68 
Simons—Railroad Pools. 
direction by the application by the railroads wherever possible 
of the principle of the monopoly charge, while on the other hand 
residual competition is still a powerful factor in the determin¬ 
ing of rates at many points. The element of governmental inter¬ 
ference is also sometimes made a factor in rate-making, but for 
the present this influence may be disregarded as not affecting 
the question under discussion. It must be admitted that the 
tendency of the pool is to unify the railroad systems, and hence 
to increase the monopoly element at the expense of the com¬ 
petitive element as a factor in rate-making. And in so far as 
this is true the influence of the pool must be to raise rates. By 
the raising of rates must be understood equally the prevention 
of a decline. A graphic representation is herewith given of the 
fluctuations in rates according to the statistics gathered by 
Mr. McCain for the “Aldrich Report,” between New York 
and Chicago (plate II) and between New York and Memphis 
(plate III) The solid line shows the fluctuations before pool¬ 
ing; the broken line that after pooling. 
It will be seen that plate I shows a rapid and continuous fall 
of rates in the traffic between New York and Chicago in the 
twelve years between 1865 and 1877. In this year the great 
“ Trunk Line Pool ” was formed, which lasted with breaks, as 
seen upon the chart, until the passage of the Interstate Com¬ 
merce Act in 1887. It will be seen that taking the whole period 
into consideration during which the pool was in force there 
was almost no decline in rates. On examining plate III it 
will be seen that practically the same phenomenon is exhibited. 
In the five years previous to the formation of the pool in 1875 
(and the same would have been shown by a diagram of the rates 
for the five preceding years) there is a rapid decline in rates 
with violent fluctuations. Prom that time until 1887 there is, 
as before, but very little decline. This would seem to bear out 
the conclusions arrived at above, that a pool tends to maintain 
rates above their normal level. It may be said, however, that 
any evidence gained either directly or indirectly from the rate 
sheets of the railroads is by no means conclusive evidence as to 
the actual rates charged at any time upon the railroads of the 
United States. However, two things may be said: First, that 
