Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-01-08
TRANSPORTATION.
First Response by Congress to
the Demands of the Farmers.
A Bill 10 Declare Railroads Employ
ed i'm Commerce and to Regulate
FreiShts Thereon.
From the Cincinnati Gazette.

A Bill 10 Declare Railroads Employ
ed i'm Commerce and TO Regulate
FreiShts Thereon.
From the Cincinnati Gazette.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 5.-The House
Committee on Railways and Canals,
McCraig, Of Iowa, Chairman, has been
hard at work during the recess upon
the various features of the transporta-
ton question submitted to it by the
House. To-day it agreed upon bill,
which is the first response from the
standing committee of the House of
Representative to the demands of the
farmers. The bill provides as follows:
Section l declares that each and
every line Of railroad in the Union shall
be regarded as employed in commerce
among the several States.
Sec. ,. No such company, corpora
ton, or person operating line of rail
road shall charge, collect, demand, or
receive more than fair and reasonable
rate or toll or compensation for the
transportation Of passengers or freight,
TO be fixed as hereinafter provided.
Parties violating the law shall be held
liable for extOrtiOn.
Sec. 3 provides for the appointment
by the President, by and with the con-
sent of the Senate, Of n board of nine
railroad commissioners, one of whom
shall be a resident of each of the Judi
cial Circuits of the United States.
Such commissioners are prohibited
from being interested In any manner
in the stock or property of any trans
portatiOn company.
Sec. 4 fixes the compensation of
such commissioners and travelling ex-
penses.
Section. ), which comprises the main
features of the bill, is as follows: said
Board Of Railroad Commissioners shall
institute a thorough investigationIand
inquiry into the rates of toll and
the compensation charged for trans
porting freight and passengers over all
such lines Of railroads as are herein de-
scribed and designated, and into the
reasonableness thereof, and shall, as
soon as practicable after such investi-
CATION and inquiry, prepare for the
owners or operators of such line, except
such as may be omitted as hereinafter
provided, schedule of reasonable max
imum rates of charges for the trans
portatiOn Of passengers, and freight,
and cars on or over said lines. Said
schedules shall be duly authenticated
by said Board Of Commissioners, and
snail be printed and kept posted up in
each of the Offices and depOts Of such
railroad company, corporation, or per-
son. Each Commissioner shall certify
under his hand a printed or written
copy of every schedule, and of every
amendment 10 or revision of any sched-
ule affecting any line Of railroad ex-
tending into his circuit, and cause the
same to be filed IN the office of the Clerk
of the Circuit Court fo- his circuit. as
soon as possible after the completion
of such schedule, or of such amend
ment or revision; and such official copy,
when so filed, shall perceived and held
In all courts as conclusive evidence of
said schedules, whether original, amend
ed, oil revised, and all things therein
contained, and copies of the same, duly
certified from said Circuit Clerks of
fee, shall be received and read as evil
dence in any trial In any court to the
same extent as the original on file, and
from and after the fling Of such orig
inal amendment or revised schedules
IN the Clerks ctfioe, the railroad com
pany and ali oilers interested therein
shall be deemed affected by the notice
thereof, and of the contents of the
same, for the purpose of preventip o any
Investigation under this act; and for
the purpose Of ascertaining and fixing
such reasonable maximum rate Of
charges, said board shall have thep pow
er to administer oaths, to take testimo-
ny of witnes ses, and to send fOrpersOns
and papers, and to require the produc-
ton before them of books, records,
and papers; and for this purpose
they may issue processes which shall
be served by any Marshal or Deputy
Marshal of the United States; and, in
case any person summoned to appear
as a witness before said board shall fail
or refuse to appear, or if any person
required by said bOaad to produce be-
fore them any books, papers, or records
in his possession shall refuse to pro-
duce the same, 1t shall be the duty Of
the board forthwith to report the fact
to the nearest Judge Of the District or
Circuit Court of the United States,
who shall hear the matter summarily,
whether IN term time or vacation, and
sEan make such order IN the premises
as may be deemed proper to compel
such person to appear before said
board, and answer all proper questions,
and produce all proper books and re-
cords in his possession required by said
board, to be by him produced, and
which, IN the Judgment of the Court,
are proper evidence to be considered by
said board, and such Judge may en-
force his orders, and punish diSObe-
dience thereto as IN cases of contempt.
Said Commissioners may from time to
time, and 60 often as circumstances
may require, change and revise said
schedules, and shall give notice Of
such changes or revision IN the same
manner IS hereinbefore provided. The
schedules aforesaid shall not be deemed
invalid ON account OF any failure of the
| Commissioners preparing the same to
include therein all and every article or
class of freight, but shall be held to be
good and valid as to all articles or
classes which are included or embraced
therein. But it shall be the duty of
such Commissioners. whenever 1t comes
to their knowledge that any article or
class Of freight has been omitted from