HYDROLOGY OP NEW YORK 



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appointment of a commission to consider the whole question. 

 The report of this commission, which is known as the New York 

 Commerce Commission, was transmitted to the Legislature Jan- 

 uary 25, 1900, by Governor Roosevelt. In his letter accompany- 

 ing- the report he states that the thanks of the State are due to 

 the commission for the marked ability and untiring industry 

 shown throughout their labors. 



The New York Commerce Commission was appointed to con- 

 sider the whole problem of New York's loss of commerce, in- 

 quiring into the causes and seeking to discover remedies. In 

 their report they state that the main cause of the damage to 

 New York's commerce is the way in which the railroads of New 

 York discriminate against her in the interests of competing 

 ports. 



The report submitted by the commission shows that this rail- 

 road discrimination, imposed by what is known as the differential 

 agreement between the trunk line railroads to the Atlantic 

 seaports, results in overcoming the advantage which New York 

 would have under natural conditions as the cheapest route to 

 foreign markets for the products of the west. It is claimed 

 that this differential agreement gives preference in railroad 

 rates not only to the cities of Philadelphia, Baltimore, Norfolk 

 and Newport News, but Montreal and the Gulf ports are bene- 

 fited by it to the injury of New York to as full an extent as if 

 they were parties to the agreement. The differential agreement 

 also provides the same rate for Boston as for New York, and 

 permits the Boston roads to allow free insurance and free stor- 

 age to such an extent as amounts to a substantial discrimination 

 against New York. 



The differential agreement was signed on April 5, 1877, by 

 William H. Vanderbilt, H. J. Jewett, Thomas A. Scott and John 

 W. Garrett, representing the New York Central, the Erie, the 

 Pennsylvania and the Baltimore & Ohio railroad companies. 

 It established a system of freight rates governing all traffic, 

 both eastbound and westbound, bounded on the south by the 

 Ohio river, on the west by the Mississippi river and on the east 

 by an imaginary line, drawn through Toronto, Buffalo, Pittsburg 

 and Parkersburg. Traffic destined to. or originating in, territory 



