The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-01-01
FREE TICKETS DECLARED
10 BE ILLEGAL,
Excepting Those Issued for Certain
Specified Glasses.
THESE LATTER THE COMMISSION
ARE STILL CONSIDERING.

The Exceptions Relate Only to Passes
Given to Persons Whose Business Re
quires Their Constant Presence on
Trains, and as Payment far Services
Rendered-The Decision, Therefore,
Virtually Does Away With the System
of Issuing Passes.
WASHINGTON, December 31.-The In
terstate Commerce Commission today
announced its decision in the railroad
pass case. The Boston d Maine Rail
road, in its answer, stated tlsat it was in
the habit Of giving passes as a business
feature of its administration to numer-
Gus classes of persons specified in the
answer, as follows:
Glass includes sick, necessitous or INDECENT
persons; in short, all cases of charity strictly.
Glass 2 includes gentlemen like Hon. James
". Bradbury long eminent in the public SER
vice.
Glass 3 includes the proprietors of summer
hotels and large boarding houses, conformahly
ii
railroads of New England.
Glass includes the wives of employees and
other immediate members OF employees fami-
lies.
Glass includes all agents of ice companies
and all milk contractors doing business on the
line of the Boston & Maine railroad, or any
part thereof, extending between any two states,
said agents and contractors travelling on the
lines III the conduct OF their business.
Class includes the higher officers of the
States OF Maine New Hampshire, Vermont,
I MnCcpphneft4C
Of the United States like collectors OF customs.
Glass Z includes the railroad commissioners
Of each of the States of Maine, New Hampshire
Vermont and Massachusetts
Class 8 includes members of the railroad
committees. for the time being. of the egiSla-
lures ofleach of the States of Maine, New Hamp-
shire, Vermont and Massachusetts,
Glass 8 includes trustees under mortgages on
the property OF the corporation, who are enti-
tied TO inspect its property by virtue Of the
deed or indenture constituting them trustees.
ClasSs TO- with schedules annexed, called
complimentary, includes persons whose good
viii IS important to the corporation, and who so
long as the general practice of railroads re-
mains what it now is, might justly take offense
ii in the matter of free transportation they
were to receive from the Boston q Maine rail-
road different treatment from that received
from other railroad corporations.
This concession imposed upon the
commission the duty of giving a con-
struction to the act to regulate COM
merce in respect to the righl of rail-
road company to give interstate passes
to such classes of persons. The com
mission met the question squarely and,
in the opinion, discusses the statute and
cites authorities at some length. 1T con-
cludes that branch Of the case in these
words "Without further citation OF
authority, the constitutions we give to
section 2 Of the act to regulate commerce
is that where the service Of q carrier sub
ject to the act is like and contempor-
aneous' for different passengers, a charge
to one of greater or less compensation
than to another constitutes an unjust
| discrimination and is unlawful. unless
the charge is OF such greater or less com
| pensation as is allowed under the eXcep-
| tions provided in section 3D. and where
traffic, under substantially similar Cir
cumstanceS and conditions in other re-
spects, is not rendered dissimilar with
in the meaning OF the statute by the fact
that such passengers hold unlike or, as
sometimes termed, official, social or bus
mess positions, or belong to different
classes as ordinarily exist in the commu-
nifty, CT are arbitrarily created by the
carrier
This would exclude the right to give
interstate passes to certain of the classes
specified in the answer which included
gentlemen eminent in the public ser
vice." the "higher officers of states
prominent officers of the United States, y
members of railroad legislative commit
tees" and persons whose good will is
important to the corporation" The other
classes of pass holders named in the an
swer, whose passes, though in form free
were free only in name, because in reality
there was some consideration for them,
such as those issued to newspaper me1
in exchange for advertising, to hote
proplietors, ice dealers and milL
are claimed to stand on speeia
ground of right. AS to these classes Of
persons, the commission says the investi
cation would have to be extended to en-
able it to pass satisfactory judgment
thereon. To avoid the delay whicl
proper and full inYc stioation of the class
es would OCCASION and in view Of theil
minor importance and yet perhaps great
er difficulty OF decision, and of tho llr
| gency that the defendant should be in
formed at this time OF the decision upor
the leading question involved; namely
the general construction of the statute
upon the subject of free transportation
the commission concluded to hole
the case as TO such special classes of per
sons for such further investigation az
might be necessary to put it in full pos
session of al facts before finally passing
upon them, and. in the meantime, to is
sue an order applicable to the classes
first named in accordancejwith the con
struction of the law ~ setforth, this be
ing pursuant to practice in other cases.
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