Los Angeles herald., 1910-03-02
FEDERAL STEAMER LINE AND
FREE HARBOR SHIPPERS ONLY
RELIEF FROM RAILROAD TYRANNY
Commissions Report to City Council Shows
Freight Charges Exorbitant-- Water Trans
portation Affords Relief from Grasp
of TranScontinental Lines
VrEsTERDAY the harbor co

VI EsTERDAY the harbor com
mission made report to the city
Il council concerning the measures
that are pending before congress re-
lating to the Improvement of Los An
geles harbor and the proposed congress
sional legislation establishing a gov
ernment line of steamships on the Pa
cifc coast which contains matter of
so much Importance to the people of
Los Angeles and Southern California,
and especially to our business men
and producers, that it is here given in
full.
Those portions of the report relating
to the transportation of the products
of Southern California to their mar
kets. and of articles consumed : in
Southern California to this section,
and the rates now charged for such
transportation by the transcontinental
railways, and the comparison of these
rates with the rates that can be OBJ
tanned by water transportation, reveal
condition of affairs so astounding
and of such tremendous Importance to
every one in Southern California as to
make it important that all citizens
should give particular attention to
! them.
The report in full is as follows:
Los Angeles, Cal, March l, 1910.
John D. Works, President, and the
Members of the City Council of the
City of Los Angeles, California:
Gentlemen-Comes now the board
of harbor commissioners and submits
to you its report, touching the meas
ures that are pending before congress
relating to the improvement of Los
Angeles harbor and the providing for
water transportation, which were
deemed of sufficient Importance to re-
quire that a personal representative
be sent to Washington, D. c.
This board, acting under and by vir-
| tue of the authority conferred upon 1t
| by a motion which was unanimously
adopted by your honorable body on the
first day of February 1910, drew from
the treasury, to defray the expenses
of its representative, the sum of $500,
and of that amount it has expended
as follows:
Railroad fare. including sleeper
commodations for round trip .S17s 5C
Telerrapbfng ............. S.0t
Hotel accomm odations .............. 23. 81
stenographic work ................. "a 81
Board and incidental expenses from
Feb. 4 to Feb 10, inclusive. ....... 125 81
Total amount expended ed............ss5o. oC
we herewith return you the unex-
pended balance by check payable .
TO city treasurer of Los Angeles. $3.50. %
$500 oc
Reporting further, in order that you
NAV have a better understanding of
the conditions that led up to the intro
duction of a bill in the senate by Sen
ator Flint, and a bill In the house of
| James McLachlan, by which it was
sought to establish upon the Pacific
ocean n line of commandments and
controlled steamers connecting with
the government line on the Atlantic,
by wav Of the Panama railroad, and
providing for their calling at all ports
on the Pacific. we call your attention
briefly to the past:
The government of the United States,
having acquired the necessary conces-
sion by which 1t could proceed to con-
struct the Panama canal, purchased at
an expense Of 81 900, 900 the Panama
railroad extending across the Isthmus
from Colon on the Atlantic to Ancon
on the Pacific. The Panama Railroad
company owned five ships. which were
sailing between New York and Colon,
which became the property of the
United States when It purchased the
Panama railroad.
The Panama railroad has been used
as link for through business between
New York and San Francisco for a
number Of years. The Pacific Mail
Steamship company, operating under
an exclusive contract, carried the
through freight from Ancon on the
Pacific to San Francisco.
Appoints Commissioner
Having acquired the railroad and
steamship lines, ii became a question
with the general government how to
operate it, and in 1905 President Roose-
welt appointed as a special commits
sioner Joseph L. Bristow (who now
represents Kansas in the senate), di-
recting him to investigate and report
as to its condition, and as to the man.
ner of operating and controlling it, in
order that the government might OBJ
tain all of the advantages therefrom.
The commissioner reported, recon-
mending: THAT the Panama railroad
be continued as a commercial line; that
its facilities for handling commerce be
improved at once; that it be double
tracked, and re-equipped with modern
rolling stock; that its port facilities be
enlarged by the construction Of addi-
tional wharves, and that modern facili-
ties for handling cargo be provided
"Second-That a schedule of rates for
| through business be provided fixing the
charges at the minima, which the pay
ment of operating expenses andS a fair
dividend on the investment of the gov
ernment will permit. The cost of ham
ding Of freight with the improved IA
cilities, and not what it has cost in the
past, should be so used as the basis in
fixing rates.
"Third-That the steamship line be-
tween New York and Colon be retained
"Fourth-That the contracts with the
Pacific Mail Steamship company and
the South American lines be Cancelled
and that the ports of Colon and Pan
anna (Ancon) be opened to the use OF
all steamship lines on equal terms.
"Fifth-That if within a reasonable
time a regular passenger and freight
steamship service is not established be-
tween Colon and the Gulf ports, a line
! be established by the Panama railroad,
"Sixth-That if the Pacific Mail
! Steamship company withdraws its
present Panama line, an effort be made
! to induce another company 10 establish
flrst-class service between the inn
portant Pacific coast ports of the
! United States and Panama, and in the
| event that no other company is pre-
pared to furnish the service, that it be
| provided by the Panama railroad
| "SeVenth-That in traffic connections
! the American steamship lines he ia
| VOred so far "a 6 can he done consist