Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-01-28
STANDARD METHODS
ARE SHOWN UP
Commerce Commission Makes
Important Report to Congress
Arraigning Oil Monopoly
COMPETITION NOW rHRoTTLED
Secret Rates From Railways, Employ.
nent Of Spies to Keep Tab on Bus
ines. Of independent Concerns Some
Of Tho Methods to Ruin Competing
Cencsrns-Profits Big.

washington. Jan. 2S.-The Interstate
com,ner,.e commission sent to congress
today report of the investigations
made by' It under the Tillman-Gilles-
pie resolution. approved March last.
concerning the relations of common
carriers by rail to the production and
distribution of oil. The report covers
the distribution of petroleum and It's
products east of the Mississippi river,
and. incidentally, the Kansas and Tex
as fields. The report points out gen.
orally the methods by which the STAN
dard Oil Company "has built up and
perpetuared its monopoly and the rela-
tions of transportation agencies to that
monopoly 1t Is asserted that the
ruin OF its competitors has been dis
tinct part of the policy Of the Standard
OIL Company in the past, systematlcal-
ly and persistently pursued" Consid-
cradle Of the ground covered has been
gone into fully in the report on Oil and
ats distribution, made public by the bu-
reau Of corporations.
..The Standard Oil Company" the
report says. largely monopolizes the
handling OF petroleum from the mouth
OF the well until 1t is sold to the retail
er, and sometimes to the consumer, and
under ordinary circumstances its mar
gin of profit Is very large. Estimates
made in the report show profit on re-
fined oil from the Sugar Creek Rein
cry at kansas City of from to cents
per gallon A much higher profit is in.
sxIfcatSd tor gasoline The sale, OF re-
fined oil from the large Standard re-
finery at Whiting is correspondingly
profitable.
.The evidence shows little basis for
the contention that the enormous divt-
dends Of the Standard Oil Company are
the legitimate result of its ecpnomicss
Except for its pipe lines the Standard
has but little legitimate advantage over
the independent refiner.
"The Standard buys advertising
space in many newspapers, which 1t
fills, not with advertisements, but with
reading matter prepared by agents
kept for that purpose, and paid for at
advertising rates, as ordinary news.
The assumption Is that this literature
furnishes many Of the ideas touching
the great benefits conferred upon the
public by the Standard Oil Company
Possession of the pipe lines enables
the Standard to absolutely control the
price Of crude petroleum and the price
which its competitors in given locali-
ties shall pay. It can raise the price in
one locality and obtain its own oil from
another, and reverse the process when
1t desires to do so. Whoever controls
the avenues of transportation of the
raw material or of the refined product
can speedily drive his competitors out
Of existence, and the production and
distribution of petroleum Is no excep-
tion to the rule
The pipe line system Of the Standard,
the report contends, is not natural,
but rather an artificial advantage. Or
dinarily, 1t is said, the Standard has
not received rebates In recent years, so
far as has been discovered. but it has
nevertheless enjoyed secret rates pos
sessing all Of the elements of illegal
rates, and the advantages SO obtained
over Independent shippers have been
OF very great value to that company.
Numerous instances Of discrimination
in favor of the Standard resulting from
the published railway rates were
found. says the report
In discussing the assertion contained
in the report that "the ruin of its COM
petitors has been a distinct part of the
policy OF the Standard Oil Company
the commission says that one method
has been the organization of a perfect
system of espionage over the ship
ments Of It's competitors, resulting in
knowledge as to. the destination of ev-
cry car Of oil leaving the refinery of an
independent. The Standard agent at
the destination says the report, is held
responsible II the Independent oil is
sold. The report continues:
at does not appear that the railroad
companies have directed the furnishing
of this information, or that the prac-
tice has been sanctioned by superior
officials of the roads, but it does ap-
pear that such information is syste-
matically obtained from railroad en-
ployes. The testimony shows that the
Standard at one time, If 1t does not
now, devoted fund to the purpose of
obtaining this information. 1t has fre-
quently happened when the supply Of
independent oil in particular terri
tory was low and shipment was pc
culiarly necessary, that the shipment
has unaccountably gone astray. Infor-
nation also appears to have been Civ
en- the Union Tank Line, creature of
the Standard, concerning the where
abouts of its cars, while such informa-
ton was not furnished to other owners
OF tank cars and some discrimination
in tank car mileage in favor of the
tank line is shown for one railroad"
The assertion is made that 1T is the
practice of the Standard whenever a
competitor eiects storage tank to
which the oil is transferred from the