The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1910-11-03
Railroads Will Unless Peo-
pie Repeal Present Coast
wise Shipping Laws and
Elect Their Own, . Not
Railroad United States
Senators, Says Expert.
By WILLIAM z. SMYTHE.

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 3.-"n the
people don't look sharp they'll
wake up some fine morning and dis
cover that they have gone to all the
trouble and expense of building the
Panama canal for the exclusive
benefit of the railroads"
This Is the prediction of Joseph
H. Call, the fighting Los Angeles
lawyer, who has become a national
figure through devoting the better
part of his life to the struggle for
popular rights against railroad
Tyranny and injustice.
"Tne people have not yet walked
up to the fact that there Is a very
close connection between high tar
iff and high railroad rates." says
Mr.. Call. Nor do the people ap-
pear to have the slightest suspi-
clan of how the whole object of the
Panama canal, so far as it has any
thing to do with freight rates, may
be lost by skillful manipulation of
custom house affairs on the part
of collectors of various ports named
by railroad senators and appointed
by an administration that does not
see into the game.
The law forbidding foreign ships
to engage in coastwise trade plays
directly into the hands of the rail-
roads, since they are their affili-
ated companies control all the i'm
portant domestic shipping"
! Call says the new tariff changed
most of the duties from specific to
ad valorem-that is to say, the col
lector places his own valuation on
imported articles and assesses the
duty accordingly.
1t is notorious, of course, tnat
one reason the railroads are in
! politics is to enable mem to con.
| troll the election of United States
senator's; that these United States
senators are permitted by custom
to name the collectors of the ports |;
that the collectors are subservient
to the railroads, and are sometimes
even taken directly from the rail
road service.
| Now, then, what the the tariff to
| do with the railroad rates?
|
trolls the custom house, and so
long as the custom fixes the value
upon which the tariff duty is as
sessed, just so long the railroads
will be able to charge a freight
rate equal to the cost of bringing
goods from abroad, PLUS THE
TARIFF.
Is this what the railroads are do
ing now? Well, rather. For ex
ample:
The tariff on bituminous coal is
81 cents per ton, the freight rate
is Sc per ton, making a total tariff
and transportation charge of $685.
per ton on coal from abroad.
The railroads charge $3.50 Il
maui a ton of coal from Colorado OF
Utah to Los Angeles or San Fran
cisco. In other words, it cuts JUS
little under the cost of bringing
the same kind of coal into the
United States from foreign coun
tries.
Take structural steel: The duty
is $40 per ton, the freight rate
from abroad, Sc; total, SIG per tor
! for the steel, against $3.50 per tor
for the coal.
| Why? Because the tariff on Goa
is only 81 cents per ton, while the
tariff on steel is 80.
On cotton goo0s the tariff Is $4(
per ton, the freight rate from
abroad Sc, total $46.
And the railroad rate on cotton
goods? Why, $40! That is a little
less than the foreign rate and tariff
combined and lands the business
for the railroad.
Nov, don't you see," asked Mr.
Call, that If a railroad collector
of the port under the new ad va.
loren tariff can value the goods
brought in from abroad, and SO fix
the duty, he can give the railroad
the benefit of high freight rate?
Now you can understand why the
manufacturers have the aid of the
immense railroad influence at
Washington in getting a high tariff
and why the railroad wants to con-
troll the senators who select collec-
tors of the port"