Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1886-05-14


one of the States or all the States
that FED the millions of people OF
this country before the new ones
we're developed till their soil has
been exhausted TO q point where
scarcely any profit comes from ITS
cultivation, and bring these in
competition with those OF the older
States that fed You when YOU were
babies, and pat the latter where
they can not get to market with
what they produce That is what
these seven words would do. They
would simply say that any product
from west of the Ohio or Missls-
Sippi Rivers should be put into
market ut lower rate OF freight
than any product that might be
grown in State that IS a thousand
miles nearer the market. That can
ONLY be sustained on one ground,
that there shall be no legislation
here save and except IN the inter
est of New York HarbOr and the
people of few cities who live
three thousand OF more miles from
it.
But. Mr.. President, there is one
section of this bill-if may call it
a section. for believe the sections
are not numbered, but it is page Il,
beginning at line 33-that has a
peculiar significance just now, IN
view of the freQuentalluslonS to the
law of Massachusetts. | hear 1t Is
section ,. That section changes the
common law and the statute law OF
nearly every State in this Union,
fixing the liability Of common car
riers of freight. Are you ready for
that9 Gentlemen should Sympa-
thize largely with their own constlt-
uents. Here You take away from
the States the little security they
have provided for themselves. l
never saw anything more adroltly
drawn than that section, and new
or would have noticed it but for the
fact that an eminent Senator here,
nv colleague, called my abortion
to it not over half an hour Iago.-
Here it is set forth in terms that
where there are Joint tariff contract
rates they may be published, or
must be published, by the different
Notwithstanding into those con
tracts. There is no provision for
lines connecting where this Joint
tarill contract is not entered INTO.
Suppose, then, you start on rail
road at one point and you encounter
another, and then another before
Won reach the harbor at which you
want to unload your freight. What
control have you over that middle
line of railroad which you make no
provision for in this section Z 1t is
free from all binding obligations
under this that you call law regu
lating interstate commerce. II there
we're three lines of railroad from
Memphis 20 Norfolk, and you we're
to start a carload Of cotton from
Memphis and land it upon this mid
die line and then again upon an
other. and there we're no contracts
between them, who is To say that
either the middle line or that which
had its terminus at Norfolk can not
charge what it shall please?
Then comes the joint contract ar
ranged between the railroad organ
izations of which the country shall
know nothing and the commission
shall be as ignorant of. | have
heard it said not only on this floor
but in general talk that the railroad
men of this body want this bill to
pass as it is. | am not surprised
TO hear it. If there be a railroad
man here, | say that | do not know
il. and when | make the statement
| only do it because ] heard these
things said off this floor as argu-
ments to influence vOtes-lf there
be a railroad man here, or a repre-
sentative of railroad interests, one
who so far f0rgets the representa-
five duties of one who represents n
constituency and not a railroad
ask him if he wants to vote against
the amendment Of the Senator from
West Virginia. l would be willing
TO risk the issue on that if Senators
who have made these declarations
and who have talked about the
question would just take their po-
sition on the amendment.
| said that this changed the com
mon law and the statute law OF the
States. should not expect an an
swer from either Of the Senators
from Massachusetts, we're ] to put
what | am going to say in interro.
eative form. | say that section ,
substantially repeats the statute OF
Massachusetts regulating the re-
sponsibilities of railroad carriers,
practically and eilectually. For
what this Congress proposes to do
now, it proposes to do in the exer-
else of a constitutional right which
is TO override the rights Of the
States in the control and manage
ment of the corporations that do
business across their territory.
Then there is a law, common as
well as statute, which makes com
mon carries the insurers Of freight
and of passengers only where there
is a wrongful act, neglect or default,
ON the part Of the company or some
gifts employees. You can hold them
responsible for injuries done not
only TO a man, but to a beast or to
the products of the earth, they are
held primd Caeia liable and no testl-
mOny is taken in court to prove
more than that the property was de-
stroyed excepting the act OF God
and the public enemy. This bill
gives corporations an opportunity
to ignore that law entirely. | do
not claim to be as old practitioner
as some of the Senators here, but l
am not afraid to lay down the prop
osition that this section does ef'
fectually what | say, and II you
leave in these words You will have
the support of every railroad presl'
dent and railroad director in the
United States.
Mr.. President, | listenad to the
argument Of the Senator from New
York Mr.. Miller that there Is a
remedy for all these things IN the
first section. lie pleads here all
the timein confession and avoidance.
lie confesses the possibility OF