Читать книгу Albert Ballin - Bernhard Huldermann - Страница 9

Of considerable importance to the smooth working of the pool was the court of arbitration attached to its organization. On account of the prominent position occupied by the German companies, German law was agreed to as binding for the decisions, and since at the time when the pool was founded, Germany did not possess a uniform Code of Civil Law for all parts of the Empire, the law ruling at Cologne was recognized to be applicable to such purposes. Cologne was the city at which the establishment of the pool was decided upon, and there all the important meetings that became necessary in course of time were held. The chairman of the Cologne Association of Solicitors was nominated president of the arbitration court, but later on this office devolved on President Hansen, a member of the Supreme Court for the Hanseatic cities, who filled his post for a long term of years—surely a proof of the confidence and esteem with which he was honoured by all parties concerned. Numerous awards issued by him, and still more numerous resolutions adopted at the many conferences, have supplemented the original pool agreement, thus forming the nucleus of a real code of legislation affecting all matters dealing with the pool in which a large number of capable men drawn from the legal profession and from the world of business have collaborated.

The knowledge of these regulations gradually developed into a science of its own, and each line had to possess one or more specialists who were experts in these questions among the members of its staff. I am sure they will unanimously agree that Albert Ballin surpassed them all in his knowledge of the intricate details. His wonderful memory enabled him, after a lapse of more than twenty years, to recall every phase in the history of the pool, so that he acquired an unrivalled mastery in the conduct of pool conferences. This is abundantly borne out by the fact that in 1908, when negotiations were started in London for the establishment of a general pool—i.e. one comprising the whole of Northern Europe, including Great Britain—Ballin, at the proposal of the British lines, was selected chairman of the conference which, after several critical phases had been passed through, led to a complete success and an all-round understanding.

In 1892 the normal development of business was greatly handicapped by the terrible epidemic of cholera then raging in Hamburg. For a time the United States completely closed her doors to all emigrants from the Continent, and it was not until the following year that conditions became normal again. Nevertheless Ballin, in order to extend the various understandings between the Northern European lines, took an important step, even before the close of 1892, by falling back upon a measure which he had already once employed in 1886. His object was to make the British lines more favourably inclined towards an understanding, and to this end he attacked them once more in the Scandinavian business. The actual occasion which led to the conflict was that the British lines, owing to differences of opinion among themselves, had given notice of withdrawal from the Hamburg agreement and from the Hamburg clearing house. This gave the Packetfahrt a free hand against its British competitors, and enabled it to carry as many as 2,500 Scandinavian passengers via Hamburg in 1892. The position of the Packetfahrt during the ensuing rate war was considerably improved by the agreement which it had concluded with the Hamburg agents of the British lines, who, although their principals had declared their withdrawal from the pool, undertook to maintain the rate which had been jointly agreed upon by both parties.

Some time had to elapse before this move had its desired effect on the British lines. Early in 1894 they declared themselves ready to come to an understanding with the Continental lines on condition that they were granted 7 per cent. of the Continental traffic (in 1891 they had been offered 14 per cent.), and that the Packetfahrt was to discontinue its Scandia Line.

This general readiness of the British companies, however, did not preclude the hostility of some of their number against any such agreement, and so the proposal fell through. The proposed understanding came to grief owing to the refusal of the Cunard Line to join a Continental pool at the very moment when the negotiations with the British lines had, after a great deal of trouble, led to a preliminary understanding with them. A letter which Ballin received from an English friend in January, 1894, shows how difficult it was to make the British come round to the idea of a pool. In this letter it was said that the time was not ripe then for successfully persuading the British lines to join any pool or any other form of understanding which would necessitate agreement on a large number of details. All that could be expected to be done at the time, the writer continued, was a rate agreement of the simplest possible kind, and he thought that if such an understanding were agreed to and loyally carried out, that would be an important step forward towards arriving at a general agreement of much wider scope.

To such vague agreements, however, the Continental lines objected on principle, and the opposition of the Cunard Line made it impossible to agree upon anything more definite. Thus the struggle was chiefly waged against this line. The Continental lines were assisted by the American Line, which had sailings from British ports, and with the management of which Ballin had been on very friendly terms ever since the time when he, as the owner of the firm of Morris and Co., had worked for it. After the conflict had been going on for several months, it terminated with a victory of the Continental lines. Thus the road was at last clear for an attempt to make the whole North Atlantic business pay.

The first step in that direction was the conclusion, in 1896, of an agreement concerning the cabin business. The Packetfahrt’s annual report for that year states that the results obtained through the carrying of cabin passengers could only be described as exceedingly unfavourable, considering that the huge working expenses connected with that kind of business had to be taken into account. Nevertheless, this traffic, which had reached a total of more than 200,000 passengers during the preceding year, could be made a source of great profit to the companies if they could be persuaded to act in unison. The agreement then concluded was at first restricted to the fixing of the rates on a uniform scale.

Both these agreements—the one dealing with the steerage and the one dealing with the cabin business—were concluded, in 1895, for three years in the first instance. In May, 1898, discussions were opened in London, at which Ballin presided, with a view to extending the period of their duration, and these proceedings, after a time, led to a successful conclusion, but in June, Ballin again presiding, the desired understanding was reached. A few weeks later an agreement concerning the second cabin rates was also arrived at, and towards the close of the year negotiations were started with a view to the extension of the steerage agreement. In 1899 the pool was extended to run for a further period of five years, under percentages:

	Westbound traffic (p.c.)	Eastbound traffic (p.c.)
North German Lloyd	44·14	41·53
Packetfahrt	30·71	26·47
Red Star Line	15·37	18·68
Holland American Line	9·78	13·32

To the Packetfahrt these new percentages meant a step forward, although the omission of the tonnage clause was a decided hindrance to its further progress.

The next important event in the development of the relations between the transatlantic lines was the establishment of the so-called Morgan Trust and the conclusion of a “community of interest” agreement between it and the German lines.