- tyrr-ipf fR W '
The Commoner.
JDNB 10, 1905
15
the death knell to special privileges
granted favored patrons.
Every year since the supreme court
declared that congress had failed to
invest the interstate commerce com
mission with authority to afford prac
tical relief to shippers, the commis
sion, in accordance with, the provisions
of the statute requiring it to suggest
necessary amendments to congress, has
recommended-the passage of a law that
would romody the evils complained of.
The present law, since the decisions of
the courts above referred to, is nothing
more than an instrument in the hands
of the roads for the purpose of extort
ing from the general public exorbitant
published rates, and. a veil for granting
Bpecial privileges and rebates to the
great and powerful. Added to these
recommendations of a non-partisan
board, created by congress itself, have
been added within the past year the
appeals of nearly every commercial or
ganization in the country, together
with innumerable lettera from small
individual shippers, praying that con
gress would hearken to the cry of the
people, but to all such, the republican
committees of congress have turned a
deaf ear.
To illustrate the- impotency of the
law and to show the contempt in which
it is held by the shippers of the coun
try, I quote from a statement made by
Interstate Commerce Commissioner
Charles A. Prouty, before the senate
committee on interstate commerce last
winter: "I hold in my hand a paper
received this morning, published in the
interests of the railroads of New York,
in which it is said that the present con
dition of east-bound rates from Chi
cago to New York is outrageous; that
all traffic practically is being moved
upon something less than the published
rate, and under contracts with the
great shippera in Chicago. What does
the man in Chicago do who is thus
driven out of business? Does he apply
to the interstate commerce commis
sion? Past experience shows him that
is useless. This paper indicates hia
opinion, and it contains a letter to J.
Pierpont Morgan from a committee of
grain shippers, asking him that his
railroads observe a statute of the Unit
ed States. I submit that the United
States should cee to It that its statutes
are observed and that shippers of the
United States should not be compelled
to apply to J. Pierpont Morgan, or any
other individual, to intercede with his
railroad properties to secure the ob
servance of this statute."
Just think of the small shippers of
the country apealing to J. Pierpont
Morgan, the man who has done more
to create trusts than any one living,,
which trusts receive the direct bene
fit from the rebates, imploring him to
compel the railroads to comply with
a statute of the United States, when
congress has full power under the in
terstate commerce clause of the consti
tution to confer authority upon the
commission and the courts to right the
wrongs from which the people suffer.
What makes the rate discriminations
so much more disastrous to the small
dealer than the action of the ordinary
trust is that, no matter how venal may
be the latter, yet it generally demands
tribute of all alike, but the railroad
trust grants its favors to the powerful
few, laying its mailed hand upon the
small unprotected shipper to make
good its losses.
This is the injustice that saps the
very foundation upon which commerce
rests. It is as inevitable as the law
of gravity that its unrestrained contin
uance means the passing away of the
small shipper.
Illustrate It by a, concrete example.
Suppose it costs 80 cents to manufac
ture a given article in New York and
the published railroad rate is forty
cents on that article from New York
to Chicago. S'uppose it costs the trust
and the small deajer Identically the
same amount to manufacture it, but
the trust receives from the railroad a
rebate of twenty cents when it ships
the article to Chicago. Is it conceiv
able that the small dealer can long
exist under such conditions? This is
what is occuring today and every day.
The small dealer no longer ships. It
Is more tban ho can do to hold his own
in his immediate neighborhood against
the distant foreign trust, with its fa
vored rates.
The3e great combinations and trusts
eare nothing about adverse legislation
to prevent their combining as long as
they are left a free hand to secure re
bates. They, will reorganize and re
combine to come within the terms of
any law that, can bo placed upon the
statute books, as they are doing every
day, but when congress strikes at the
rebate, it infllqts a mortal injury. The
small producer or manufacturer should
always be ready and willing to com
pete with the(, trust in. meeting the ad
vantages which may arise from econ
omy in production, etc., because his
close contact with the consumer will
more than outweigh the advantages tho
trust may have, arising from that
source, but.hq can not and he should
not be compelled to mept the unfair,
unjust and unlawful advantages which
the trust secures from our public trans
portation facilities. As against this,
he will inevitably go to tho wall. From
it there is no escape. Mr. A. B. Stlck
ney, in his work above referred to il
lustrates this when he says: "A guar
anteed rate of transportation of even so
small a sum as one quarter of a cent
per bushel less than any other middle
man can get will give the man possess
ing it a monopoly of the business of
handling the corn in the district cov
ered by the guarantee."
The general public is not aware that
the manufacturer located in Liverpool,
England, can ship his goods via New
Orleans, La., to San Francisco, Cali
fornia, for less money than can the
American -manufacturer of a like arti
cle located in New Orleans, and tho
same is true in shipping from Liver
pool via New York to Pittsburg, Pa.
For these and other discriminations,
there is no remedy under existing laws
and for relief the people must look
to the democratic party, for the repub
licans, the railroads and the trusts are
all dominated by the same influences
and no relief will ever be had at their
hands.
