
lete panv in various parts 20 the count
SCI ANA SAYS that most Of the secret rat
the ana some Of the open discriminate
discovered BY the bureau were alb
ished by the railroads shortly ar
sv- such discovery. After calling att'
~ ton 10 the good which already has
s,a5 suited from the investigation, MT 9
49, aeld says that the changes efec
rsta have put the Independents upon "a
10 er footing and make competition p
~ sible in territories heretofore mace
rev sible. The report concludes as
ans lows.
> e. Tariffs may be made and rates r
from be combined in such a manner as
we make II practically impossible for
hem ordinary shipper to find them"