The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1908-01-03
STANDARD OIL EVADES,
IS REPLY OF SMITH
Corporations Commissioner.
answering Trust. Allegations,
Says 1t JuggIes Words.

Washington, Jan. 1.-Commissione,
of Corporations Herbert Knox Smith
has issued q statement in answer Il
the allegations of Standard Oil con.
accepting concessions on shipment:
over the Chicago and Alton. In thi:
document the commissioner delivers q
crushing blow at the arguments of thu
oil trust. His statement in full fol-
lows:
On August 3. 1901. at Chicago. the Stand.
sg;2oGpo for the violation of the Bikin.
Alton case" Various statements have
since appeared, one in particular signed
by the president of that company. Jane:
a. Monett, others in the public press, and
also a series of confidential circular Trade
letters" all endeavoring to throw doubt
on the legality and equity of that convic.
The report of the commissioner of cor
poTations on the transportation of Pc
this and all other pending rebate ipdict.
ments of the Standard Except one) were
1ana set forth in detail the deliberate,
standard in violating the anti-rebate laws.
hut these recent statements have made ii
1 nneessafy to . show once more that the
CONVECTION at Chicago were such as struck
at.the very life and spirit of the .Elkins
anu.repate law and of the policy of con-
kress IN forbtdd1ng unfai.ness as between
shippers.
Against a Secret Rate.
Inc question IN this case was one of a
puDIished 1S-cent rate TO East st. Louis.
~ against a secret 6-cent rate. The oil
Involved in this so-cnlled AL
ton conviction started from Whiting,
near Chicago. and were delivered at st.
'a.onas. MO- No, or at East st; Louis, IN, just
eshess tn and r, Niton fT raa1ro ST L 4S,ss. by .ly
+ + 9ss'oa fro" September : 1903 to March
IS 1N1,n II -, -,,s. 49,. - I. -
way rates be filed with the interstate
commission. During this en-
tire time there was on file with the In
..tarin" or rate sheet to which the Alton
Ct eh,a aate-a "a East frei 81 1 from Whit59ss =
per hundred pounds. Fifth-class freight
includes petroleum oil. This joint tariff
was a large printed document distributed
TO many shippers of all sorts of freight.
purlng the TIME so stated. 1.462 cars of
81 y were carried from Whiting. Ind. to
Standard Oil company at the rate Of g
cents per hundred pounds. Just one-third
OF the said published rate. This same
standard Oil company. and by no one
else: for many years prior to this period.
~ wa not fiied with the Interstate Com
secret and unknown to independent oil re-
1lners. or to shippers generally.
Mere Question Of Words.
The said statement of James A. Monett.
uses the following remarkable language:
ut must be borne in mind That there
- no question OF rebate or Discrimination
In this case
mere question of words. Apparently the
position of Mr.. Mofett is that II he had
actually paid the Alton railroad IS cents
per hundred pounds and received back IL
cents. SO az to make a net rate OF 6 cents,
this would have been q rebate But,
that, because the lawful rate was is cents
and Ills COmD2nV only maid & a nd tho no
1 ance az cents never physically passed
back and forth between HIS company ana
Fas sxactly. the same. 1t was not a re
bate" This statement is simply an
The other proposition OF Mr.. Monfett is
that there was mo discrimination in this
case" Apparently his position is that,
because no one else is known to have
ing to East st. Louis while his company
was paying. 6 cents, therefore there was no
discrimination. On the contrary, this very
situation proves that not only was there
discrimination. but that this discrimina-
ton had worked out Its logical results,
g t that ne one els, else could ea ship at IS cents
rate. Precisely this, and other secret dis
crlmination in shipments from Whiting.
d the vicinity Of Chicago which the
Standard now calmly ~designates as "ab-
sence OF discrimination"
Ssvsrs Discrimination.
h 6-cent Alton rate was a rebate" in
essence. + not in form. and both In es-
sence and In form 1t was a discrimina-
u0n OF the most severe and successful
The Standard Oil Company Of Indiana
has tried to excuse it's use OF the O-cent
rate on two grounds. = admits that the
scent rate oyer the Alton railroad was
commission. as the law required. But the
standard tries to remedy this fatal defect
s ~ rsteF When 70 Was = oa eef aie with thiaP fbe ee ei9n
mission. This sheet merely. stated that
the rates from Chicago should apply also
l erred W q 81 +. s sna named s 1as fsElfTs re, RE
tariff containing the 1s.cent oil rate: but
I n. made name no mention tGn,a Of the unified Special
scent rate on oil: Of course. this sort Of
thing was ansoantely no notice to any
was It intended to be. -
But the chief ground upon which the
..Chicago and eastern Illinois rate" The
claim 70 that while the shipments Of oil
were going on at s cents over the Alton
over the Chicago and Eastern Illinois rail-
road e rate OF 6A cents from Whiting to
East g. Louis. The Standard claims that
this 6A-cent rate was a legal rate. and
that therefore, inasmuch as the Standard
could have shipped all Its oil at this al
1 Nssfern Legal 1,I,n rate over T.! the Chicago and
cepting = ike rate over the Alton. and
thus that even IL these shipments over the
Alton were technically illegal there was
no moral wrong about them. 80
An Additional Wrono.
SO far from this "Chicago and eastern
Illinois rate being a justification for the
Alton shipments. It was an additional
Illinois rate was quite as secret as the
Alton rate and was merely one more in
tempts Of the Standard to evade. or yio-
late With IMMUNITY. the whole spirit of the
antt-discrimination law.
The facts as to this ''justifying' rate
are as follows: In October, 1885. the Chi
a and Eastern Illinois railroad filed
with the Interstate Commerce commission
z single Monograph sheet stating that
the rate on oil from BOLTON, Ill. to East
e: Louis was 6N cents per hundred
pounds. There is no evidence that this
except the Standard Oil company.
This rate read from Dolton." not from
sTRoPs RAZOR FOR
CUSTOMER, THEN CUTS