It is a fact that can not be contra
dicted that today any interstate rail
road may charge whatever rate it sees
fit and there is no tribunal in the
United States that can grant any re
lief either for past extortions or for
future demands. Under existing laws
neither the interstate commerce com
mission nor any court can prescribe
what shall bo tho rato for tho future;
that is a matter that congress has left
entirely and absolutely to tho discre
tion of the railroads. To substantiate
this assertion, seo the caso of I. C. C.
vs. C. N. 0. & T. P. Ry. Co., 1G7 U.
S., 479. Section G of such atatutc ex
pressly recognizes tho right of the
carrier to establish, increase or ro
duco rates, on condition of publishing
and filing them with the commission.
The interstate commerce commission
has no power to prescribe a tariff or
rated which shall control In the future.
Milton II. Smlth, president of the
Louisville & Nashville railroad, in tes
tifying before the interstate commerce
commission, when asked if a shipper
living on his road would not have to
pay the rate demanded by the railroad,
said ,if the shipper does not like the
rate "Ho can walk as he did beforo ho
had railroads, as thousands now do
who have no railroads."
TI1I3 is what the shipper does today,
pays the rate domanded by the railroad
or walks, or In the caso of the small
producer sells his goods at homo oi
goes out of business, and this he will
continue to do, until congress sees fit
to exercise lis power under the consti
tution "to regulate commerce."
It remains to bo seen how long the
trusts of the country can divert public
attention from the breeder of great
combinations the discriminating rail
road rates which congress can destroy
by direct legislation, or by giving the
power to do so to the interstate com
merce commission.
PRIMARY PLEDGE PLAN
(Continued from Page 9)
am in favor of the Chicago and Kan
sas City platforms.
W. G. Pardonner, Wapakoneta, O.
Having been an active democrat ever
since 189G and working continuously
every day since, I did not think it
necessary to send in an endorsement
of the plan. But as many of my
friends have asked me why my name
was not published with the many that
have appeared in The Commoner, I
concluded that I should fill out a
blank, and I will Give all the influ
ence possible to the good work. In
1793 the third continental congress In
New Yor': City passed a law that no
man who held an interest iia bank
should be a member of congress.
There were only three banks In the
United States at that time. Our fore
fathers understood that the bankers
would prove a menace to tho people.
I .never heard of that law being re
pealed. In 18G9, when the credit
strengthening act was passed there
were 189 bankers in congress, and
among the rest there was not one
laboring man or farmer. Every ono
of thorn wcro lawyers, so thoy havo
made laws for bankers and corpora
tions. If tho common pcoplo want
any laws thoy must elect mon who
associate with thcrn and know their
necessities. I cannot understand why
the ministers as a rule proach for
tho betterment of mankind spiritually
and vote and proach against mankind
temporarily in this life. In my opin
ion all preachers ought to preach for
the betterment of mankind on earth,
and then we will be fitted for tho
hereafter. "He that is born of two
talents, more Is expected of him than
ho that is born of one. He that ia
horn of five talents, even more Is ex
pected," thus saith tho Lord. Thoso
that understand the situation as it
ex'fctfl and as It existed in 189G will
be hold responsible for their influ
ence and votes. I bid God speed to
true democracy, to Tho Commoner
and its .editor.
Andrew Dean, Holly, W. Va. En
closed find twenty names of good dem
ocrats signed to tho primary pledge.
Thoy will attend all tho democratic
primaries. Send them copies of Tho
Commoner also.
John Hushlon, St. Clara, W. Va.
I heartily endorse the primary pledge
plan. It is an old saying out hero
that the third time is the charm. I
have voted twice for a democratic
candidate for the presidency, and If I
can get to vote for a democrat In 1908
I think I can land him in the Whlto
IIouso.
Chas. B. Bethol, Coshocton, Ohio.
I send you primary pledge with twen
ty slgnatuies.
Lewis Clemenlson, Troy, Kans. I
send you six pledges, also five sub
scriptions to The Commoner.
Andrew J. Crunk, Nashville, Tenn.
Enclosed you will find my primary
pledge. I was born a democrat, rocked
In a democratic cradle, and I believo
In equal rights to all and special
privileges to none. If a white man
don't adhere to those principles ho
is a black cat In my eyes. You aro
on the top round. G 'o It to them In
hot shots.
J. W. Cunningham, Sullivan, Ind.
Herein yru will find pledge signed
by myself and two others. I think
it is a good plan.
L. F. Smith,' 5431 Cottage Grove,
Chicago. I heartily endorse the plan.
Many of us have felt the need o
some such plan to arouse the people
to the dangers that threaten the fu
ture of our government. I have been
a voter for forty-seven years. Part of
that time, like thousands of others, I
thought .hat party leaders were all
honest and would not sell out to dis
honest schemers who wanted a demo
crat elected for revenue only. Tho
time has corne, and should have como
THE PRIMARY PLEDGE
I promise to attend all tho primaries of my party to be held between now and the next demo
cratic national convention, unless unavoidably prevented, and to use my influence to secure a clear,
honest and straightforward declaration of the party's position on every question upon which the
voters of the party desire to speak.
-. . u ' ' , Signed '. .vi
Street ..;... '. . V. i ... . Postofii'c'e -State
i
County . Voting precinct or ward
Fill out blanks and mail to Commoner Office, Lincoln, Neb.
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