Oscar P. Austin returns to Chairman Knapp several documents that detail criticisms of the Interstate Commerce Commission’s 1904 statistical report on railways. The criticisms by George W. R. Harriman and Charles Stedman Hanks were lengthy, detailed, and assert that the details of the report are inaccurate and misrepresent the statistics for investors. They request that the 1905 report be corrected or go unpublished. Austin refutes the criticisms, stating that Harriman and Hanks do not understand the “modes of tabulation” used in the report and do not understand how the tables relate to each other. Austin agrees that perhaps the report does not contain detailed enough information for investors, but argues that the report is a general one and not meant for investors. Austin recommends publishing the 1905 report as soon as possible.
Collection
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Creation Date
1906-12-10
Creator(s)
Austin, Oscar P. (Oscar Phelps), 1848?-1933