New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-10-18
THE FARMERS WAR.

LOOSE LEGISLATION TO ENCOURAGE RAILROAD
BUu.DNG-THg PEOPLE WAKING rP-A IA"
PAssED-rs LEADING FEATURss-THE LAW JUDI
| CIAIIY sUSrAINHD-soME or IT'S IaPERFRcrfoN3-
FROM TUE SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT or THE TRIBUNE
| ST. PAUL, Mimi, Sept 22.-Mnnesota haG not yet
passed that period which occurs IN the history %
every new Western State when the cost Of building
a railroad in an unsettled country, and deyelopinS
a new agricultural OF mineral region. il counted by
the people, whether the expenditure be money 10
be repaid at some future time OF the REIMBURSEMENT
Of privileges and rights which pertain alone 10 tbc
sovereignty of the State. 1t is not strange, tber
fore that the statute books Of Minnesota like those
of most of the Western States full Of acts Ia
courage railroad building while those restricting
! the companies IN the exercise of their franchise,
were until the passage Of the general iaw 81 1871.
almost unknown. The majority Of The charters nm
der which the railroads of this State are now opcr
ating are not burdencd with any provisions IN Re-
! gard even TO the rates of toll thai SHAH
be collected. The trainers Of those laws
took it for granted suppose, that In"
| companies would charge enough, and public
| sentiment would not sustain the enactment Of any
restrictions likely discourage the rapid constrlc
ton of the roads These liberal State laws and tho
equally liberal land grants given 10y the United
| States have had their desired effect. With not q
mile of track completed in 1863 and only 2lS mites
! in 1866 the iron highways Of the State stretched.
! IN 1879 into more than 1600 miles Of rich prairie.
mineral and timber lands, and bore to the markets
of the world the wealth of farm of forest, and Of
mine.
! TIE FIRST AT1ESurs AT LEGISLATIVE CoTrEoL oF
RAILROADS.
Although the right to collect taxes for the service
which they render has never been expressly given
to the railroad corporations of Minnesota, no ono
has Of course ever denied il, and in making Their
schedules. they have been governed only BY their
own interests and the natural effect Of competition
The first serious attempt TO limit control them in
the exercise Of this implied right was made m 1871.
when the Legislature passed an act Of which shall
quote the substance since its passage, aud the
tests in the courts. which il gave rise import
ant events in the history of the fight Of tho people
of the West against the encroaclments Of the rail
road corporations
! The act in question divides the freight bushes.
of the railroads Of the State into five classes IKE,
maximum rates for each class, and makes it q Grim
inal ofeuse punishable by fine forfeiture Of char
ter for railroad company TO charge higher rates
than those fixed On merchandise of The first elias,
such as all kinds of grain, potatoes, dour, meal.
beef pork and meats of all kinds, when shipped by
the car load. the companies are allowed Ia charge
six cents per ton per mile for any distance equal 70
20 miles or less For distance greater than 20 and
less than 80 miles the maximum charge must not be
more than cents per ton per mile. For distances
greater than 80 miles and less than 100 miles tho
companies may charge cents per ton per mile
For all distances greater than 100 miles the
mum charge must not be more than :. cents per ton
per mile. Where the quantity of goods shipped at
one time is less than a load, an additional charge
of 20 per cent may be made The second class ia
cludes sawed lumber laths, shingles coal, and salt
oleba fort he of
articles are as follows For n car load, ~
| miles or hess, SO; for a distance greater
than 20 miles and less than 80 mile,
| the railroad company is allowed to charge
in addition to the SO rs cents per mile for The
load if tho distance is greater than 30 miles and
less than 100 miles the charge may be IS cents
mile aud for all distances greater than 100 miles
the extra charge may be- II cents mile The nest
class includes dry goods aud other similar met
chandse. and the MAXIMUM legal charges are -
per cent higher than those fixed for tbe first class
For the transportation of wood, b miles or los.
the rate fixed is 80 per carload, and additional
change of Is cents per carload per mile may be
made for distances between 81 and 10 miles, and
IL cents per carload per mile for M distances
greater than 60 miles. Passenger fares are liked
hy this law mt not more than cents pen ml".
The above rates include all charges for the storage
or transfer of goods except where they aIe allowed
10 remain more than two days after the owner
has had notice to remove them. The law for1ids
any discrimination against an individual or class
of shippers and attempts 10 strike blow az railway
wheat-rings by directing that the companies shall
take freight from any storehOuse or elevator near
it's track at the same rates that they take them o
their own storehouses OF elevators.
THE CoNsTTTUroNALnY OF IIE LAW.
The railroad companies made no strong opposition
,l,a net. THAR he'll and
still hold that it conflicts with the Constitution "
the United States because it impan the obligation
of the contracts entered into between the railroad
companies and the State when the acts charterng
the companies were passed and accepted, and snP-
posed that the courts would 50 decide They there
fore took notice of the law but charged and col-
lected their tariffs in accordance with the same
schedules ~ formerly. Very after the law went
into operation, Nr john ID. Blake rendered to the
Winona and St. Peter Railroad Company 81 cents,
the amount that the company could legally collect
for transporting certain amount of freight FROM
Winona to Rochester. The company charged 81
aud refused to deliver the goods unit. the full
amount was paid Mr. Blake brought o snit to
cover the goods and the Inferior court before which
the ease was tried decided in favor OF the railroad
company on the ground that the law was uncons,i-
tuionaL Tue State also began criminal suit, under
the act against the railroad company aud that Was
decided against the State. Both cases were appealed
to the Supreme Court of the STATE, md in May last
the Judgment of the inferior court was reversed,
the entire bench sustaining the constitutiouaty Of
the Law. shall not notice the opinion Oh the Court
in the case in which the State was plaintiff. the
vital questions considered in the other in
which, by common consent, the only question ex-
,at IL t;t,,t;o u..f fs,al Law