New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-07-27
THE RAILROAD PROBLEM IN CALI
FORNIA.
WORK OF THE COMMISSION.


| IRON AN OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT oFTHE TRIBUNE.
| SAN Francisco July IL, 1888.
Your readers should be interested in the railroad
agitation which has been renewed in California, il
only because it illustrates the tendencies and result;
of kind of popular action the general adoption OF
which has often been recommended, The makers
of the new Constitution of this State undertook tc
settle the railroad question, and to do so in the
| supposed interests of the people. Several unsuc-
cessfu attempts had previously been made to enact
stringent reguative statutes. They had all failed
The conservative view was that they were unreas-
| enable and oppressive. The extremist view was that
the Legislature had been hired to reject them The
majority of the Constitutional Convention held the
| latter opinion and consequently were determined
| not to trust any other legislative body with the
| work of railroad regulation. 80 they created a
| Railroad Commission. TO consist of three members.
elected by districts and holding Office for four years.
| and TO this Commission they gave plenary powers.
The Commission was directed to " establish IA ties of
charges for the transportation of passengers and
| freight by railroad or other transportation COM
| panies. and publish the same from time to time
with such changes as they may make :" and to avoid
| embarrassment il was further provided n the Con-
stitutlon that In the event of controversy " the
rates of fares and freights established by said Com
mission shall be deemed conclusively just and
reasonable"
One effect of this new plan was to render the can
vass for Railroad Commissioners a competition in
ierceness of regulatlve promises. The Constitution
carefully excluded from these Offices all persons pos
sessing any practical knowledge of the railroad
business Itinsisted that ignorant persons should
be chosen And 1t operated that ignorant persons.
though endowed with judicial functions, were
compelled to pledge themselves in advance upon a
question concerning which they had no information.
The first Commission consisted of General Stone
man. j. p Cone, a wealthy banker and farmer from
the Interior and Beerstecher. friend and colleague
of Denis Kearney. Stoneman made some feeble
and spasmodc efforts to reduce fares and freghts.
He was too indoent to master the question, and so
1t happened that when his proposals were Analysed
il was shown that they would have Increased in
stead of reducing The charges In many cases. His
colleagues refused to accept his plans He. however
made political capital out of them, and the mem-
bers of the Commission. who would not act in the
absence Conformation, were denounced as railroad
hIrelinQsn Stoneman was brought forward by the
Democrats for Governor last year, and was elected
over Estee the Republican nominee, though the
latter was by far the most radical in his promises
of vengeance upon the corporations. The
Railroad Commission elected with Stoneman. is
composed Of two conservative aud one demagogue
member The former are c. j. Carpenter, "a country
The latter is w. w. FOote, young Oakland lawyer
who is believed to harbor Congressional aspirations.
After the election some imDrudent foolish people
and newspapers asserted that il was really railroad
victory. because the Democrats had been less out
spoken than the Republicans in their hostility TO
the railroads. Perhaps the Republican politicians
believed this and perhaps the Democratic politicians
were ANXIOUS that it should not be believed. Bnt
the result was that pressure was brodght upon the
new Commission to make 1T take swift and extreme
action. Foote had promised, IN the campaign. TO
reduce railroad rates forty per cent. He began by
offering a resolution making three cents the
mum passenger rate His colleagues, both of whom
have hitherto borne the reputation of honest men,
demurred to tins sweeping reduction, and proposed
to take testimony on both sides. At first FoOte
agreed to this aud testimony taken. But
meantime the outside pressure had assumed more
violent form, and FOote yielded TO it, and
Stonemans old role as the one faithful among the
faithless found" Public meetings held, and
the two conservative Commissl oners denounced
hercely ana called upon TO resign. They. however,
went on with their exam nation of the rallIoad
question, and presently announced a reduction Of
passenger rates 10 four cents IN the valleys, and
cents mile in the mountains and on the deserts
This reduction appears TO have been at least more
reasonable than any previous reguatlve effort, and
II was accompanied by demand upon the cOmpa-
mes show cause why certain specific reductions
in freight rates should not also be made.
here the rests for the moment The railroads
are not satisfied. The pubic not satisfied. And
two out of three of the Railroad Commissioners are
being turiousy abused because they would not
contscate the property OF the corporations
bndly and without investigation. There is, now
over. q certain significance about the agitation
which will at once be recognized by all VINO rave
witnessed similar phenomena. The meetings
which have been held 70 denounce the Commissions
eis nave been almost enlireiy engineered and at
tended by politicians. Iho movement against the
railroads is ostensby based upon concern Tor the
mercantile community, which l. alleged to BE- Cp-
pressed and vlctimIZed. But up the present time
the merchants and shippers have been g cOnspicu-
Gus by their absence" at these meetings, while he
orators, and cnarmen and merchantmen have been
well known place-hunlers and professional can-
pagn-makers. And this fact Illusi the ten
dency OF all the ant-railroa1 agtaons IN Cal,or-
MA Both before since the adoption OF the new
Constitution they have been partisan lodges
rather than the expressions OF real popular feeling
Whenever In the Legislatures the railroads were
allowed 10 present t1er side of the case dspaSsIOn
ateIy they had the best of the argument. Then il
was said thas they possessed an unfair advantage,
because they understood the question, while tneIr
opponents did not, Singulary enough, il was |
perceived that this very tact constituted a |
formidable reason for RETAINING from nasty action
But the Constitutional Convention undertook to |
10 the corporations, and III fact the extremists all
along have insisted that they should lie condemned
unheard. AT present the Republican poll ,IcIans, |
Ia0orng under the belief that tue railroads caused
their defeat last year. seem determined 10 aveDge |
themselves by forcing the Democratic Comm ssi0n |
TO fulfil the pledges OF Its party. Meantime the |