The Leavenworth weekly times. [volume] (Leavenworth, Kan.) 1870-1880, 1878-12-19
RAILWAY LEGISLATION.

RAILWAY LEGISLATION.
Of Representatives 10 Prev emit DIS
elimination tn Freight Charges.
Mr.. REAGAN, OF Texas, having tie
floor, said:
The fourth section of the bill is one that
was objected 10 when II was up for debate
before, because it required that the State
schedules OF freight should be posted up as
a means Of comparison only, in order TO
prevent charging greater rates Of freight
| for interstate than for State commerce. In
asmuch as it seemed difficult for members
| to understand that this was not an interior
ence with State commerce, and as the COM
mittee we're very full and clear in their
convictions that We neither had the power
nor the right to interfere with State COM
merce, We thought We would avoid all Of
Tense by striking that out, and We made the
section read a. follows:
SEC 4. That 1t shalt be unlawful for any
person or persons engaged in the transporta-
ton of property, as provided in the first Sec
lion of this act, charge or receive any
greater compensation per car load of similar
4
warding, or handling the same for "A shorter
| than Tor "A longer distance in one continuous
carriage.
This is the section of the bill which some
gentlemen have conceived interfered with
competition. How, sir, is it possible that
it can interfere with free competition No
part OF the bill prescribes rates of freight TO
any company, whether they be high or low
| No part Of the bill requires any COMPARE
son OF rates OF freight between competing
companies or any two companies, whether
competing or not, so that each stands as
free aud independent as it Is to-day if the
bill should become law to charge its own
rates of freight, make them high or low as
its interest or competition may induce,
without interference by this law, being lin
tied only by the requirement that freight
shall be equal TO all persons, that there
shall be no drawbacks, and that like facili-
ties shall be extended to all business.
Mr.. PHILLIPS. Will the gentleman
Weld to me?
Mr.. REAGAN. l yield to the gentle
man Tor a question.
Mr.. PHILLIPS. l wish to ask the gen.
tleman from Texas If the effect OF this sec
ton will not be 10 compel the same rates
for freigh; carried thousand miles pro rata
a. for ten miles?
Mr.. REAGAN. am glsd the gentle
man from Kansas has asked the question,
as might possibly have omitted TO speak
on that point, and the question which he
asks me is one which has been asked by
others, and which | answer with 4 great
deal of please. There is no rate per mile
required to be charged. The only limita-
ton is that carload OF freight going fifty
miles shall not be required to pay more in
the gross than a carload of freight carried
hundred miles. And il the line Of trans
portation be one thousand mi!es-I will
meet precisely tine view which my friend
from Kansas hss-if the line of transporta-
ton be one Thousand miles long, and the
cost CT Transporting one carload OF freight
by that line be 800, all the bill provides
upon that subject is that no more shall be
charged for one hundred miles, or for five
hundred miles, than is charged for one
thousand miles. And right here let me
say, as touching the question as to the pre-
| vention of competition, we know and recOg-
nize the fact that railroads cannot carry
freight for short distances as cheaply as
they can carry them for long distances, and
We 50 leave the bill as to give them the
whole margin of distance. For instance,
on line of carriage for thousand miles
we allow them to charge, if they see proper
to do so, as much for carrying a carload Of
freight one hundred miles as for carrying
it one thousand miles but We say, Seen
tlemen, you cannot do more than this"
You cannot take a course that oompels
people to ship their commodities away
from the market in order to get start for
cheap transportation back to the market
You cannot do under this bill az has been
done heretofore at Pittsburgh, where freight
has been carried down the Ohio River five
hundred and forty miles to Cincinnati, and
there put upon competing lines Of railroad
and brought back through Pittsburgh and
carried to Philadelphia or New York cheap
er than it could have been carried directly
from Pittsburgh 10 New York or Pbiladel-
phia.
Mr.. PHILLIPS. Will the gentleman
allow me to ask him another question?
Mr.. REAGAN. Certainly with pleas
ure.
Mr.. PHILLIPS. Will not the effect of
this section be to prevent a company or a
man who ships we will say a hundred car
loads of cattle from Kansas City from max
ing a rate of freight al which he can carry
his cattle through the State? Will he not
have to pay the same rates for long dis
tances in The State as for short distances?
Mr.. REAGAN. am glad the gentleman
has asked that question, and will endeav-
or to answer it. In the first section OF this
bill We define what interstate commerce il
and in subsequent sections We limit the op-
erations of the bill to interstate commerce
And then in the last section OF the bill We
expressly exclude from the operation Of the
bill all State commerce. We expressly re-
pudiate in the last section of the bill the
idea that We can interfere with State COM
merce.
Now, that being done, cannot under
stand how it can be possible that local
roads can have anything to do with inter
state commerce in the sense in which l
understand the gentleman from Kansas
Mr.. Phillips to refer to it.
Mr.. EDEN. | would like to ask the
gentleman a question.
Mr.. REAGAN. Certainly.
Mr.. EDEN. II is whether railroad COM
panies cannot overcome all the obstacles
provided in the fourth section of the bill
by charging higher rates for shipping from
the leading points and thereby continue
the rates they now charge at the interme-
diate points? Il there anything in the
bill to prevent that?
Mr. REAGAN. There is nothing in the
bill to determine what rates shall be
charged on through route. 1t was our
express intention not to adopt any provis-
ion in the bill that could embarrass the
railroads in the management Of their busi-
ness in any legal manner.
Mr.. EDEN. Then the probability is
that under this bill, instead OF rates being
reduced at the intermediate points, between
New York and Chicago for instance, the
roads will simply increase the rates between
those two points 40 that they may continue
the rates at the intermediate points.
Mr.. REAGAN. There is much in what
the gentleman from Illinois Mr.. Edenl
says; and do not wish anybody to vote on
this bill ~ithout fully understanding its
object and intent One great object Of this
bill is that 1t shall aid in preventing these