CAUSES FOR RATE LEGISLATION 
[Continued from Page 1, 1st Col.] 
the railroads is just and reasonable 
and if not to substitute one which will 
be. 
“The enactment by Congress of 
such a law, of course, affects us all 
alike — the laboring man who seldom 
travels on the cars or sends goods by 
freight as much as it does the produc- 
er or the shipper for passenger rates 
affect the pocket-books of the rich 
and poor in the same way, whatever 
law is passed, and although the ship- 
per pays the freight bills this freight 
charge becomes eventually a part of 
the cost of the goods to the con- 
sumer. Freight rates, therefore, have 
to do with what we eat or wear or 
use, whatever our occupation is.” 
In a general way Mr. Hanks spoke 
of the rate law of today and the bill 
now before Congress to make these 
laws effective. He then said: 
“Let us see what is the position of 
the railroads today. We know, for 
instance, that they control about one- 
sixth of the entire wealth of the coun- ~ 
try; that they aggregate nearly one- 
third of the railroads of the world; 
that their total capital is over thirteen 
billions of dollars or ten times that of 
the combined banks and trusts. com- 
panies of the country; that one mil- 
lion six hundred thousand men are in 
their employ ; that they kill annually 
10,000 people and injure nearly 
80,000; that by combinations with 
trusts they have now under their con- 
trol such fundamental necessities of 
life, as beef, coal, sugar, coffee, salt, 
oil and iron ore; that they receive an- 
nually from the government nearly 
$70,000,000.00 for the transportation 
of the mails, an amount conceded to 
be far in access of what it should be; 
that the difference in freight charges 
over what they were five years ago on 
a similar amount of goods is over a 
hundred million dollars annually ; that 
by combinations among themselves 
they have eliminated competition and 
created such gigantic monopolies that 
the entire traffic of our country is 
now practically in the control of a 
dozen men. 
“We know that the great trunk 
lines engaged in transportation be- 
tween the interior and the seaboard 
are able by charging lower rates to 
divert trade to inferior ports. 
“These rebates are given in various 
ways. A favored shipper is given a 
socalled commission on his business 
as though he were an agent of. the 
railroad.. Another subterfuge used is 
to.pay a-freight traffic agent a large 
salary, a: part of which he pays out to 
certain shippers; under billing and un- 
der weighing of freight, are other 
ways. Allowances for cartage and 
NORTH SHORE BREEZE 
5 
switching charges are other ways. 
The most modern method, however, 
is for the shipper to put in a claim for 
damages. 
“Very properly the question arises 
who pays these tremendous rebates? 
It does not come out of the pockets 
of the railroads—that we may be 
sure of, for when we analyze it we 
find that the railroads get it back in 
higher rates on the farmers’ product, 
on our clothes, our food and our coal, 
and that the consumers are the ones 
who pay it. Do you think the rail- 
roads would give these rebates, which 
total such vast sums, if these goods 
were being carried at a loss? The 
answer which the railroads make is 
that they are willing to carry certain 
merchandise at a loss in order to 
get other business. If this is so then 
those shippers who do not get rebates 
pay a portion of the freight charges 
of those who do. This answer of the 
railroads, however, is nota fair one 
for when the receipt and disburse- 
ments of any of our railroads are ana- 
lyzed we find that they make a profit 
on the freight upon which these re- 
bates are given. 
‘‘In the natural sequence of events, 
however, railroad control is now 
reaching the limits of individual con- 
trol and the next railroad period must 
necessarily be the government super- 
vision of our railroads because compe- 
tition, which is the basis of any last- 
ing prosperity in any community, is a 
right given to us by our Constitution. 
“Tf the railroads are making such 
large profits a pertinent question 
comes up, whether the profits of a 
quasi public corporations do not be- 
long to the public after paying its 
legitimate expenses and a fair divi- 
dend to its bondholders and _stock- 
holders. In considering this ques- 
tion we must keep in mind that rail- 
roads are public highways ; that they 
cannot be moved but are there to 
stay even if bankrupt; that a railroad 
corporation is unlike any other indus- 
try as its only function is to perform 
a-service for the producer and the 
consumer. Such a corporation is 
created forpublic purposes. 
«So much for the position of the 
railroads today. We have seen what 
a grasp they have on the destiny of 
our country; the power which they 
wield and the incentives which they 
have to prevent rate legislation. The 
solution of the question is in the hands 
of our congressmen and senators. - It 
is now for them to decide whether the 
rich shall grow richer and the poor 
poorer. .,Our passenger and. freight 
rates show the pulse of the country, 
and what these rates shall,be is of 
more importance than the tariff, or 
any other national question. © The 
object of the legislatiom is not that a 
commission shall decide in dollars and 
cents what the rates shall be, but that 
congress shall establish a standard by 
which fair and reasonable rates can be 
determined and illegal methods of 
rate-making prohibited, and that when 
a railroad refuses to make a fair and 
reasonable rate a commission shall 
have the authority to make a maximum 
rate. 
“The intelligence of the public is 
now forcing Congress to regulate our 
freight and passenger rates, and _ be- 
cause the rates charged by the rail- 
roads affect all classes of the commu- 
nity; because these rates determine 
very largely the outcome of all private 
enterprizes; that upon them hinges 
not only the national well being, but 
the very existence of our towns, cities 
and every section of our country, the 
President of the United States is de- 
termined that it shall not be left to 
railroad corporations to decide our 
destiny. 
“A. bill, to meet the conditions 
which now exist, should neither im- 
pose a hardship on the carrier nor 
harass the shipper in getting redress, 
and should be so drawn that the 
freight and passenger rates should be 
sufficient to pay the legitimate ex- 
penses of operating the road and a 
fair dividend to the bondholders and 
stockholders. 
“The board established to fix the 
rates should be a board of administra- 
tion, without executive power,. but 
with the power to prosecute. From 
the decision of this board an.appeal 
should be allowed by either party to 
the circuit court. 
“All present rates should be de- 
clared fair and reasonable until a 
change is recommended by the board 
of recommendation. 
‘«‘ The bill should declare that when 
a rate is changed it should be based 
on the capitalization and market value 
of the road affected. 
«« Every common carrier on 60 days’ 
notice to the board of administration 
should be allowed to increase any rate 
and demand from the board a declara- 
tion of its fairness. Pending the 
decision of the board, or the decision 
of the court when an appeal is taken, 
the common carrier should be-allowed 
to collect this new. rate, the excess 
amount over and above the old rate to 
be kept as an excess rate fund ints 
treasury.” oat ae 
The society voted on motion of Mr. 
Albert Cunningham that. the «secre- 
tary be instructed to send a commit- 
tee to Senators Lodge and Crane re- 
questing them to support the provi- 
sion of the Hepburn’ bill” when it 
comes to them from the House. 
Ve THA LPHEAROUTONG 
