Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-01-09
IRON HIGHWAYS.
A Notable Speech by Judge
Cooley.
THE ROADS AND INTERSTATE LAW
Where Reforms Are Needed-Passen
ger Traffic Rates-Cali-
fOrnia Lines.
/ Associated Press DISPATCHES to the HERALD

Associated Press DISPATCHES TO the HERALD
BosToN, January S.-The annual
dinner of the Boston Merchants Associa-
ton, which took place here this evening
in the Hotel Vendome, proved an occa-
sion of unusual significance. Among the
invited guests were Chairman Cooley, of
the Interstate Commerce Commission,
Professor Ely, Of John Hopkins Uni
versity, Francis B. Thurber, Governor
Ames, President Capen, of TUFTS Col
lege, General Francis A. Walker, Josiah
Benton, Jr., and General P. Banks. After
dinner Coordination and Competition"
and allied subjects were announced as
the topic for discussion. Judge Cooley
was the first speaker. He said, in part:
An urgent call for the modification of
the Interstate Act, which comes from
railroad circles has sprung up rece ntly.
The period during which the law operated
the most to the benefit of the railroads
was precisely that during which its pro-
visions were best observed. Think that
an undeniable fact, and if it is, it is de-
serving of more attention than up to this
| time it has received from the managers
of railroads. 1t was also the period dur
| ing which the law was complained of the
least. There are very vigorous COM
plants now. They relate mainly to the
clause OF the act which forbids a greater
charge on a shorter haul on the same
line in the same direction where the cir
cumstances and conditions are similar,
nd 1,otx f,,l
The first mentioned clause em bodies q
principle, right in itself. In large Sec
tions of the country the roads have come
into conformity with it, and not suffered
loss from doing 80. In others it is not
practicable to do SO, at least Immediately,
but the difficulties will diminish as the
managers come to better understand
ing among themselves.
| WHAT THE LAW INTENDS.
The law intends that the railroad
business of the country shall be done
openly and with full publicity. This
equal and just purpose is defeated by
contrivances that are clearly opposed to
the intent of the law, if not to its terms.
Now, when parties are thus busy in con-
triving methods for rendering the law of
no effect, and their evasions of its pur-
poses are seen to have a direct tendency
to diminish their corporate revenues,
they are hardly the parties to put them
selves upon the stand to prove that the
law is injuriDg their roads. | must
insist that the argument now
made for pooling is radically unsound
and vicious, because it rests upon an
assumption that the violation of the law
by one is a justification for it's violation
by another. The sentiment in railroad
circles on this subject is not only op-
posed to sound public morality, but it
necessarily tends to the perpetuation of
every evil under which the roads are
now suffering. Pooling with legal sane
tion would have all the elements of
W eakness that attended the old pooling,
except one. When a pool, as it used to
be formed, broke up, there was no en-
forcing such obligations as had been in
Cured while it existed; there was no
compelling the payment OF balances.
With legalized pooling there might be
power to do this. Pools antagonize a
leading and most valuable principle of
industrial life in their attempt not to
curb competition merely, but to put an
end to it. All these things 20 to show
SOMETHING ELSE NEEDS REFORMING
Besides the law. One who investigates
railroad disorders will be surprised to
find how many of them, though plainly
opposed to the spirit of the law, may
still be practiced legally. A crying evil
in the railroad service is the combination
between the scalper and unscrupulous
general passenger agent; this will be
broken up just as soon as there are ap-
piled in railroad matters the maxims of
business prudence which are expected to
control in other interests. If comhi-
nation in the position of two characters
the railroad manager, in whatever
official position, and the speculator in
railroad stock-could be rendered i'm.
possible, the question of what is right
and what is wrong in railroad managers
would be heard good deal oftener than
it is now, and the question, what can be
done in the evasion of law without en-
countering it's penalties, a good deal
more infrequently,