, 1874-02-23
REDF1EID ON RAmWhYa

III, sayB A[r. Isaac +. Roddeld. Of Doaton.. I,
tho January number Of the Anc,fcau Ln,p n eo
7sfe', "tho railways aro allowed to purAuo III
nnrcstrained courHo now entered upon by the, a.
| tho expenses Of transportation will ultimatel
absor oil tho profits Of Interstate trado and
manu- lacturo." This ia a startling assertion.
comiu E as 1t docg from ono whose familinr;tv y
| with tho working Of our railway eyutom ia nm.
ques1i ohea slnco thoro is scarcely what lawyers
call "railroal case" tho facts OF which la ia,
not # ,nailiar with, having nude Railway Inv a
specia lty, aa lo says himself, for "almoBt thu
period Of the life OF gonoration," and hayinc.
write standard work on tho subject. yot
Mr. r. 'dtiold, with al his opportunities to form
correct Judgment in tho promiscs puts tAis rc-
sult down as II ''ontrely cortain." Ho says,
moreover, TINT railways arc ontiroly beyond
all heaatlay competition; that whatever conpoti.
ton thtrs is among them centros in few i'm
portaut points, to which froights and fares are
morcly nominal; tint tho profits lost at those
points to tho roads aro assessed upon way-trans-
portaticn, whore thoro ia no competition. Ho
agrees with tho Westminster Rey;c,o TINT tho
talk ab out tho competition of railways is "looso,
inconsistent verbage, and irrational capt." md
asserbs th at thcro aro facts rolatlng to tho mail
agomont t'f railroads, and tho charging Of faro
aud freig1 1t by them, which, If properly collected
and proBo nted, would act the whole country in
blaze" He mentions ouo instance ;u Now En-
gland. In own to himself whore tue charges tor
transport 1tion "aro mnae, by some doyico, to
double til advertised rAtos, aud thus ronlor tho
products Valuoloss to tho Consumer as we'll
as to tho producer Ho SAYS that
the rat oH aro sometimes fourfold the
charge for transportation Of the aa1po
commodit;ies ton or even twenty times as far, in
the bam* dire ,tion mud over tho Bamo lines, aud
that the undel chargo In ono instance covers tho
overchargo n tho either. TheHe words are talson
almost verbatim fr ON Mr.. Rodfleld's article and
We fool very ccrtairt that tho former Chiof-Ju
tlco of tho suprom o Court of Vermont did not
pom tAou1 to excite tho ill-wi1l Of tho community
against railway operations, but to call atton-
tion to great and growing OWL, mud show the |
necessity OF aone appliance to remedy it. Dut |
To what oxtens may the State Legislatures or Con-
gresB Interfere In the matter? Mr, Rediiold is |
supposed to know romo lttlo law, and wo will lot
him answor.
All railways may bo divided into two c]aases
/. Slate railway s. or railways lying wholly |
within single st ate. 2. Interstate railways or
railways lying pnrt1y in ono stato md partly in /
another. Has tho Legislature OF State within
which railw ny Tholly lios tho power to regulate
it's froights md fares It plainly has whero it |
las rcseryof to itso{ TINT power. But how il it |
when tue L sgiBlature OF tho State Inns not ro-
served that power to itaoh? Can it, iu this Int
er caao, re gu1ato the freight or faro charged BY
rallroad company without infringing TINT pro-
7ision Of t 40 Constitution Of the Uni tod Statos +
Which dec ares that no State shall pnss law |
mpa'ring tho obligation Of contracts? Chief
"stlco II odaeld is Of opinion TINT it may for
ho reaso that, spite Of its charter. tho railway
ompany ia only common carrior, and TINT tho
ommon law applicable to common carriers is
lao pp'icable to them. They undor- F
ako, no matter what their chartor, I
ko al othor common carriers, "to I
arry OF reasonable compensation, mud to mako |
0 uni oasoua1le or unjust discrimination among
loao who doaire to employ them." Tlia is tho
OHM On law; which all who become common
aErie ra wt4othor railway corporations Or not,
70 ound BY This is as much part Of their
lar ors af IT inserted in them. Violating thiH
10y vlolat o their charters nnl tho state is war;
mt Cd in interfering. It will bo scon that AIr.
Cd Hold t oesn not question tho yarmouth College
&c iafon, but holds that tho principle tloro laid
o'Fh Isl modified in tho caao Of railway corpora
omH, By another equally undoniablo, viz; that
'nwaaJ corporations, Rs common carriers, eau
'u1Ea| only reasonable compensation, ind make
IN Just discrimination among thoHo who en-
oya lem. ;Mr. nodflold quotes Bomo eight or
mot ;aseH in which this principle has boon Affirm
!. It ia cloar, then, that, 10 far as railway
''a' within stnto, 1t may DO regulated AZ to It's
Vi ), it's taroy, and freigl,tB, by tho State.
J .A1ld how as to Interstate railways? Judge |
= 'dAod shows That 30 far aa these aro coll
. rncl, Congress-, although It doea not exercise
las, undor tho Consultation, tho power to
t .gu1ate tAom. The individual statos hAyo
10 powor to charter, build, or. control railways
? ally uithin their own limits Whom = railway
>Ayos tho Btato Ii whio1 1t orlginAtaa, II coaaoa